Gender Questioning Pride Flag

Overview

To provide a pride symbol for individuals in the process of questioning their identity, acknowledging questioning as a valid and recognized experience within the Queer community.

The gender questioning pride flag was designed by Roswell in 2017. It represents people who are in a process of self-exploration to understand their gender, sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or other dimensions of identity. A later alternate version by Swocks (2020), featuring pastel colors and a white question mark, has become more widely circulated.

Identity & Context

Represented Identity

People who are in the process of questioning their gender identity, sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or personal identity

Subcommunity

Queer umbrella, questioning individuals

Creators

The Creator

Attribution notes

Designed by Roswell in 2017. A later alternate version was created by Swocks (also known as SwocksOne on Roblox), the owner of a large LGBTQ+ Hangout community, on August 18, 2020. Swocks' design features horizontal pastel stripes in red, yellow, green, and blue shades with a large white question mark centered on the flag, and has become more frequently seen than the Roswell original. An earlier gender questioning flag was created by DeviantArt user enbygsrd on September 16, 2016, using pink and blue stripes. Additional alternate designs include versions by Cryptocrew (February 10, 2021) and Okay-Google (September 26, 2021). ^[1][2]

Origin

Digital Origin

true

Digital origin; no verified physical location.

Created by Roswell in 2017. Digital origin.

Dates & Chronology

Year Created

2017

First public use

2017

Period in Use

2017-present

The flag circulates in online Queer communities and on identity-focused wikis. The Swocks 2020 version has gained wider recognition.

Major revisions

1. 2020

   Swocks created an alternate questioning flag with pastel colors and a white question mark, which has become more frequently seen than the Roswell original.

Questioning is understood not as a fixed identity but as a process. Some people identify as questioning temporarily, while others hold it as a longer-term or recurring part of their experience.

The primary design is attributed to Roswell. At least two other gender-questioning flag designs circulate in community spaces, including a 2016 design by enbygsrd and a 2020 design attributed to Swocks. None has consolidated as canonical; no community body has formally endorsed one over the others. The Roswell design is primary by circulation volume in current pride-flag reference sources, not by community endorsement.

Lineage

Indirect influences

Rainbow Pride Flag

Direct children

Gender Questioning Pride Flag (Swocks, 2020)

Related flags

Genderqueer Pride Flag, Nonbinary Pride Flag, Quoiromantic Pride Flag (2015, Cor / epochryphal)

The gender questioning flag draws colors from multiple gender-identity flags (pink and blue from the binary, yellow and green from nonbinary contexts) to represent the full space a questioning person might be exploring.

Lineage tree

Every record reachable from this one through documented parent and child relationships: 2 records across 2 generations.

This record

Gender Questioning Pride Flag

Children

Gender Questioning Pride Flag (Swocks, 2020)

Colors & Symbolism

The flag uses colors drawn from traditional binary gender associations (pink, blue) alongside colors representing non-binary genders (yellow, green), with a gray center stripe representing the uncertainty and ambiguity of the questioning process.

Approximated values from the pride-color-schemes Tumblr documentation of the Roswell 2017 flag. No creator-issued hex specification has been published.

This flag has no official digital palette. Color values shown are approximate.

The flag uses a 9-stripe design where the outside and center stripes are wider, with thin stripes separating the main color blocks. The pink and blue shades reference the traditional binary genders, with multiple shades representing a spectrum. Yellow and green represent genders outside the binary. The gray center represents the uncertainty of the questioning process.

Hex values are approximations from the pride-color-schemes Tumblr documentation of the Roswell 2017 nine-stripe flag. The creator did not publish official hex codes. The Swocks 2020 alternate version has its own four-stripe pastel palette, documented separately.

Design

Aspect Ratio

3:2

Orientation

horizontal

Stripe Count

9

Layout

horizontal stripes, varied widths

Stripes (Top → Bottom)

light pink, pink, lavender, lime green, gray, yellow, light blue, blue, teal

Nine horizontal stripes of varied widths. The outside stripes and the center stripe are wider, with thinner stripes separating them.

Nine horizontal stripes of varied widths, from top to bottom: light pink, pink, lavender, lime green, gray (center), yellow, light blue, blue, and teal. The outer stripes and center stripe are wider than the intermediate stripes, which serve as thinner separators.

Usage & Adoption

First Users

Online Queer and questioning communities

Online Usage

Tumblr, LGBTQIA+ identity wikis

Current Status

active

Circulates primarily in online communities. The Swocks 2020 alternate version with pastel colors and a question mark has become more commonly used.

Discourse & Debates

• Whether 'questioning' is a stable identity deserving its own flag, or a temporary state that most people pass through on their way to a more settled identity. Some community members argue that normalizing the questioning process itself, rather than treating it as a deficit, is the flag's purpose.

Common confusions

• The Roswell 2017 version and the Swocks 2020 version are distinct designs representing the same identity. The Swocks version, with its pastel palette and question mark, is now more frequently encountered.

Questioning is broadly used to describe self-exploration of gender identity, sexual orientation, romantic orientation, or other aspects of identity. It is included in the 'Q' of LGBTQ+ alongside Queer.

Editorial note

Multiple gender-questioning flag designs exist, including ones attributed to Roswell, enbygsrd (2016), and Swocks (2020). None has consolidated as canonical. The Roswell design is shown as primary only because it has the broadest current circulation in pride-flag reference sources, not because any community body has endorsed it.

Footnotes & Citations

Image Sources

Rendering

Roswell 2017 version