Flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina

Used by Stjepan II Kotromanic.

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  Royal banner of the Banate of Bosnia

The flag of the Kingdom of Bosnia was based on coat of arms of the Bosnian dynasty Kotromanić, king Tvrtko I and his successors. The flag of medieval Bosnia was white with the coat of arms of the Kotromanić dynasty in the middle which consisted of a blue shield with six gold fleur de lys displayed around a white bend.

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  Royal banner of the Kingdom of Bosnia

The green flag with the white crescent and star pointing to the left was used by Bosniak landlords in border parts in southern and western Herzegovina. The flag was most commonly used in wars. It also accompanied the troops of the Eyalet of Bosnia during the second siege of Khotyn in Moldavia. It differs from Ottoman flag by size and direction of crescent, as well as its swallow-shape, similar to some West-European jacks and ensigns.

In the 1830s revolt by Husein Gradaščević the green flag with a yellow crescent and star was used. The revolt's aim was for Bosnia to gain autonomy from the Ottoman Empire.

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  Bosnian Revolt Flag, 1831

When the Austro-Hungarian Empire annexed Bosnia and Herzegovina the flag was changed. The province of Bosnia used a flag that was red and yellow horizontally, but the province of Herzegovina used the same flag but with reversed colors (yellow and red).

The coat of arms is one of Stjepan Vukčić Kosača, Bosnian noble and duke from 14th century. The original medieval coat of arms had a white background and two red stripes in the top of the shield. It was Similar to the old flag of the Western Bosnian Flag.

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  Flag of the Condominium of Bosnia and Herzegovina during Austro-Hungarian administration (the country was formally under the sovereignty of the Ottoman Empire) (1878–1908)
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  Flag of Bosnia after Austro-Hungarian annexation (1878–1908)
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  Flag of Bosnia after Austro-Hungarian annexation (1908)
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  Flag of Herzegovina after Austro-Hungarian annexation (1878–1918)
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  Flag of Bosnia after Austro-Hungarian annexation (1908–1918)

During the interwar period Kingdom of Yugoslavia, Bosnia and Herzegovina had neither a status within it or a flag to go with. It was not until after World War II in Yugoslavia and disestablishment of the monarchy that this changed, as Bosnia and Herzegovina became its own republic within the newly established federal Yugoslavia.[6]

Without constitutional recognition, the mid-war Federal State of Bosnia and Herzegovina first adopted the flag flown by Bosnian-Herzegovinian Partisans during the war—a wholly red flag with a narrowly gold-bordered red star in its centre, both symbolizing socialism and communism.[6] The flag was usually accompanied on official buildings by the flag of the federal Yugoslavia and the flag of the League of Communists of Yugoslavia. A smaller version of the flag served as the civil ensign while an elongated banner version was seen flown in front of the Yugoslav parliament.

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  The flag of the Bosnian—Herzegovinian Partisans during World War II (27 November 1943)[6]
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  The Flag of the Democratic Federal Yugoslavia during World War II (1943–1946)
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  The Flag of the Yugoslav Partisans during World War II (16 December 1942)

Wide public discussion ahead of constitutional adoption resulted in the overall opinion that the state flag should be red, like the one initially flown by liberation movements, and not in national pan-Slavic tricolors of Serbs and Croats which were argued to have been an "import" from a later stage of the war.[6] This discussion was in response to the first proposed flag from 15 November 1946, which matched the federal flag except with an additional golden star placed behind the existing gold-bordered red star in the centre, with their rays positioned interchangeably. Belgrade officials listened to the public opinion, but proceeded to add the federal Yugoslav tricolor to the canton of a plain red flag to symbolize the republic's affiliation to the Federation, and as such it was officially adopted on 31 December 1946.[6] In the real-world usage, this flag had a variant with a much larger canton which was offset from the edges and bordered in white. This variant was eventually proposed sometime in 1947, but was never adopted.[6]

Bosnia and Herzegovina also had a new coat of arms during Yugoslav rule; it was a symbol of Bosnian industrialism at the time. A red flag with central elements of this coat of arms in the canton was erroneously reported in one contemporary book to have been the flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina.[6]

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  Proposed flag of the People's Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina (15 November 1946)[6]
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  The flag that was in an error reported as the new flag of BiH in one contemporary book[6]
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  Proposed flag of the People's Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina (1947)[6]
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  Flag of the SR of Bosnia and Herzegovina (31 December 1946 − 6 April 1992)[6]

A cemetery in Mostar flying the flag of the Army of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina (left), the flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the flag of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina

On 3 March 1992 Bosnia and Herzegovina declared its independence from Yugoslavia. Initially the newly independent Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina continued to use the flag of the Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina until a new flag was adopted on 20 May 1992 (after the independence of two entities). The flag picked was the arms of the Kings of Bosnia Kotromanić dynasty, who ruled from 1377 until 1463 over the area that is present day Bosnia and Herzegovina and Dalmatia, consisted of a blue shield with six golden lilies displayed around a white bend; the golden lily is the Lilium bosniacum, which is a native lily to the area. The flag chosen in 1992 has a white background with the Bosnian lily in the center. It was and it still is the main bosniak national flag. Though it is no longer an official flag of the state, the flag continues to be used unofficially by Bosniak civilians as their ethnic flag,[5] used at football games, as part of political rallies, and other such events.[7]

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  Flag of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina (3 March 1992 − 20 May 1992)
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  Flag of the Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina (20 May 1992 − 3 February 1998) (supported by Bosniaks)
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  Flag of the Serbian Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina or Republika Srpska, a country that declared the independence from B&H. (supported by Bosnian Serbs)
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  Flag of the Republic of Herzeg-Bosnia, a country that got independence from B&H where it merged later and was partially recognised only by Croatia. (supported by Bosnian Croats)

The Bosnian Serbs, before and after the signing of the Dayton Agreement, viewed the flag with the six fleurs-de-lys as only representing the Bosniaks (i.e. Bosnian Muslims) of Bosnia and Herzegovina. The flag of the state was eventually changed into the current, post-1998 flag. The current flag was introduced by the UN High Representative Carlos Westendorp after the Parliament of Bosnia and Herzegovina could not decide on a solution that was acceptable to all parties.[8] Aside from the colors, the current flag contains no historical or other references to the Bosnian state.[5] The flag is rarely ever seen in Republika Srpska,[5] whose residents prefer to fly either that entity's regional flag or the Serbian national flag instead.[5] Some Bosniaks dislike or have no particular affinity for the flag, preferring the former Bosnian national flag used from 1992 to 1998 (which remains used by Bosniaks as their ethnic flag),[5] or the former socialist-era Yugoslav flag instead.[5]

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  Flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina (4 February 1998 − present)
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  Construction sheet
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  Vertical flag.

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  Flag of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (5 November 1996 – 14 June 2007)
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  Flag of Republika Srpska (6 April 1992 – present)