What are the colors of Canadian provincial flags?

Provincial and territorial flags differ widely in colour and design, with each drawing on local heritage rather than a national template. The flags fall into three rough groups: heraldic banners that put a coat of arms on a coloured field, Canadian-pale designs that mirror the national triband, and abstract designs based on natural or geographic features.

Heraldic banners include Ontario's red field with the Union Jack and the Ontario shield (adopted 1965), Manitoba's red field with the Union Jack and the Manitoba shield (1966), and British Columbia's defaced banner of the colony's arms with the Union Jack and a setting sun (1960). Quebec's fleur-de-lys flag, the Fleurdelisé (1948), uses a white cross on an azure field with four white fleurs-de-lys, the oldest currently flown provincial flag and a direct reference to the historic Bourbon flag of royal France.

Canadian-pale designs flank a coloured central panel with two outer bands. Alberta uses an azure field with the provincial coat of arms (1968). Saskatchewan flies a horizontal split of green over gold with the provincial shield and western red lily (1969). New Brunswick puts the provincial shield (a galley over wavy lines) on a yellow field with red bars (1965). Prince Edward Island uses a banner of arms with red bars on the fly (1964).

Abstract or pictorial designs include Newfoundland and Labrador's blue, white, red, and gold composition designed by artist Christopher Pratt (1980), Nova Scotia's blue saltire on white (the oldest provincial flag in current use, dating to 1858), and Nunavut's gold-and-white field with a red inukshuk and blue North Star (1999). The territorial flags of Yukon (1968) and the Northwest Territories (1969) round out the set.