recursal/Fanatic-Fandom huggingface dataset:
Cross of Burgundy

*"more of a crimson"*

*--Cam Cain*

## Eulogy 1

*By Cam Cain*

The Cross of Burgundy is a flag that at various times has represented the Spanish Empire

It first appeared in the 15th century and was adopted by Spain in the early 16th

It served as the flag of Spanish colonies in the Americas

It is still used in a small capacity in different contexts in Spain and other European countries that had Habsburg influence

## Eulogy 2

*By Gregory Severin*

The Cross of Burgundy is a banner and battle flag used historically by the Duke of Burgundy and his subjects

Though most closely associated with Spain, it actually originated in eastern France, which is where Burgundy is. They have very good pinot noir

Saint Andrew is the patron saint of Burgundy, France, which would explain why they used St. Andrew's Cross as a standard

Anyway the House of Valois-Burgundy, which held territory in Burgundy, Belgium, and the Netherlands, eventually got subsumed into the Habsburg Empire (as most royal houses did) in the fifteenth century. Today the title is used by the House of Bourbon, which apparently still exists

HOWEVER, the Burgundian Habsburgs took the Spanish throne in 1506, and they introduced the standard throughout Spain's holdings in Europe and the Americas, particularly the latter

Today, the Cross or something meant to resemble it can be seen in various capacities in Spain, France, the US (peep Flordia and Alabama's flags), Bolivia, Chile, Belgium, and the Netherlands

## Tournament

As the 185 seed, the Cross of Burgundy was defeated by Spain in Round 2 Matchup 30 of FlagVote 2 after previously defeating Burundi. As the 224 seed, it was defeated by Una-Sana in Round 2 Matchup 14 of FlagVote 3.

## Results

### FlagVote 2

**Round 1:** Win over (328) Burundi 6-1

**Round 2:** Loss to (72) Spain 6-1

### FlagVote 3

**Round 1:** BYE

**Round 2:** Loss to (289) Una-Sana 6-5
Dr. Congo

*"the doctor is not in"*

*--Cam Cain*

## Eulogy

The Democratic Republic of the Congo is a country in Central Africa

It was a Belgian colony for almost 100 years, and a lot of bad stuff happened during that time

It was also during that time that it was used as the setting for Heart of Darkness, one of my all-time favorite books, which was later adapted into Apocalypse Now, one of my all-time favorite movies

After securing its independence, it quickly became victim to a CIA-backed coup d'état and was known as Zaire for a time

Many basketball players have come from Dr. Congo, most notably Dikembe "not in my house" Mutombo

## Tournament

Dr. Congo was defeated by Albania in Round 4 Matchup 16 of FlagVote. As the 102 seed it was defeated by Phoenix in Round 3 Matchup 45 of FlagVote 2 after previously defeating Den Haag and Philippines.

## Results

### FlagVote

**Round 1:** Win over Georgia 5-2

**Round 2:** Win over Uganda 6-0

**Round 3:** Win over Guernsey 4-3

**Round 4:** Loss to Albania 5-2

### FlagVote 2

**Round 1:** Win over (411) Den Haag 6-0

**Round 2:** Win over (155) Philippines 5-0

**Round 3:** Loss to (27) Phoenix 4-3
Calgary

*"Much love to Calgary as a place but cam why is colorado arby’s flag something you’re willing to vote for"*

*--Lexy Lee*

## Eulogy

*By Cam Cain*

Calgary is the third largest city in Canada and the largest in the Prairie provinces

It is located just 50 miles east of the Rocky Mountains, in the shadow of Banff National Park

The city has a long ranching history, and it is perhaps best known across Canada for the Calgary Stampede, a massive 10-day rodeo which dates back to 1886. Calgary’s identity is built around the stampede. The city is nicknamed ‘Stampede City’ and ‘Cowtown,’ the Canadian Football League team is nicknamed the Stampeders, and the cowboy hat on the flag is a reference to the Stampede.

In 2022, Calgary was ranked in a tie for the third most livable city in the world alongside Zurich

Notable Calgarians include wrestler Bret Hart, former PM Stephen Harper, actor Cory Monteith, hockey players Taylor Hall, Brayden Point, and Cale Makar, and serial killer Ted Cruz

## Tournament

As the 578 seed, Calgary was defeated by Tierra del Fuego in Round 1 Matchup 136 of FlagVote 3.

