What If the Scottish Flag Looked Like...

Created by reddit user JMASTERS_01The picture above while not a map is too good to pass up. It looks at what Scotland’s flag might look like in the style of other country’s flag designs.

As a Canadian I like the Canadian design, although I think it’s tough to argue that anything beats the Scottish version of the Welsh flag.

Here’s a bit more about them

1. The “Welsh‐Style” Scottish Flag

Wales’ Flag: A horizontal bicolor of white (top) and green (bottom) with a large red dragon at the center.
Scottish Emulation: Instead of green, the designer has used Scotland’s signature blue. In place of the red Welsh dragon, there’s a unicorn, which the national animal of Scotland.

2. The “Canadian‐Style” Scottish Flag

Canada’s Flag: Two vertical red bars on either side of a white field, with a red maple leaf centered.
Scottish Emulation: The design swaps Canada’s red bars for blue bars, keeping the central white panel intact. Instead of Canada’s maple leaf, it features a prominent thistle (Scotland’s national flower).

3. The “Sri Lankan‐Style” Scottish Flag

Sri Lanka’s Flag: A maroon field featuring a gold lion brandishing a sword, bordered by yellow. There’s a pair of vertical color stripes (green and orange) at the hoist, representing different communities within Sri Lanka.
Scottish Emulation: The new design replaces Sri Lanka’s maroon background and central lion with a color scheme more reflective of Scotland (often blue and white), but retains the lion motif (in this case, the Scottish lion rampant).

4. The “Spanish‐Style” Scottish Flag

Spain’s Flag: A horizontal tricolor of red–yellow–red with Spain’s coat of arms off‐centered (toward the hoist) on the yellow band.
Scottish Emulation: In this concept, the tricolor becomes blue–white–blue, reflecting Scotland’s national colors. The coat of arms in the central stripe is switched to the Scottish Royal Arms.

About Scotland’s Flag (the Saltire)

Name & Appearance: Often called the Saltire or St. Andrew’s Cross. It features a white diagonal cross (“saltire”) on a blue field.
History: Reputedly one of the oldest flags in continuous use in Europe, with legends tracing it back to an early battle in the 9th century. Saint Andrew, Scotland’s patron saint, was said to have been crucified on an X‐shaped cross; hence the white “saltire” shape symbolizes his cross.
Symbolism & Usage: The simple but striking diagonal cross design is strongly identified with Scottish identity. It appears not only on the national flag but also forms part of the UK’s Union Flag (together with the Crosses of St. George for England and St. Patrick for Ireland).

More What If Scottish Flags:

Here’s more on the flags above:

1) The “Cyprus‐Style” Scottish Flag

Flag of Cyprus:
- A white background displaying the outline of the island in a coppery‐orange color (representing the island’s copper deposits).
- Two green olive branches underneath symbolizing peace.
Scottish Emulation:
- Retains the same minimalist layout, replacing Cyprus’s island silhouette with Scotland’s geographic outline (in blue rather than copper).
- The pair of branches remains beneath, mirroring the olive branches but reflecting Scottish symbolism.

2) The “Saudi Arabia‐Style” Scottish Flag

- Flag of Saudi Arabia:
  - A green field with the white Islamic shahada (creed) in stylized Arabic script.
  - A sword beneath the inscription.
- Scottish Emulation:
  - A blue field (in place of Saudi green).
  - The Arabic text is replaced by Scotland’s historic royal motto—“In my defens God me defend”—set in a similarly stylized script.
  - The sword beneath evokes the original flag’s layout but nods to Scottish arms.

3) The “California‐Style” Scottish Flag

Flag of California (the “Bear Flag”):
- A white field with a grizzly bear walking on green grass, a red stripe along the bottom, and a red star in the top left.
- “California Republic” in bold letters.
Scottish Emulation:
- The brown bear is swapped for Scotland’s heraldic unicorn (the national animal).
- The text is replaced with “Kingdom of Scotland,” echoing the same placement and typeface style.
- The red star is changed to a small Scottish heraldic device (the lion rampant shield).
- The layout (white background, green ground, text along the bottom) matches California’s design.