Austria Flag and Meaning

Flag of Austria

Austria Flag Meaning

The Austrian flag is one of the world’s oldest national flags. As early as the 13th century, today’s patterns were used on the coat of arms of the Babenbergs. However, the flag has not been in continuous use. The colors of the flag, which come from the coat of arms, are derived from the legend of when Duke Leopold fought and fought so fiercely, in battles at Acre during the Crusades in 1191, that his white tunic turned completely red from all the blood. The only place on the tunic that still retained its white color was where the waist belt was. Hence the white midfield on the flag.

Austria Overview

Located in Central Europe, a coastal country. Most of the country lies in the Alps. In the west, the Alpine provinces of Voralberg and Tyrol are major tourist attractions. In the eastern part of the Alps, which is lower and partly covered by forests, rye and potatoes are grown. The valleys, located between the eastern mountain ranges of the Alps – the Klagenfurt and Styri valleys – are lush agricultural areas, with richly varied production: maize, wheat, fruit, cattle and poultry. With its rich deposits of iron and coal, it is a productive area in the iron and metal industry. In the northern part of the country the lower parts of the Alps extend, where the Danube Valley forms the framework for an active river boating area. Air pollution from the industrial areas of major cities and from cars and the use of fertilizers are among the primary causes of the country’s environmental problems.

The People: Mainly of Germanic descent, with Slavic, Polish and Hungarian minorities.

Religion: Christianity: Catholics 84.3%; Protestants 6%; Lutheran-Evangelical 5%. Islam 4.2%.

Languages: German (besides a number of local dialects. Serbo-Croatian; Roma; Slovenian; Hungarian.

Political parties: Austrian People’s Party (ÖVP); Austrian Socialist Party (SPÖ), member of Socialist International; The Freedom Party, (FPÖ, the extremely right-wing party, formerly led by Jörg Haider); The Greens, (VGÖ); The Communist Party (KPÖ); The National Democratic Party, which is a right-wing extremist party.

Social organizations: The Association of Austrian Trade Unions, LO, with more than 1½ million members. Osterreichische Berbauernvereinigung (Bondeorganisationen).

Official name: Republic of Austria

Administrative division: 9 cantons (provinces).

Capital: Vienna, 1,983,836 residents. (1999).

Other important cities: Graz, 240,500 residents; Linz, 188,200 residents; Salzburg, 143,300 residents. (2000).

Government: Parliamentary Republic. Alexander Van der Bellen, President and Head of State since January 2017. Sebastian Kurz (ÖVP), Prime Minister and Head of Government since December 2017. Two-Chamber System: The National Assembly with 183 members elected by direct election every four years. Federal Council with 63 members, elected by the Provincial Council.

National Day: October 26.

Armed forces: 55,750 men. Ca. 20-30,000 in reserve. (1995).

Utilization of land: Forestry 39.2%; grazing land 23.6%; agriculture 18.1%; another 19.1%.