In Vexillological Circles, Shields are not the most common feature of a flag. Although there are several National Flags that bear shields (Belize, Croatia, Fiji, Egypt, Kenya, Montenegro, Portugal, Spain, Slovenia, Slovakia, and Serbia), none of those flags bear a shield which spans the flag from top to bottom. As a result of this vexillological feature being rare or non-existent in flags, such a pattern is as-of-yet unnamed, to the best of my research1.
I have spent an embarrasingly long time making flags for fictional countries, organisations, and individuals in a world I’ve been building for close to 8 years. One motif that I created, that has showed up now several times across this world (specifically in one Nation) is the idea of a flag with a sharp, shield design separating the left and right sections of the flag. Consistent with rectangularly divided tricolours, I assumed that this flag division was a form of Pale, however I have been unable to find a name for this pattern.
Therefore, I propose naming this new pattern as-of-yet unfound on worldwide flags (again, to my knowledge). And I propose such a pattern to be named the “Shield Pale”.
Definition
Shield Pale
Me (jabic Feser, 2025)
A vertical section often intended to evoke the form of a Shield, found on a vertically partitioned tri-section flag, which makes contact with an extended portion of the top edge of a flag, and contact with the bottom edge of the flag at only one point, usually the centrepoint of the bottom edge.
The Shield Pale is not defined in how it acts between the top and bottom of the flag. In the examples found below in the Gallery below, several example template (given in the style of Wikipedia’s Basic Pattern Flag Templates), there are examples where the “Shield” has rounded edges, a triangular shape, or a sharp-cornered shield design. The important part isn’t the shape, unlike regular Pales, who’s identity is built on their rectangular-ness, it’s the function & vibe.
Use Case
The addition of the “Shield Pale” to vexillological terminology may have several positive effects. Primarily, it would give Vexillologists around the world a new term to better describe the flags they see around themselves in the world. However, the addition of this vocabulary word may also open up new flag designers to the idea of creating flags containing Shield Pales, as many novice flag designers interested in the topic from a taxonomical viewpoint (A group which I was defenitely a member of), often find themselves attempting to create new flags using divisions and basic patterns commonly found in articles, pamphlets, or other resources. This was how I first began designing flags. The addition of the Shield Pale to common Vexillological Lexicon would simply add one more tool for such designers to create varied and interesting flags.
Shield Pale Gallery
The following is a selection of Flags I’ve made (Including Flag Type Templates) using the Shield Pale.
Sources
- Glossary of Vexillology – Wikipedia
- Country Flags with Shields – Countryflags
- The Canadian Pale – Wikipedia
- Parts of a Flag – The Flag and Banner
- Rennian Flags – Wiki Balkavani
Citation details:
Author: Jabic Feser
Page Title: The Shield Pale: An Innovation in Vexillological Terminology
Site Name: Jabic -
Link: https://balkavanians.com/the-shield-pale-an-innovation-in-vexillological-terminology
Date Published (DMY): 26/01/2025
- Admittedly, my Research could very well be lacking, and I would likely have no idea. I was tired when writing this article, and was tired when verifying that nobody had beaten me to naming this Feature. ↩︎