Who knew the Tokyo Summer Olympics 2020 would be coming so soon and with awesome content to boot?
A website called World Flags has compiled a series of Gijinka art inspired by country flags from 26 countries that will be participating in the Olympics (and Malaysia is one of them)!
Note: The Gijinka art style is aimed at humanising inanimate objects, and it’s mostly employed in fan art.
Source: World Flags
According to WowJapan, the objectives of this fanart movement is to:
- Hype people up for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics using this particular art style.
- Educate people about the uniqueness of country flags and culture.
- Incorporate country flags into the samurai concept as a way of appreciating Japanese culture.
Here we have our pretty boy Azam, the personification of the Jalur Gemilang:
Source: World Flags
Source: World Flags
This Malaysian samurai is wearing an intricately designed armour with the iconic bulan and sabit on his head. His torso is replete with striking red and white stripes, and his dopeness is accentuated by the elegant blue fabric.
In addition to the awesome artwork, the website has also included proverbs from the featured country.
In this case, the chosen proverb for Malaysia is “Seperti mentimun (timun) dengan durian”, which means “an unequal fight between the strong (durian) and the weak (cucumber)”.
The Malaysian flag is categorised under the ASEAN group, which consists of Singapore, Philippines, Indonesia, and Thailand etc.
Here’s a glimpse of our neighbours’ samurais!
Source: World Flags
Source: World Flags
Source: World Flags
Source: World Flags
Source: World Flags 
Source: World Flags
Each country page introduces the country profile along with a brief summary of its culture and a detailed flag history.
It’s exciting to see how illustrators work so hard to research the history and meanings so that they can create characters that are as accurate as possible!
World Flags is also hoping to recruit more illustrators and cartoonists to contribute to their colourful archive.
If you’re interested in contributing, you can contact World Flags at contact@world-flags.org.
Idk about you but we think Malaysia’s illustration is one of the best one yet 😉
Also read: 7yo M’sian Ice Skater Nabs 4 Gold Medals in Asian Tour, Aims to Win 2026 Winter Olympics
