FLAG MOTIF · 04
Canada and Lebanon: Plants on Their Flags
Both flags show a plant. What part of it can you see?
Look closely at the shape in the middle before revealing the answer.
LOOK · COMPARE · REVEAL
What is different about the shapes?
Look for the outline, branches and stem. Which parts are drawn on each flag?
Looked closely? Reveal the answers
Canada
One maple leaf
A single red, stylized maple leaf fills the centre of the white panel.
Lebanon
One cedar tree
A green cedar tree stands in the centre of the white stripe.
WHOLE FLAG
A leaf or a whole tree?
Canada
Red side panels · white centre · red maple leaf
The flag shows the leaf, not a whole maple tree.
Lebanon
Red horizontal stripes · white centre · green cedar tree
Its branches and trunk make a whole tree visible.
WHY?
Why these plants?
Canada's public history describes the maple leaf as an emblem used before the current flag. Lebanon's Constitution specifies the cedar in its flag. These sources explain each design separately; they do not establish a shared reason for using plants.
THEN · NOW
How did these designs become national flags?
Canada
The current maple leaf flag was first raised on February 15, 1965. The leaf had appeared as a Canadian emblem before then.
Lebanon
Article 5 of Lebanon's Constitution describes the current flag: red-white-red horizontal stripes with a green cedar tree in the middle.
PUBLIC SOURCES
Sources for the designs and history
Canada: government flag description and maple leaf timeline. Lebanon: Constitution, Article 5.
Explore each country
What other shapes can one motif take?
After plants, look for a sun, stars, or a crescent on another flag. What will you notice next?