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# Dictionary of Vexillology: M (Meal Flag – Meteor Flag)

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Last modified: 2026-05-09 by martin karner
Keywords: vexillological terms |
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On this page:

- MEAL FLAG/PENNANT
- MEATBALL
- MEDIAN
- MEDIATED
- MEDIEVAL SAILING SHIP (or MEDIEVAL SAILING VESSEL)
- MEMBERED
- MEMORIAL FLAG
- MENORAH
- MERCHANT ENSIGN
- MERCHANT FLAG
- MERCHANT JACK
- MERCHANT MARK
- MERCHANT PENNANT (or PENDANT)
- MERCHANT SHIP PENDANT (or PENNANT)
- MERIDIAN (or MEDIAN)
- MERLETTE
- MERLINS
- MERMAID
- MERMAN
- META-VEXILLOLOGY
- METALS
- METEOR FLAG (or ENSIGN)

MEAL FLAG/PENNANT
  1) See dinner flag.
  2) In US usage the practice, almost certainly obsolete, of flying a red triangular pennant from the port yardarm (or spreader) of a pleasure vessel when the crew are at meals – a crew’s meal pennant (see also dinner flag, guest on board flag, owner absent flag, yardarm).

  Dinner Flag, US; Meal Pennant, US

MEATBALL
  1) See battle efficiency pennant.
  2) In US usage, now obsolete, a colloquial (and possibly derogatory) term for the national roundel of Japan see roundel 1) (also hinomaru).

  Battle Efficiency Pennant; National Roundel of Japan

MEDIAN
  See meridian.

MEDIATED
  An alternative heraldic term to dimidiated.

  Arms and Flag of Dobrodzień, Poland)

MEDIEVAL SAILING SHIP (or MEDIEVAL SAILING VESSEL)
  See cog and nef (also sailing ship).

  Flag and Arms of Elbląg County, Poland

MEMBERED
  The heraldic term used when the legs of a bird are of a different tincture from that of its body (see also armed 2), armed and langued, attired, beaked, langued, tincture and unguled).

  Flag of Neuchâtel, Switzerland; Arms of Białe Błota, Poland; Flag of Doppleschwand, Switzerland

MEMORIAL FLAG
  1) In largely (but not exclusively) US usage, a small national flag (affixed to a short staff) which, on specified memorial occasions, is implanted on the graves at military cemeteries – a grave decoration flag.
  2) A flag designed to memorialize one or more persons, or to express sympathy for people in a specific situation. Such flags may or may not be officially recognized, and are sometimes created by adding symbols or wording to a national or other recognized flag (see also celebratory flag and commerorative flag).
  3) See commerorative flag.

  POW-MIA Flag, US and Canada 9/11 Memorial Flags, US

MENORAH
  A seven-branch candlestick symbolic of Judaism, that is featured on the national arms and the Presidential Standards of Israel, together with other flags both past and present (see also Magen David and presidential standard).

  Antiquities Authority; Presidential Standard; National Insurance Institute, Israel

MERCHANT ENSIGN
  See ‘civil ensign’ under ensign.

  Merchant/Civil Ensign of India; Merchant/Civil Ensign of Singapore; Merchant/Civil Ensign of Switzerland

MERCHANT FLAG
  An alternative term, now obsolete, for the civil ensign – see ‘civil ensign’ under ensign (also ensign, the).

  Merchant Flag of Spain 1785–1927; Merchant Flag of Lucca 1818–1819; Merchant Flag of Montenegro 1880–1918

MERCHANT JACK
  An alternative term, now obsolete, for the civil jack (see ‘civil jack’ under jack).

  Merchant Jack of the Royal Africa Co., England/UK 1672–1752; Merchant Jack of England/UK 1674–1824; Merchant Jack of the Honourable East India Co, England/UK c1660–1863

MERCHANT MARK
  In English heraldic usage the term, now obsolete, for the symbol of either identity or profession used by the non-armigerous – but see house mark (also armigerous).

  (Parker)

MERCHANT PENNANT (or PENDANT)
  1. In Belgian usage (although rarely employed), a variant of the naval masthead pennant officially authorized for merchant vessels – see masthead pennant (also pennant 2), streamer 2)).
  2. In Habsburg Imperial usage, now obsolete, a term that may be used for the masthead pennant when flown from a merchant vessel between 1786 and 1804, and identical to that flown by contemporary and later warships – see masthead pennant (see also pendant)
  3. See merchant ship pendant

  Merchant Pendant, Belgium

  Merchant Pendant, Habsburg Empire 1786–1806

  Please note that in European usage, as far as is known, only Belgium and the Habsburg Empire have permitted merchant vessels to legally fly a masthead pennant of this type.

MERCHANT SHIP PENDANT (or PENNANT)
  A term for those masthead pennants, now obsolete, that were flown by Brazilian merchant vessels in the 19th century to show in which province they were registered – a galhardete – but see registration flags and galhardete 2) (also pendant and pennant 2)).

  Merchant Ship Pendants: Rio Grande do Sul and Pernambuco, Brazil

MERIDIAN
  An imaginary line drawn (either vertically or horizontally) through the centre of a flag – the median – a vertical or horizontal meridian/median.

MERLETTE
  An alternative heraldic term to martlet.

  Flag of East Sussex, UK

MERLINS
  The upwardly projecting parts of a castles crenelations – see crenels (also battlements with its following note and embattled).

  Flag of Bielefeld, Germany; Arms of Soroca District, Moldova; Flag of Colibaşi, Moldova

MERMAID
  In heraldry and vexillology the term used to describe a charge in the form of a mythological creature that is part female and part fish – see merman and heraldic beasts.

  Flag of Iaras, Brazil; Flag of Alvarelhos, Portugal; Flag of Westerdeichstrich, Germany

MERMAN
  The male version of a creature as defined in mermaid above seems to be unknown to English heraldry, but is occasionally seen on flags – see mermaid.

  Flag of Schouwen-Duiveland, The Netherlands

META-VEXILLOLOGY
  A newly introduced term, and as yet not fully defined, but one that could that be considered to cover the study of flags from an extended, new or varied perspective (see also vexillology).

METALS
  In heraldry see or and argent.

  Argent and Or

METEOR FLAG (or ENSIGN)
  In largely (but not exclusively) US usage now obsolete, an alternative term for the British red ensign – see red ensign 1).

  British Red Ensign

  Please note that there is some doubt as to whether, when first coined (it is suggested 1801), the term “British Meteor Flag” referred to the red ensign, or to the Union Jack.

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