Nonbinary Pride Flag

Overview

To create visibility and a distinct emblem for nonbinary people who did not feel represented by the existing genderqueer flag. ^{[1] [2]}

The flag was designed to complement, not replace, the Genderqueer flag (created by Marilyn Roxie in 2011). By 2013-2014, many nonbinary people felt the Genderqueer flag, while broadly inclusive of gender-nonconforming identities, had become closely associated with the "Genderqueer" label specifically. People who identified as nonbinary but did not use the term "Genderqueer" felt they lacked a distinct symbol. A community call on Tumblr sought a new nonbinary flag to address this gap, and Rowan responded by proposing multiple design variations with a symbolic color system grounded in metaphors of presence and absence of light. The community voted on the proposals, and the four-stripe design was selected as the most popular. ^{[1] [3] [4]}

Identity & Context

Represented Identity

nonbinary

Movement

Nonbinary visibility within the broader trans and gender-diverse umbrella

Creators

The Creator

Origin

Place Type

online community / social media platform

Digital Origin

true

Digital origin; no verified physical location.

The flag originated in online community discussion and proposals on Tumblr; a Commons upload by the creator corroborates this digital-first origin. ^{[1] [2]} No place of residence or physical launch event is documented in primary sources.

Dates & Chronology

Year Created

2014

Exact date

February 17, 2014

First public use

February 2014

Period in Use

2014–present

The widely used four-stripe arrangement is described in community circulation as the "most loved" after informal feedback and voting. ^{[5] [7]} Later institutional guides summarize the flag as a standard nonbinary emblem. ^{[6] [8]}

The selection process itself (multiple variants narrowed via community discussion and votes) is part of this flag’s documented origin history. ^{[1] [5]}

Lineage

Indirect influences

Genderqueer Pride Flag, Rainbow Pride Flag

Direct children

Nonbinary Trans Flag, Two-Spirit Nonbinary Pride Flag (2Sanon)

Related flags

Androgynous Pride Flag, Aporagender Pride Flag, Bigender Pride Flag, Ceteroromantic Pride Flag, Ceterosexual Pride Flag, Deminonbinary Pride Flag, Diamoric Pride Flag, Enbian Pride Flag (2016, enbians), Gender Neutral Pride Flag, Gender Questioning Pride Flag, Genderfluid Pride Flag, Genderflux Pride Flag, Graygender Pride Flag, Intergender Pride Flag, Maverique Pride Flag, Neutrois Pride Flag, Pangender Pride Flag, Toric Pride Flag (2017, diamoricmlm-and-nblm), Transfeminine Pride Flag, Transgender Pride Flag, Transmasculine Pride Flag, Trigender Pride Flag, Trixic Pride Flag (2017, Non-aligned-sapphic)

The creator describes this flag as an additional symbol to be used alongside existing genderqueer symbolism, not as a redesign of it. It is considered a descendant of the genderqueer flag because it was explicitly created in response to representational concerns about that flag. ^{[1] [2]}

Lineage tree

Every record reachable from this one through documented parent and child relationships: 3 records across 2 generations.

This record

Nonbinary Pride Flag

Children

Two-Spirit Nonbinary Pride Flag (2Sanon), Nonbinary Trans Flag

Colors & Symbolism

The palette is grounded in the creator's light metaphor (presence and absence of light) and in relation to the gender binary. ^[1]

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

Several institutional guides compress meanings into simpler phrasings; the creator’s longer light-based explanation is the primary wording. Meanings are quoted from the designer’s original Tumblr posts. ^{[1] [5]}

Hex values are drawn from Library.LGBT's reference set and reflect common digital conventions. ^[6] Specific values also circulate in the widely used SVG files, and none has been confirmed against a primary source. ^[6] The creator's primary posts provide meanings but not hex codes; no creator-issued palette has been located. ^[1] These values are approximate.

Design

Aspect Ratio

3:5 · standard

Orientation

horizontal

Stripe Count

4

Layout

horizontal_stripes

Stripes (Top → Bottom)

Yellow, White, Purple, Black

Four equal horizontal stripes: yellow at top, then white, then purple, then black at bottom. No central symbol. Equal-width stripe presentation is common; proportion is not standardized in creator statements. ^[9] Multiple common display ratios exist, including common 3:2 and 3:5 renderings, but no single creator-specified ratio has been securely documented in available sources. No emblem.

Usage & Adoption

First Users

Online nonbinary community discussion on Tumblr (proposal and feedback cycle)

Geographic Usage

International

Online Usage

Widely used online as a nonbinary identifier; represented in institutional glossaries

Current Status

active

Adoption appears to be community-driven via online feedback rather than institutional adoption. The designer’s posts document that the flag was intended to be separate from, and not simply a renaming of, genderqueer symbolism. ^{[1] [5]}

Discourse & Debates

• The relationship between "nonbinary" and "Genderqueer" as terms and communities remains a point of ongoing discussion. Nonbinary is generally used as the catchall term for those who do not identify with the gender binary, whereas Genderqueer often refers more to a particular experience under that umbrella. The two terms are closely related and often used interchangeably in casual contexts, but they are not strict synonyms, and some people identify with one but not the other. This distinction was a key motivation for creating a separate nonbinary flag. ^{[3] [4]}
• At Eurovision 2024, Swiss singer Nemo -- who won the contest -- reportedly sneaked the nonbinary flag into the opening ceremony after being told they could not display it. Nemo stated: "I had to sneak in the flag of my non-binary gender because Eurovision told me I couldn't take it out." The incident drew international attention to nonbinary visibility and the flag's role as a symbol of recognition. ^[10]

Common misidentifications

• Sometimes treated as interchangeable with the genderqueer flag in casual contexts, despite explicit origin motivation to be distinct

Common confusions

• Confused with the Genderqueer Pride Flag; the creator explicitly describes this design as separate due to perceived representational mismatch
• Conflicting secondary claims about the creator’s age at time of design (14 vs 17)

Institutional sources vary on hyphenation ("nonbinary" vs "non-binary") and even on the creator's first name spelling (e.g., "Kyle" in some guides). ^{[6] [8]} The designer’s posts use ‘nonbinary’ spelling; ‘non-binary’ and ‘enby’ are also common. ^[1]

Footnotes & Citations

Image Sources

Rendering

four-stripe standard

• Credit: Kye Rowan · Wikimedia Commons file description (author-uploaded)
• Kye Rowan's original 2014 Nonbinary Pride Flag design with four horizontal stripes: yellow (outside the binary), white (presence of all colors/light; many or all genders), purple (fluidity and multiplicity of gender experiences), and black (absence of color/light; agender). The color palette is grounded in the designer's metaphor of presence and absence of light. ^[1][2] · Credit: Kye Rowan · Wikimedia Commons
• The Nonbinary Pride Flag at a pride parade. Created in response to a community call for a flag distinct from the Genderqueer flag, the design was adopted rapidly through online community feedback and is now represented in institutional glossaries worldwide. ^[1][6][8] · Pride event documentation
• The Nonbinary Pride Flag featured at an International Nonbinary People's Day celebration, observed annually on July 14. The day raises awareness and visibility for nonbinary people, and the flag serves as the central visual symbol for the occasion. ^[9] · International Nonbinary People's Day