Last modified: 2002-05-31 by santiago dotor
Keywords: germany | mecklenburg-west pomerania | mecklenburg-vorpommern | west pomerania | pomerania | vorpommern | law | oxhead (black) | griffin (red) | coat of arms | star: 8 points (faceted) |
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![[State Flag (Mecklenburg-West Pomerania, Germany)]](../images/d/de-mv_s.gif)
3:5 
| stripes 4+3+1+3+4
by Marcus Schmöger
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Mecklenburg-West Pomerania (Mecklenburg-Vorpommern) is a German [Federal] State, formed in 1945 by unification of the [Federal] State of Mecklenburg and that part of the Prussian province of Pomerania (Provinz Pommern), which remained German. In 1952 split into counties, re-established in 1990.
Carsten Linke, 2 May 1996
The English name is officially Mecklenburg West Pomerania, according to an e-mail from the Staatskanzlei (office of the prime minister).
Marcus Schmöger, 17 September 2001
![[Civil Flag (Mecklenburg-West Pomerania, Germany)]](../images/d/de-mv_c.gif)
3:5 
| stripes 4+3+1+3+4
by Marcus Schmöger
The Land (civil) flag is blue-white-yellow-white-red (4:3:1:3:4).
From contributions by David Lewellen, 1995; Pascal Vagnat, 19 December 1995 and Carsten Linke, 2 May 1996
The Landesflagge (civil flag) is striped horizontally blue-white-yellow-white-red. The drawing attached to the law shows the proportion to be 3:5, the relation of the width of the stripes to be approximately 4:3:1:3:4. However, this relation is not prescribed in the text of the law, and the drawing is in my humble opinion not exact enough. Relying on the drawing the relation would be 57:45:12:45:57, which seems a bit odd. So I made a GIF with the relations 4:3:1:3:4. The exact colours are also unclear: the law says ultramarinblau (ultramarine blue) and zinnoberrot (vermillion), but such designations are not defined anywhere. I used medium blue and red as a first approximation.
Sources:
Marcus Schmöger, 17 September 2001
3:5 | stripes 4+3+1+3+4
by Marcus Schmöger
The state flag is blue-white-yellow-white-red (4:3:1:3:4), with a bull's head and a griffin on the white stripe, the yellow strip being interrupted. I find that the choice of a flag with a yellow stripe on a white one was not a good one. Proportions 3:5. (...) The colours combine the blue-yellow-red flag of Mecklenburg and the light blue-white flag of Pomerania.
From contributions by David Lewellen, 1995; Pascal Vagnat, 19 December 1995 and Carsten Linke, 2 May 1996
The Dienstflagge (state flag) is the same as the civil flag but adds the symbols from the coat-of-arms in the centre: a black ox head for Mecklenburg, a red griffin for Pomerania. The thin yellow stripe is interrupted to provide space for the two symbols. The ox head is on the hoist side, the griffon on the fly side. Sources: as above for the civil flag.
Marcus Schmöger, 17 September 2001
![[Vertical Civil Flag (Mecklenburg-West Pomerania, Germany)]](../images/d/de-mv_cv.gif)
5:2
![[Vertical State Flag (Mecklenburg-West Pomerania, Germany)]](../images/d/de-mv_sv.gif)
5:2
both by Marcus Schmöger
The proportion of the vertical version is not prescribed, but I drew it as 5:2, as this is the most frequently used proportion of vertical flags in Germany. When the state flag is used in a vertical form, the ox head and griffin stand upright, the ox head over the griffin. I made a GIF according to this description, the two symbols somewhat shifted to the top. I have not seen any illustration of this variant in any of the sources (see above for the civil flag), my image is just a reconstruction.
Marcus Schmöger, 17 September 2001
![[Car Flag for Authorities (Mecklenburg-West Pomerania, Germany)]](../images/d/de-mv^pm.gif)
1:1 | stripes 4+7+4
by Marcus Schmöger
The flag for the Minister-Präsident is square blue on white on red fimbriated yellow. On the white stripe appear the bull's head and the griffin. The proportions of the flag is 30cm x 30cm, and for a Minister 25cm x 25cm. [Source: Flag Act 15th August 1991.]
Pascal Vagnat, 19 December 1995
Minister-president and president of the local parliament: blue-white-red with the ox head and the griffin on the white strip and a yellow border around the flag, dimensions 30 × 30 cm. For the minister[s?], same flag but dimensions 25 × 25 cm. Source: personal and legal archives, with legislation and official documents from the German Länder, as well as the informations of Jürgen Rimann, the best German specialist for all the car flags in the world and a very reliable source.
Pascal Vagnat, 1 August 1999
The law and the regulation [see under civil flag] mention a car flag (Standarte für Dienstfahrzeuge) for some authorities. This is a square flag of blue-white-red horizontal stripes (relation 4:7:4) with the ox head and griffin in the centre. Around the flag there is a yellow border or fringe. The illustration in the law shows it as a yellow border; however, I think it should be a fringe. The car flag is used by the Ministerpräsident (prime minister) and the Landtagspräsident (speaker of parliament) in the size 30 × 30 cm, by the Minister (ministers) in the size 25 × 25 cm. Sources: as above for the civil flag.
Marcus Schmöger, 17 September 2001
I guess the key question here is, does the illustration in the law show this yellow stripe also along the hoist? If it does, it is a border. If it does not, it is a fringe.
Santiago Dotor, 18 September 2001
I will soon contact Jürgen Rimann, who is the German expert on car flags. I made the image according to the law; in the law the border/fringe is also on the hoist side, but I don't think that this does prove it is a border, not a fringe; it is just a hint. There are so many mistakes/uncertainties in official texts on flags in Germany, that it is difficult to find out.
Marcus Schmöger, 18 September 2001
The law, called Verordnung über die Führung der Landeswappen, der Landessiegel, der Amtsschilder und der Standarten ("Rules on the Use of the State's Arms, Seal, Office Shields and Standards") is dated 15th August 1991 (official Land paper of 30th August 1991).
Pascal Vagnat, 19 December 1995
![[Coat of Arms (Mecklenburg-West Pomerania, Germany]](../images/d/de-mecoa.gif)
by Carsten Linke
Quarterly: 1st and 4th (Mecklenburg): Or, an ox head Sable, horned Argent, langued Gules, crowned Or; 2nd (Pomerania): Argent, a griffin Gules, armed Or; 3rd (Brandenburg): Argent, an eagle Gules, armed Or. It was adopted in 1991.
[The are two ox heads because] for centuries Mecklenburg was divided into two duchies: Mecklenburg-Schwerin and Mecklenburg-Strelitz. Both used the same flag and coat of arms. [The Brandenburg coat-of-arms appears because] after abolishing the States in 1952, the German Democratic Republic established counties with slightly different borders, and the 1990 rebirth of the States was based on these new borders. Therefore some former Brandenburgian territories now belong to Mecklenburg-West Pomerania.
Carsten Linke, 2 May 1996
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