Flag of Hong Kong

What the flag of Hong Kong looks like

The regional flag of Hong Kong has a plain red field with a white stylized flower of the Hong Kong orchid tree (Bauhinia × blakeana) in the middle. The flower has five petals, arranged like a pinwheel and turning clockwise. Each petal contains a small five-pointed red star and a thin red line that suggests a stamen. The ratio is 2:3.

The bauhinia idea came from the Hong Kong architect Tao Ho, who was a judge in the flag contest. The design of the flag is enshrined in the Basic Law, the constitution of the region, and rules on its use are set out in the Regional Flag and Regional Emblem Ordinance. The Hong Kong flag emoji shows it in a small size.

Hong Kong flag meaning and symbolism

The red background is the same red as the flag of China and stands for the motherland. The white flower represents Hong Kong. The flower is the Hong Kong orchid tree (Bauhinia × blakeana), a flower first discovered in Hong Kong, shown in white on the flag. Red is also a festive color for the Chinese people.

The five stars on the petals repeat the five stars of the Chinese national flag. According to the explanation given to the National People's Congress by Ji Pengfei before adoption, the stars symbolize that all Hong Kong compatriots love their motherland, the design implies that Hong Kong is an inalienable part of China and prospers in its embrace, and the red and white colors embody the principle of "one country, two systems".

History of the Hong Kong flag

Hong Kong was ceded to Britain under the Treaty of Nanking after the First Opium War. The British colonial flag, used from 1870 to 1997, was a Blue Ensign with a badge on the fly. The badge changed over time, and the last version, showing the territory's coat of arms granted in 1959, was used from 1959 until the handover in 1997. This is the old flag of Hong Kong, sometimes called the British Hong Kong flag.

Under the Sino-British Joint Declaration of 1984, sovereignty over Hong Kong passed to China on 1 July 1997. A flag contest was held among Hong Kong residents in 1987-88, but the Chinese government rejected the six finalists and asked for new proposals. The bauhinia design was unveiled on 4 April 1990 at the National People's Congress, and the current design was approved on 10 August 1996 by the Preparatory Committee. The flag was first hoisted just after midnight on 1 July 1997, together with the Chinese flag.

The flag is a regional flag, not a national one. It is flown alongside the flag of China at official occasions. The same flower appears on the regional emblem.

Why Hong Kong has its own flag

Hong Kong is a special administrative region of China, with a separate legal and economic system. Because of that, it keeps its own flag, currency, customs territory and sports teams, and is a member of organizations such as the World Trade Organization. It is not a sovereign state, and foreign governments deal with it as part of China in matters of diplomacy and defense. The Chinese national flag is used for national occasions. Many people ask about Hong Kong with Macau, the other special administrative region, which has its own green flag with a white lotus.