Flag of New York City

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Flag of New York, NY (1977–present). Variant including the Latin inscription shown.

Flag of Brooklyn.

Seal of New York City found in the middle of the flag

The flag of New York City is a vertical tricolor of blue, white, and orange charged in the center bar with municipal seal in blue. The tricolor design is taken from the flag of the United Netherlands used in 1625, the year New Amsterdam was settled on the island of Manhattan.

The current design dates from December 30, 1977, when the seal was modified to use 1625 instead of 1664 (when England took possession) and inclusion of the Latin inscription Sigillum Civitatis Novi Eboraci ("Seal of the City of New York") within the seal was made optional (thus resulting in two equally acceptable variants).

The office of Mayor of New York City has its own official variant, to which is added an arc of five five-pointed stars (representing each of the five boroughs) in blue above the seal.

Details of the seal:

Bald Eagle: The symbol of the United States of America.
Native American: The original inhabitants of the area.
Seaman: Symbolizes the colonisers of the area.
Beaver: Symbolizes the VOC; the Dutch East India Company, which was the first company in New York (called Nieuw Amsterdam back then).
Windmill: Remembers the Dutch history of the city and the prosperous industry of milling flour.
Flour barrels: The industry.
1625: The year in which the city of Nieuw Amsterdam was founded by the Dutch.