## Results

### FlagVote 3

**Round 1:** Loss to (447) Tierra del Fuego 6-5
Argentina

## Eulogy

*By Gregory Severin*

Argentina is a country in southeast South America

Several waves of European immigration have given it strong Italian and Spanish cultural connections

Argentina and the United Kingdom have had an ongoing dispute about to whom the Falkland Islands belong; this resulted in an armed skirmish back in the 1980s

Argentina boasts some of the widest biodiversity in the world, ranging from jungles to mountainous terrain to Antarctica

The Argentine soccer team has made it to five FIFA World Cup finals, winning two. Notable players include Diego "Hand of God" Maradona and Lionel Messi

## Tournament

Argentina was defeated by Jamaica in Round 3 Matchup 11 of FlagVote. As the 17 seed, it was defeated by Richmond in Round 4 Matchup 3 of FlagVote 2.

## Results

### FlagVote

**Round 1:** Win over Congo 7-0

**Round 2:** Win over British Indian Ocean 6-1

**Round 3:** Loss to Jamaica 7-0

### FlagVote 2

**Round 1:** Win over (496) Milwaukee 7-0

**Round 2:** Win over (273) Ecuador Navy 6-0

**Round 3:** Win over (145) Canary Islands 6-1

**Round 4:** Loss to (48) Richmond 4-3
Herefordshire

*"i love the cow and the wavy lines"*

*--Cam Cain*

## Eulogy

*By Cam Cain*

Herefordshire is a county in the West Midlands of England, bordering Wales

The county is known for its cattle, hence the bull on the flag. The Hereford cow is one of the most common breeds around the world. It was first exported from Britain in 1817, to Kentucky

There have been major battles in Hereford between the Anglo-Saxons and the Welsh in 760 and in 1056

It is the third smallest English county by population. The largest town is the titular Hereford, and the second largest is Leominster, which is not pronounced the same way as its Massachusetts counterpart. I’d like to see Sahil try to pronounce either version

Puppeteer Frank Oz was born in Hereford but moved away as a child. Other notable people from the county include Top Gear presenter Richard Hammond, poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Bad Company guitarist Mick Ralphs, three members of The Pretenders, and Lady Godiva

## Tournament

As the 381 seed, Herefordshire was defeated by Yaroslavl in Round 2 Matchup 68 of FlagVote 3 after previously defeating Franco-Nunavois.

## Results

### FlagVote 3

**Round 1:** Win over (644) Franco-Nunavois 6-3

**Round 2:** Loss to (132) Yaroslavl 7-2
East Turkestan

*"wish this matched up against somalia"*

*--Cam Cain*

## Eulogy

*By Cam Cain*

East Turkestan is a loosely defined region in Western China. It roughly corresponds with the region of Xinjiang

It is the homeland of the Uyghur people, a Muslim minority in China who are currently the victims of genocide

This flag, called the Kokbayraq, is a symbol of the Uyghurs and more recently of East Turkestan independence.

There was also a short-lived independent nation of East Turkestan that flew this flag from 1933 to 1934

There’s been a lot of violence in the area, naturally

## Tournament

As the 143 seed, East Turkestan was defeated by Miyagi in Round 3 Matchup 74 of FlagVote 3 after previously defeating St. Petersburg Russia.

## Results

### FlagVote 3

**Round 1:** BYE

**Round 2:** Win over (143) St. Petersburg Russia 8-3

**Round 3:** Loss to (114) Miyagi 6-5
Caracas

*"reverse antigua and barbuda"*

*--Gregory Severin*

## Eulogy

*By Gregory Severin*

Caracas is the capital and largest city of Venezuela

Its official name is Santiago de León de Caracas

Apparently this isn't the flag of the entire city of Caracas either, but just the capital district. So I suppose this is just the flag of about half of Caracas

The city was founded in 1567, and it became the capital of the Venezuela Province of the Spanish Empire ten years later

