January 2nd: Run it up the Flagpole and see if anyone Salutes it

In honour of this day, (although it is strictly speaking about airing your creative ideas rather than being specifically about flags) here are 10 things you may not know about flags.

1. The study of flags is “vexillology”, from the Latin word for flag or banner, vexillum.
2. The word “flag” derives from an old Saxon word, fflaken, which means to fly or float in the air.
3. Here's a poser for you: where is there a US flag which is never raised, lowered, or saluted? Answer after Flag Fact number 10.
4. Libya's flag is unique in that it is plain green with no other colours or designs. Update: at least, it was until 2011 when Libya changed its flag.
5. All national flags are rectangular except for three: Switzerland and Vatican City's flags are square, while Nepal's flag is two triangles on top of each other.
6. Denmark's flag, designed in the 13^th century, is the oldest national flag still in use.
7. The correct name for Britain's flag is “Union Flag” rather than the more commonly used name of “Union Jack”. A “jack” was a small flag flown from a ship.
8. The Union Flag is incorporated into the designs of flags for several other places: Australia, New Zealand, Fiji, Tuvalu , some Canadian provinces and the US state of Hawaii.
9. The largest flag ever made measured 101,978 square meters. It was the flag of Qatar, made in December 2013 in Doha. The largest flag actually flown from a flagpole was a flag of Mexico which measured 2058 square metres. It was flown in Piedras Negras, Mexico.
10. The tallest free-standing flagpole in the world is the Dushanbe Flagpole in Tajikistan, which is 165m tall. The tallest flagpole in the United Kingdom was in Kew Gardens. It was made from a Canadian Douglas-fir tree and was 68.5m tall. It was taken down, though, because it became unsafe. There isn't a formal record of flagpole heights in Britain in general, so it isn't known which is the tallest now.

Answer to the poser in Question 3: On the Moon!