The Kingdom of Bhutan

The National Flag of Bhutan

The Bhutanese, locally, use the name "Druk" for their nation. The Druk itself is the "Thunder Dragon." Bhutan has been an independent nation in the Himalayas for centuries, with a short spell under British influence. The nation finally instituted its first national flag in 1949 with the signing of the Indo-Bhutan Treaty. It was a bi-colour square, divided diagonally, with a green Druk (Dragon) placed at the centre of the flag. The dragon was green, to copy the tradition of "The Turquoise Dragon."

In 1956, the green dragon was replaced with white, but the flag retained the yellow and red halves which where split diagonally. The yellow represents the robes of the Druk Gyalpo (Dragon King) who traditionally wears yellow. The red represents the fact that the nation is governed from the feet of the King. Also, the colours follow the civic and monastic traditions of the nation. The white of the dragon represents a unity of purpose in many peoples that make up the people of Bhutan.

In the late 1950's, an Indian political officer commented that the Bhutanese flag did not flutter as well as the Indian flag, which resulted in the flag being re-designed from a square to a rectangle. The lower red was replaced with orange, and the Druk was orientated so rather than lying across the flag, it lay along the divide between the yellow and orange, so now he faces upward.

The yellow represents the Druk Gyalpo and civil tradition, with the orange representing the monastic traditions of Bhutan. The white on the dragon represents the equality of the many people in Bhutan. The dragon was re-orientated to face upwards. This was to prevent the Druk being forced to look down when the flag is slumped.