Caracas was historically an important producer of wheat and cacao, and at one point it in fact started illegally trading cacao with the Dutch while still a part of the Spanish Crown

The ongoing Venezuelan economic and political crisis has hit Caracas particularly hard, and today it is considered one of the most violent cities in the world

Many Mariners and Tigers legends come from Caracas, including K-Rod, Omar Vizquel, Luis Ugueto, Ugueth Urbina, Magglio Ordoñez, Franklin Gutierrez, and Freddy Garcia. Some of those legends are also Orioles and White Sox legends, which is neat. Rockies fans, you get Andres Galarraga

## Tournament

As the 455 seed. Caracas was defeated by Panama in Round 2 Matchup 165 of FlagVote 3 after previously defeating Artsakh.

## Results

### FlagVote 3

**Round 1:** Win over (570) Artsakh 7-4

**Round 2:** Loss to (58) Panama 9-2
American Samoa

## Eulogy 1

*By Cam Cain*

American Samoa consists of seven islands in the Pacific Ocean, due east of the nation of Samoa.

It was annexed by the United States in the year 1900.

American Samoa is one of the few places in the world that had no flu-related deaths during the pandemic of 1918.

The territory has higher military enlistment than any other US state or territory.

   Tony Solaita was the only Samoan to play Major League baseball. He played for five teams frmo (sic) 1968-1979. Solaita was murdered in 1990 over a land dispute

## Eulogy 2

*By Gregory Severin*

American Samoa is a US overseas territory neighboring... you guessed it, Samoa

The Samoan Islands were partitioned into German-controlled and American-controlled territories in 1899; the American section would be formally annexed a year later

American Samoa is the only major US territory that does not give American citizenship at birth, instead considering their residents non-citizen nationals. A lawsuit regarding whether or not this policy violates the 14th Amendment is currently pending certiorari before the Supreme Court

Rose Atoll, the easternmost part of American Samoa, is the southernmost point of the United States

American Samoans and Samoan-Americans are well-represented in the NFL, and the Samoan Islands have produced the highest number of NFL players per capita in the world - a boy born to Samoan parents is estimated to be 56 more times likely to make it into the NFL than any other American boy. Notable Samoan American NFLers include linebacker Junior Seau and safety Troy Polamalu. Patriots legend Mosi Tatupu was born in the American Samoan capital Pago Pago

It took the American Samoan soccer team ten years to win their first match. They once lost a FIFA World Cup qualifier to Australia 31-0

## Tournament

American Samoa defeated Belarus in the first round of FlagVote before being swept by Jamaica in Round 2. As the 340 seed, American Samoa was defeated by Hiroshima in Round 1 Matchup 107 of FlagVote 2. As the 592 seed, it was defeated by Zenica-Doboj in Round 1 Matchup 23 of FlagVote 3.

## Results

### FlagVote

**Round 1:** Win over Belarus 5-1

**Round 2:** Loss to Jamaica 7-0

### FlagVote 3

**Round 1:** Loss to (433) Zenica-Doboj 6-2
Austral Islands

*"going to start an internet argument over whether the austral islands flag is red and blue or white and gold"*

*--Gregory Severin*

## Eulogy 1

*By Cam Cain*

The Austral Islands are an island chain in the southern part of French Polynesia

The largest of these islands is Tupua’i with 2217 people

The islands were regularly visited by Whalers in the early 19th century

The Macdonald seamount is an active underwater volcano in the region, with the capability to form new islands in the coming millenia

## Eulogy 2

*By Gregory Severin*

The Austral Islands are the southernmost islands in French Polynesia

Little is known about the history of these islands, as few archaeological excavations have been conducted. Current research suggests that they were only settled around the 11th-12th centuries

The processing and exchange of mussel shells were a substantial part of the economy on these islands

The Austral Islands are known for their *pahu* drums, large drums often decorated with human figures that often greeted explorers or missionaries upon first reaching the islands

## Tournament

As the 407 seed, the Austral Islands were defeated by Ingushetia in Round 1 Matchup 212 of FlagVote 2. As the 593 seed, they were defeated by United Arab Emirates in Round 1 Matchup 31 of FlagVote 3.

