German State Flags
The flags of the German states may come in different variants. All states have a Landesflagge (flag of the state, sometimes known as a civil flag), that may be used by anyone. Some states have another variant, often showing the state coat of arms, called the Dienstflagge (service flag or government flag, sometimes known as a state flag), normally for use by official government offices only. In addition to these flags, in a few states there are variants exclusively for the state senate, or for state-operated ships. In some cases there are specific flags for high-ranking officials, mainly used as car flags. Frequently, the flags are used in vertical variants.