The Whitney Smith Award recognizes outstanding scholarship and presentation of a paper at an International Congress of Vexillology. Originally established in 2005 as the Best Paper Award, it was renamed in 2017 to honor the memory of Dr. Smith, who coined the word “vexillology” and co-founded FIAV. The recipient is selected by a panel appointed by the FIAV Board consisting, if possible, of a representative of the Congress organizer(s), flag manufacturers, and vexillologists, and receives a certificate signed by the Board and a pewter tray. The Whitney Smith Award is graciously sponsored by the North American Vexillological Association-Association nord-américaine de vexillologie (NAVA).
For the pre-2005 IAFM Best Paper Award, see below…

	Recipient/Paper	Date
	Masaco Sugawara “Historical Military Flags with Chinese Characters : Japanese Banners with the name of God”	August 20, 2024
	Krystof Huk “Czech and Slovak Road to Communal Flags”	July 15, 2022
	Hipólito Rafael Chacón “Iconographia Jacobaea: The Reach of Santiago, Spain’s Patrol Saint, in Municipal Heraldry and Vexillology”	July 19, 2019
	Rachel Phelan “What’s Up with the Big Green Flag? The Conservation of the Flag of the Irish Republic”	August 11, 2017

The Best Paper Award

	Recipient/Paper	Date
	Anne M. Platoff “Old Flags, New Meanings” (paper co-authored by Steven A. Knowlton)	September 4, 2015
	Art Néss Proano Gaibor-de Vries “Hidden History behind the Colorants of Banners”	August 9, 2013
	Patrice de la Condamine “Les Drapeaux des Langues Construites” (“Flags of Constructed Languages”)	August 5, 2011
	Akira Kumagai⁺ “Flags of Higher Schools in Imperial Japan 1894-1950”	July 17, 2009
	Emil Dreyer “Flags of the Pope’s Swiss Guard Since 1798”	August 10, 2007
	Ralph D. Kelly “Caudillos, Coups, Constitutions and Changes: An Analysis of Flag Changes in Latin America”	August 5, 2005

The IAFM Award

Even before the current award was formalized in 2005, a recognition of the “best paper” was bestowed at ICVs, showing that FIAV’s commitment to quality goes back even further.

International Association of Flag Manufacturers (IAFM) sponsored at least since 1999, the “IAFM Award” that was given for the most creative paper delivered at an International Congress of Vexillology. The winner was chosen by a committee of three judges jointly appointed at each ICV by IAFM.

The award consisted of a vexillological memento chosen each year individually and was less formalized then the evetual FIAV award.

A research of FIAV documents in this matter is in progress… We would appreciate if you could provide missing details.

	Recipient/Paper/SpONSOR	Date
(photo)	Bruce B. Berry and Theodoulos S. Stylianides “Vexistats: A Statistical Overview of the Colours, Symbols and Designs of National Flags in the 20th Century”	August 2, 1999
(photo)	Philippe Rault “New Flags for an Ancient Country (Brittany/Bretagne/Breizh) [Bannielou nevez evit ur vro gozh]”	July 27, 2001
	Mason Kaye “Maps on Flags”	July 27, 2001
	Mason Kaye and Ted Kaye “The Flags of Portland, Oregon (1916-2002)” and “Flags over Antarctica”	July 29, 2003

Last Updated on September 9, 2024