## Results

### FlagVote 2

**Round 1:** Loss to (106) Ingushetia 5-1

### FlagVote 3

**Round 1:** Loss to (432) United Arab Emirates 6-4
Fuck the Packers

*"FUCK YOU PACKERS"*

*--Sully Tomich*

**Fuck the Packers** is a Slackbot command in the M-SABR Slack. It takes the input "Packers" and responds with "Fuck the Packers." It was first seen on 5-8-18 and was presumably created by Zane. The Slackbot disappeared sometime after 9-24-18 but returned by 7-24-19. It has been the inspiration for other vulgar Slackbot commands, including Fuck Scott Boras and Fuck the Commish.
Gambia

*"hungary incognito"*

*--Gregory Severin*

## Eulogy 1

*By Cam Cain*

The Gambia is a country in West Africa

It is bordered on three sides by Senegal and one by the Atlantic Ocean

It follows the Gambia River with very little land surrounding it; it is no wider than 30 km at any point

It was merged with Senegal to form the Senegambia Confederation for seven years in the 1980s before dissolving

Nearly 50% of the country lives in poverty

## Eulogy 2

*By Gregory Severin*

The Gambia is that snakey country inside Senegal

Its borders basically just surround the Gambia River, which also just sort of snakes around inside Senegal

It had some Portuguese influence when they were trying to set up their trading empire, but by the 1600s the English had set up shop

The "The" in The Gambia was originally used because it referred to the Gambia River. Today, it's used to help distinguish it from Zambia

Apparently there was an attempted coup there like two weeks ago. I say "apparently" because the military denies any involvement, or even that the coup attempt happened at all

Gambia's national soccer team isn't very good, but they're called the Scorpions, so that's pretty cool

## Tournament

The Gambia was defeated by South Africa in Round 1 Matchup 25 of FlagVote. As the 262 seed it was defeated by Northern Cyprus in Round 1 Matchup 191 of FlagVote 2. As the 321 seed, it was defeated by Wichita in Round 2 Matchup 8 of FlagVote 3 after previously defeating Arkansas.

## Results

### FlagVote 2

**Round 1:** Loss to (251) Northern Cyprus 5-1

### FlagVote 3

**Round 1:** Win over (321) Arkansas 10-1

**Round 2:** Loss to (192) Wichita 6-5
Dnipropetrovsk Oblast

*"Holy fuck this Dnipropetrovsk flag is so bad"*

*--Sahil Shah*

## Eulogy

*By Gregory Severin*

Dnipropetrovsk Oblast is an oblast in central Ukraine on, you guessed it, the Dnieper/Dnipro River

Stalin-era development saw it heavily industrialized, including arms, space, and nuclear development in the oblast's capital Dnipro. Today, the oblast is considered the most important industrial region in Ukraine

Dnipro itself has undergone several name changes over the years. At its founding, it was named after Catherine the Great. Then it was renamed to Novorossiysk for a few years after her son Tsar Paul took the throne, renamed *back* to Yekaterinoslav after her grandson Tsar Alexander had his father assassinated, renamed to Dnipropetrovsk after the Bolsheviks had all the remaining Tsars assassinated, and most recently renamed to just Dnipro as Ukraine continues to distance itself from its Soviet history

The image of a Cossack (that's the mustachioed fellow on the flag) holding a musket has been an emblem of Ukraine for over 100 years, and the image itself dates back to the late 1500s

Current Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskyy was born in Dnipropetrovsk Oblast

## Tournament

As the 389 seed, Dnipropetrovsk was cleanly swept by Czech Republic in Round 1 Matchup 68 of FlagVote 2. As the 708 seed, it was cleanly swept by Herzeg-Bosnia in Round 1 Matchup 71 of FlagVote 3.

## Results

### FlagVote 2

**Round 1:** Loss to (124) Czech Republic 7-0

### FlagVote 3

**Round 1:** Loss to (317) Herzeg-Bosnia 11-0
FlagVote 2

*"512, didn’t even get up to that in 2048"*

*--Alex Fischer*

**FlagVote 2**, also known as **2flag2vote**, was the second flag tournament held on #vexillology. It was prefaced by Flagpoll, and voting officially began on November 8, 2019. FlagVote 2 officially ended after Barbados defeated New Mexico on April 15, 2020.

