New Zealand Flag Institute

GLOSSARY

 

 

 

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the Royal Arms are a lion and a unicorn.

 

Swallowtail -

A flag whose FLY is split in two by the removal of a large triangular section, or sections, creating two or three points at the fly end.

 

TOGGLE -

A peg, usually of wood or plastic, fastened to a rope sown into the HEADING of the flag. To raise the flag, the toggle is fit into a loop in the HALYARD. Rope and toggle are the most common means of fastening a flag to the halyard.

 

TORSE -

A representation of a bar of twisted silk in the colours of the shield, and used to join the CREST to the helmet in an ACHIEVEMENT OF ARMS. Also known as WREATH.

 

Trailing -

This is method of saluting using a flag on a pole. The flag is lowered until it just touches the ground for a few seconds, then raised smartly back up the pole. The equivalent of DIPPING a hand-held flag.

 

Triband -

See tricolour.

 

TRICOLOUR or TRICOLOURE -

Any flag whose field is composed of three colours (stripes) whether divided vertically (i.e. France, Italy, or Belgium), horizontally (i.e. Netherlands and Lithuania) or diagonally (Bhutan). Those arranged vertically are sometimes called tribands. Some similarly-arranged two-colour designs (such as Canada and Peru) are also called tricolours. The stripes are usually equal in size.