Wallis and Futuna (France)

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Country Name

Wallis and Futuna, officially the Territory of the Wallis and Futuna Islands.

Location

Wallis and Futuna is a French island collectivity in the South Pacific, situated between Tuvalu to the northwest, Fiji to the southwest, Tonga to the southeast, Samoa to the east, and Tokelau to the northeast.

Capital

Matā'Utu.

Reason for Naming the country

They named the islands of Futuna "Hoornse Eylanden" after the Dutch town of Hoorn where they hailed from. This was later translated into French as "Isles de Horne." The Wallis Islands are named after the British explorer Samuel Wallis, who sailed past them in 1767 after being the first European to visit Tahiti.

Flag

Wallis and Futuna is a French territory overseas. and that's why the French flag is the official flag of Wallis and Futuna, but it boasts an unofficial flag as well. The unofficial flag consists of a red background, with the french flag in the upper left corner in the center of the flag, in front of the red background, is a Maltese cross. The red color symbolizes courage while the white color symbolizes purity of ideals.

There exists one variation to the Wallis and Futuna flag. Instead of a traditional Maltese cross in the center of the flag, the variation consists of four inverted triangles. Each triangle has its apex angled toward the center. Three triangles are meant to symbolize three of the native kings of the islands while the fourth symbolizes France as an administrator.