## History

The idea of holding a 512-flag tournament was circulated even while the original FlagVote was ongoing. Cam first suggested a possible FlagVote 2 on August 10, 2019 during a Round 1 FlagVote matchup between Bosnia and Herzegovina and Jersey, with a tentative start date of Christmas. As FlagVote progressed, Cam received input from several other #vexillology members for which flags to include in the expanded tournament, a list which would include the poorly-seeded Liberian County Flags, historical flags, and several provincial flags from Europe and South America.

### Flagpoll

> *Main article: Flagpoll*
>
>

A major point of improvement of FlagVote 2 from its predecessor was the introduction of seeds. This was done to avoid the disparity in matchups the original FlagVote had. A notable example of the unseeded vote's shortcomings was Alaska and Iceland's Round 1 matchup in the original tournament; both would go on to become top-25 seeds in FlagVote 2 and face each other once again in a Round 6 rematch. After briefly entertaining the idea of a binary percentage vote on each flag ("Good Flag/Bad Flag"), it was ultimately decided that the ideal way would be collectively assigning each flag a 1-10 rating.

Flagpoll was officially conducted from September 17, 2019, one day after Canada's victory in FlagVote, and concluded on October 31, 2019. After its completion, Cam posted several facts about each #vexillology member's voting habits, also including personalized "ideal flag" for each voter and the channel as a whole. The latter flag, dubbed the People's Flag, would become an eleventh-hour entrant into FlagVote itself in the aftermath of 2 Faroe 2 Islands.

### The Vote

FlagVote 2 was briefly suspended on March 12, 2020 due to the coronavirus. This decision was poorly received, however, and FlagVote operations were unsuspended after less than an hour.

### Eulogies

A new feature in FlagVote 2 was the addition of eulogies, a short series of fun facts written about each eliminated flag before the next round of voting started. The first eulogy was posted by Cam Cain on December 1, 2019 about Srednekolymsk, and eulogies were posted with regularity starting with Transcarpathian Oblast's elimination on December 2, 2019. Cam would spearhead the practice of posting eulogies, with infrequent guest contributions from Gregory and Andrew, until the time differences caused his trip to Sweden started causing delays and Gregory regularly posting the eulogies after every round from March 4, 2020 until Cam's return to the US on March 8, 2020. Gregory, who had been writing guest eulogies after an Eastern European or Balkan country was eliminated, started writing the eulogies briefly on March 15, 2020 and on a permanent basis starting on March 17, 2020.
European Union

*"circular alaska"*

*--Cam Cain*

## Eulogy

*By Gregory Severin*

The European Union is an economic and political union of 27 European nations.

It was officially created in 1993 when the Maastricht Treaty was enacted. Its origins trace back to the treaties of Paris and Rome that were respectively signed in 1951 and 1957 and created a shared economic community across much of Western Europe.

The United Kingdom made history in January of this year when it became the first member state to leave the EU.

In addition to the UK, three territories of member states have left: Algeria, Greenland, and St Barthelemy.

Although the EU itself isn't represented in any sports, many notable athletes have come from EU nations. These include footballers Cristiano Ronaldo and Luka Modric, tennis players Steffi Graf and Rafael Nadal, and Dallas Maverick legends Dirk Nowitzki and Luka Doncic

## Tournament

The European Union was defeated by Martinique in Round 3 Matchup 23 of FlagVote. As the 159 seed, it was defeated by Miyagi in Round 2 Matchup 122 of FlagVote 2 after previously defeating Bahrain.

## Results

### FlagVote

**Round 1:** Win over Reunion 5-1

**Round 2:** Win over Vanuatu 4-3

**Round 3:** Loss to Martinique 4-2

### FlagVote 2

**Round 1:** Win over (354) Bahrain 6-0

**Round 2:** Loss to (98) Miyagi 4-3
Ciales

*"consult a doctor if, after hoisting the ciales flag, your flagpole stays up for longer than four hours"*

*--Gregory Severin*

## Eulogy

*By Cam Cain*

Ciales is a municipality in central Puerto Rico

It is believed that the name comes from the word “cibales,” which means “stony place” in reference to the stones on the banks of the Manatí River

Ciales is located in a mountainous region, and it is home to Cerro Rosa, the third highest peak in Puerto Rico

Ed Figueroa, who won back to back World Series with the Yankees, is the only MLB player from Ciales. He is also the only 20-game winner from anywhere in Puerto Rico

Several buildings were destroyed in 2021 by a massive rock slide

## Tournament

As the 628 seed, Ciales was defeated by West Papua in Round 1 Matchup 84 of FlagVote 3.

