There is no need for countries to have a flag.
National flags are a symbol of nations, and represent national authorities as well as people’s union. In recent years, national flags express countries participation in various international conferences and are used to praise winners in sporting competitions such as the Olympics. Right now, the Winter Olympic games are being held in Beijing. In this Olympics, everyone hopes to see that many national flags of their own countries will be flown at the awards ceremonies.
According to the history of national flags, people started to use banners to show their territories and groups in wars. In the 17th century, people began to fly flags on ships for commercial use in Europe. At the end of the 18th century, citizens liked to fly their national flags because of their growing awareness of nationalism. In the 19th century, many countries in Europe established their national flags based on the banners used in wars.
In Japan, the national flag was established in 1870. In general, the Japanese flag is called “Hinomaru (日の丸)”; however, the official name is “Nisshoki (日章旗)”. The red circle in the center of the flag symbolizes the sun because Japan was described as “Land of the Rising Sun” in an old diplomatic document. Additionally, the red color means love and energy and the white color means holiness and purity. Furthermore, the combination of red and white represents happiness in Japan. Before the former Tokyo Olympics in 1964, there was no standard for the color red in the Japanese flag. Therefore, the Japanese government requested a university student to specify the red color because he was a huge national flags enthusiast. The student decided on the current color red after trial and error.
In our daily lives, we might not be aware of our national flags very much. In Japan, there are various opinions about flying the national flag at school ceremonies such as entrance and graduation ceremonies. It seems that some people think that flying the Japanese national flag takes away the freedom of thought from children. This issue is still being discussed. Both people who agree and disagree with flying the national flag need to create a nation that is beloved by all over the world.
I think that food is the most important aspect of culture. My reasons are…
1. When we go to other countries, the most enjoyable thing is to eat local foods.
2. Japanese food is beloved by people around the world. The food is one of the attractions in Japan.
3. Japan is a long island that extends north to south and there are many mountains and seas. Therefore, Japanese food gives everyone a lot of enjoyment because Japan can grow all kinds of ingredients.