Flag of Tonga

What the flag means

• 🔴Red field — the blood of Christ shed for the world
• ✚Red cross on white — the people's devout Christianity

Design set by: ⁨Constitution of Tonga, Clause 47 (National flag)⁩ · Adopted 1875

Highlights

• 🏝️ A Polynesian island kingdom
• 🐋 Swim with humpback whales
• 🌊 Emerald coral lagoons
• 👑 A long royal tradition
• 💃 Lively dance and song

Quick facts

Region

Oceania · Polynesia

Status

Sovereign state

Population

103,742 people (2025)

Area

747 km²

Capital

Nuku'alofa

Languages

Tongan, English

Currency

Tongan paʻanga (TOP)

Organizations

United Nations

Symbols in History (1)

Coats of arms and emblems whose historic seat lies within this country’s present-day territory.

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  Coat of Arms of Tonga

  Kingdom of Tonga, South Pacific · National coat of arms

  OriginTonga adopted these arms in 1875, the year King George Tupou I gave the kingdom its first written constitution. The design is credited to Shirley Baker, the missionary who served as the king's adviser. Tonga has kept its monarchy unbroken ever since, and the same arms are still in use today.

  DescriptionThe shield is quartered: at the upper left, three white six-pointed stars on gold stand for the three main island groups, Tongatapu, Haʻapai and Vavaʻu, while at the upper right a gold crown on red stands for the monarchy. Lower left, a white dove flies across a blue field with a green olive branch in its beak for peace; lower right, three white swords on gold recall the three royal lines that ruled Tonga. Where the quarters meet, a white six-pointed star carries a red cross for the Christian faith, and above the shield a crown rests inside a wreath of green leaves. Gold scrollwork curls around the edge of the shield, two Tongan flags on spears cross behind it, and the ribbon below carries the motto “Ko e ʻOtua mo Tonga ko hoku tofiʻa” — “God and Tonga are my inheritance”.

  Image source: Wikimedia Commons — Coat of arms of Tonga.svg