thumb|upright=1.2|Nunavut flags displayed on a wall
The flag of Nunavut was proclaimed on 1 April 1999, along with the territory of Nunavut in Canada. It features a red inuksuk—a traditional Inuit land marker—and a blue star, which represents Niqirtsuituq (or 'Niqirtsituk'), the North Star, and the leadership of elders in the community. The colours blue and gold represent the riches of the land, sea and sky. It was adopted following a process where input was sought from local communities and submissions were solicited from the Canadian public.
Symbolism
The flag of the Canadian territory of Nunavut consists of gold and white fields divided vertically by a red inuksuk with a blue star in the . The colours blue and gold were selected to represent the "riches of land, sea, and sky", while red is used to represent Canada as a whole. The inuksuk, which divides the flag, is a traditional stone monument used to guide travellers and to mark sacred sites. In the upper fly, the blue star represents the North Star (Niqirtsituk / Niqirtsuituq), an important object due to its key role as a navigational beacon, and as symbolically representing the wisdom and leadership of community elders.
Colour scheme
The flag of Nunavut has the following four primary colours and black outlining the inuksuk;
{| class=wikitable style="text-align:center;"
|-
! 40px<br>Colour scheme
! ! style="background:#fdd602; width:100px; color:black;"| Gold
! style="background:#D6270B; width:100px; color:white;"| Red
! style="background:#ffffff; width:100px; color:black;"| White
! style="background:#0164BC; width:100px; color:white;"| Blue
! style="background:#000000; width:100px; color:white;"| Black
|-
| CMYK || 0-15-99-1 || 0-82-95-16 || 0-0-0-0 || 100-47-0-26 || 0-0-0-100
|-
|HEX || #FDD602 || #D6270B || #FFFFFF || #0164BC ||#000000
|-
|RGB || 253-214-2 || 214-39-11 || 255-255-255 || 0-100-188 || 0-0-0
|}
History
The process of creating a flag for Nunavut began prior to its creation as a territory in 1999. This created significant excitement in the vexillographic community, as it was the first change in the map of Canada since Newfoundland became a province in 1949 and was being created in a region with little flag history. In deference to the elders of the Inuit communities of Nunavut, the development of both the Nunavut flag and coat of arms was guided by their input. The process sought to give the public an opportunity to offer input into the colours and symbolism of the flag as well as to give local artists an opportunity to participate. Led by the Chief Herald of Canada, a group developing the flag visited a number of communities to seek input and learn about Inuit culture, including Rankin Inlet, Baker Lake, Kinngait, Iqaluit, and Pangnirtung.
The layout and colouring of the flag have aroused some marginal criticism, which nonetheless recognized the valuable cultural symbolism included in the design.