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Dictionary of Vexillology: H (Hooch flag – Hussar Cut)

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HOOCH FLAG
HOOKED-CROSS
HORIZONTAL BICOLOUR
HORIZONTAL BICOLOUR WITH A VERTICAL STRIPE AT THE HOIST
HORIZONTAL LATIN CROSS
HORIZONTAL MERIDIAN (or MEDIAN)
HORIZONTAL MULTI-STRIPE
HORIZONTAL STRIPES IN HERALDRY
HORIZONTAL TRIBAND
HORIZONTAL TRICOLOUR
HORN(S)
HORNED
HORN OF PLENTY
HORSE-HEAD SHIELD
HORSESHOE(S)
HORSETAIL
HORSETAIL STANDARD
HOUSE FLAG (or HOUSE PENNANT)
HOUSE MARK (or HOUSE BRAND)
HOUSEWIMPEL
HUNTING HORN
HURT
HUSBAND PENNANT (or WIMPEL)
HUSSAR CUT

HOOCH FLAG

In US military usage (particularly during the Vietnam War) the colloquial term for a small, entirely unofficial, company or unit flag.

HOOKED-CROSS

See ‘swastika’.

Flag of the National Socialist Front, Sweden

HORIZONTAL BICOLOUR

See ‘bicolour 1)’ and ‘bicolour 2)’ (also ‘over’).

Civil Flag of Niederösterreich, Austria; Naval Jack of Ukraine

HORIZONTAL BICOLOUR WITH A VERTICAL STRIPE AT THE HOIST

A flag of three colours, having one vertical stripe at the hoist and two horizontal in the fly – see ‘tricolour 1)’ and ‘bicolour 2)’ (also ‘stripe’).

National Flag of Benin, Austria; National Flag of Guinea Bissau

HORIZONTAL LATIN CROSS

See ‘off-centred cross2)’ and ‘Scandinavian cross’ (also ‘Latin cross’).

Flag of Domingos Martins, Brazil; Flag of the Aland Islands

HORIZONTAL MERIDIAN (or MEDIAN)

See ‘meridian’.

HORIZONTAL MULTI-STRIPE

See ‘multi-stripe’.

Flag of Aragon, Spain; Flag of Minorca, Spain

HORIZONTAL STRIPES IN HERALDRY

See bar, barrulet and fess.

National Flag, Argentina; Arms of Simferopol, Ukraine; Flag of Chicago, US

HORIZONTAL TRIBAND

See ‘triband 1)’ and ‘triband 2)’.

National and Civil Flags of Nicaragua

HORIZONTAL TRICOLOUR

See ‘tricolour 1)’ and ‘tricolour 2)’.

National Flag of Croatia; National Flag of the Netherlands

HORN(S)

1) Concerning a musical instrument in heraldry see ‘bugle horn’.
2) Concerning an animal in heraldry see ‘attire(s)’.

Flag of Beeskow County, Oder-Spree, Germany; Flag of Troubky, Czechia; Post Flag, Denmark

HORNED

In heraldry see ‘attired’.

Flag of Mettembert, Switzerland

HORN OF PLENTY

See ‘cornucopia’.

Flag Arms and Jack, Peru

HORSE-HEAD SHIELD

The term sometimes used to describe a shield of the decorative, post-medieval type most often seen in Italian personal and civic heraldry but – an ‘Italian shield’ (see also ‘renaissance shield’).

The Arms of Messina, Italy (ita24)

Please note that several of the terms giving shields a national identity, as well as those describing a specific type, are still in the process of standardization, and that no consistent approach has thus far been identified.

HORSESHOE(S)

1) In heraldry a charge that, unless blazoned otherwise should always be shown with its open ends downward – a fer-de-cheval see also ‘blazon’).
2) In vexillology a charge, sometimes undetailed, that has no specific orientation.

Flag of Hasbergen, Germany; Flag of Kyslivka, Ukraine; Flag of Lemberg, Germany

HORSETAIL

A decoration for military flags, especially in China where it is usually red; made of real or simulated horsehair and is almost certainly descended from a Mongolian vexilloid (see also ‘tugh 1)’).

Please note that the standards of some former French cavalry units (notably the Spahis originally raised in North Africa) were also decorated by horsetails – see ‘toug’.

HORSETAIL STANDARD

See ‘tugh 1)’ and ‘toug’.

Turkish Horsetail Standards (worldimages)

HOUSE FLAG (or HOUSE PENNANT)

1) The distinguishing flag or pennant of a merchant marine company flown at sea by ships owned or managed by that company, and from their headquarters on shore – a shipping or shipping company house flag or pennant (see also ‘flags and funnels’, ‘logo’, ‘pennant 2)’) and ‘whaling flags’.

2) See ‘corporate flag’.

3) The personal flag of the owner of a pleasure vessel or home – a private signal (see also ‘personal flag 2)’).

4) See ‘battle flag 2)’.

Black Diamond Co, Canada; Green and Co., US; Alaska Steamship Co., US

HOUSE MARK (or HOUSE BRAND)

In Continental usage those terms, and translations of the German hausmarken or housmarke, that may be used to describe the symbol or symbols used by non-armigerous tradesmen in place of a coat of arms – a house brand – but see ‘merchant mark’ (see also ‘armigerous’, ‘coat of arms 2)’ and ‘mark 2)’)

Flag of Hiddensee Island, Germany

HOUSEWIMPEL

See ‘house flag 1)’.

Housewimpel/House Pennant of The Blue Star Line, UK

Please note that the correct term in English language vexillology is house pennant – see ‘wimpel’ and following note.

HUNTING HORN

In heraldry see ‘bugle horn’.

Arms and Flag of Bilje, Croatia

HURT

The heraldic term for a blue disc – a roundel azure (see also ‘bezant’, ‘plates’, ‘roundel 3)’ and ‘torteau’).

Flag of Alfena, Portugal; Flag of Lenzburg, Switzerland; Flag of Bodenfelde, Germany

Please note that in strict English heraldic usage this term should only be applied when the charge described in blue (“azure”) – see ‘tinctures’.

HUSBAND PENNANT (or WIMPEL)

In Scandinavian (particularly Finnish) usage the colloquial term, and a direct translation of the Finnish “isännänviiri” or Swedish “husbondsvimpel”, used for a provincial wimpel – see ‘provincial wimpel’ (also ‘wimpel’).

Husband Pennant/Provincial Wimpel of Kainuu, Finland

HUSSAR CUT

A variation of the swallow-tail in which the cut in the fly of the flag is shaped by several curves, and was formerly typical of the flags used by Prussian later German cavalry regiments (see also ‘descate’, ‘palm’, ‘guidon 2)’, ‘indentation(s)’, ‘rounded swallow-tail’ and ‘swallow-tail(ed)’).

2nd Hussar Regiment, Prussia c1740; Cavalry Guidons, Hamburg 1709

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