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How to place the flags in official and corporate events

The flag constitutes one of the main symbols of a nation, community, province, municipality and both public and private institutions, so it is essential to locate them according to the protocol.

How to place the flags at official events

There is no encounter, meeting, reception, or any other type of event where the flags do not appear, whether within the international, national, regional or local scope. The term used to define the study of flags is known as «vexillology».

Main aspects to take into account to take into account when placing the flags

1. The flag is always placed to the right of the place of honor or center point. Therefore, in front of an auditorium, the central point will be able to visualize it on your left. In the case of being placed in front of a building, it is located leaving it to its right, and if a balcony is used, it is done on the right window.

2. With regard to the national flag of a country, in all cases it occupies the place of honor and must always occupy the place of greatest importance, that is, the one of maximum prominence. And as in the case of precedents, they are placed from highest to lowest importance. If there are other flags, other than foreign countries, they must be the same or smaller than the national one, on the other hand, since they are flags of a series of countries, they must all be identical, due to the principle of equality of the states.

3. Embassies can place the flag of their country, without the need to do it next to the local flag. Looking down the street, the flag of the embassy is located on the left and that of the host country to the right.

4. In the case of foreign companies based in a country, they must request authorization to place their flag, both having to fly (host country and own country) as necessary. Leaving the building to the right is the flag of the local country and to the left that of the country itself.

5. Three kinds of flags can be set:

-Indoor flags: In this case the size of the flag and its pole is smaller than when talking about an outdoor flag.

-Outdoor flags: The outdoor flags can be placed on a balcony or on the pole in a vertical position. In both cases, its measurements are greater than the indoor flags. The same happens with the balcony and vertical mast, the latter being in turn greater than the first.

-Cermony flags: They are those that carry a person in a special ceremony.

6. As a general rule, official flags should only be used at events when they are organized by the authorities or when they attend events organized by non-official institutions. On the other hand, official and private flags should not fly together, in these cases the establishment of two groups of flags (official and unofficial) is recommended .

Different ways of placing the flags

Even number of flags

In this case, the flag of the presiding country is placed to the right of the central point, place of honor, presidency or facade of the building (left of the viewer), and then to the left are located the remaining ones according to the alphabetical order of the countries that form part of the ceremony. For this, the official language of the host country is used.

Odd number of flags

Being an odd number, the flags are placed to the right of the presidential table in the case of an act or in front of a building, leaving it. The central place will be occupied by the flag of the country that presides and then they are located from right to left in an interleaved way that of the countries according to their alphabetical order. The official language for the ordinance is that of the host country. In the case of being a national flag, another provincial and an institutional one, the national flag is placed in the center, the provincial one to its right and the institutional one to its left.

Single line of flags

The flags are placed in a single line when the entrance is lateral, being located on the right side of it (to the left of the spectator).

Double line of flags

The entrance to the place is centered, which allows the symmetrical location of the flags on both sides of it. That is, two equal lines starting and ending with the same flag.

National flag with a country as a guest

We can find bilateral events in which we have a country as a guest, for which in an exceptional way the host country gives its central point to the flag of the visiting country. In that case, two flags of the host country are placed escorting the flag of the guest country.

European Union flag

At the headquarters in Brussels, the flag of the European Union opens and closes the line of flags of the member countries. The countries are arranged in alphabetical order, this list always being headed by the country currently presiding over the European Union. In the countries of the European Union, it is only mandatory in venues that have to do with the European Union.

United Nations flag

The United Nations (UN) flag must be displayed only at the headquarters of this organization in each country, and at those events in which it actively participates or is promoted by this organization. At its headquarters, the flags are placed in alphabetical order based on the English language.

Olympic flag

The Olympic flag must be included in all those events in which the International Olympic Committee participates and in those organized or promoted by this institution. At the IOC headquarters the flags are placed in alphabetical order, based on the English language.

The national flag serves to represent the country abroad, but also as a representation of citizens or the government in the country itself and is one of the most important symbols that a nation has.