Red and white is one of the most common color pairings in flag design, and one of the easiest to read from a distance. The two colors carry fairly consistent baggage: red usually stands for strength, valor or blood, while white tends to mean peace or purity. What varies is the story each country attaches to them.
Japan
The flag of Japan is called the Nisshoki, or Hinomaru, which translates as "sun-mark flag." It is a red circle centered on a plain white field. The circle is the sun, since Japan is often called the land of the rising sun, and the design has been part of Japanese culture long enough that its associations with brightness, sincerity and national unity feel settled rather than assigned.
Canada
Canada's flag puts a red maple leaf on a white square between two red borders. It was adopted in 1965 to replace a flag that included the Union Jack, which made it a statement about independence as much as a design change. The maple leaf itself is far older, appearing on coats of arms and military regalia since the 18th century. The colors stand for hope and prosperity.
Poland
The flag of Poland is two horizontal stripes of equal width, white above red. The colors come from the national coat of arms. White is usually read as peace and red as the bloodshed of Poland's fight for independence.
Tunisia
Tunisia's flag has a red background with a white circle in the middle, and inside that circle a red crescent moon encircling a red star. The crescent and star are traditional symbols of Islam. Red stands for the blood of martyrs and white for peace.
Austria
Austria's flag is three horizontal stripes, red, white and red, and it is one of the oldest national flags in the world. Legend has it that the design came from the bloodstained white coat of Duke Leopold V after a 12th-century battle, a reminder of Austria's medieval history.
Switzerland
Switzerland flies a square flag with a white cross on red. It is one of only two square sovereign-state flags; the other belongs to Vatican City. The white cross stands for faith and peace, the red for courage and sacrifice. Reversed, the same cross is the emblem of the Red Cross, which carries the same associations of neutrality and humanitarian work.
Indonesia and Monaco
The flags of Indonesia and Monaco are nearly identical, each a horizontal bicolor of red over white, and they got there independently. Indonesia's flag, "Sang Saka Merah-Putih" ("The Sacred Red and White"), symbolizes the duality of nature. Monaco's red and white are the traditional colors of the Grimaldi family, going back to the 14th century.