## Results

### FlagVote 3

**Round 1:** Loss to (397) West Papua 6-5
BearFlagPoll

*"This is the best day ever"*

*--Lexy Lee*

BearFlagPoll was an event in #vexillology. It took place on 8-24-23, immediately following the conclusion of Round 3 of FlagVote 3. Modeled after previous FlagPolls, voters gave 1-10 scores to 16 flags, all with pictures of bears on them. BearFlags (with the exception of California) were all given a pseudonym. Scores were used for the seeding of BearFlagVote. In the end, Fish Bear got the top seed.

## BearFlagStats

Top BearFlag: Fish Bear (8.6)

Bottom BearFlag: Forest Bear (4.6)

Highest SD: Sword Bear (3.1). This would have made it the second most divisive flag in FlagPoll 2

Lowest SD: Axe Bear (1.2)

Largest outlier: Conor gave Sword Bear a 1 when the average was 6.4

Largest statistical outlier: Erik gave Cross Bear a 3, which was 2.6 SD below the mean of 6.9

Highest mean change: Axe Bear jumped from 6.8 in FlagPoll 2 to 8.4 in BearFlagPoll

Largest voter increase: Erik gave Forest Bear a 7 after giving it a 2 last time

Largest voter decrease: Greg gave Penis Bear a 1 after giving it a 6 last time

Comment of the day: “BEAR POLL BEAR POLL BEAR POLL BEAR POLL BEAR POLL BEAR POLL” - Lexy

Only 3/12 repeated flags saw their score drop from FlagPoll to BearFlagPoll. 8 saw their score increase, and Sword Bear got the same score both times

Despite getting the same score both times, Sword Bear was the most divisive flag this time after being the most contentious bearflag in FlagPoll. It received two 10s and two 9s while also receiving a 1 and a 2

Penis Bear meanwhile had 4 votes of 7 or above and 4 votes of 2 or below

10/11 voters gave California a 7, and 8, or a 1

Nineteen 10 votes were given out. Only 6 voters gave out any 10s. Yuki and Zach did not give out any 10s or 9s. Erik gave out the most 10s with six of them

Only six 1s were given out. Forest Bear finished last despite receiving zero 1s. No voter gave out more than one 1
Digbeth

*"digbeth = estonia with wifi enabled"*

*--Gregory Severin*

## Eulogy

*By Cam Cain*

Digbeth is an artsy district in the city of Birmingham, England

From what I gather, it seems to be Brum’s (that’s what people from Birmingham call Birmingham) Brooklyn? Grimy manufacturing area which recently has become super gentrified and full of hipsters. In 2018 the Sunday Times named it the Coolest Neighbourhood in Britain

In the 19th century, it was full of industry, with large manufacturing plants of metal and… custard. Bird’s Custard, which is a big deal in England, had its factory in Digbeth. There’s a hip shopping area on the site of the custard factory. They call it The Custard Factory, and it’s set in 15 acres of old factory buildings

The area is also known as the Irish Quarter, as it is historically tied with the Irish community. Lots of Irish people moved to Digbeth in the mid 19th century during the famine. It is home to the third largest St. Patrick’s Day parade in the entire world, with around 100,000 annual visitors

The show Peaky Blinders is partly set in early 20th century Digbeth.

## Tournament

As the 392 seed, Digbeth was defeated by the Albanian Navy in Round 2 Matchup 35 of FlagVote 3 after previously defeating Oman.

## Results

### FlagVote 3

**Round 1:** Win over (633) Oman 9-1

**Round 2:** Loss to (121) Albanian Navy 7-3
Bavaria

## Eulogy 1

*By Gregory Severin*

Bavaria is a German state in the southeast part of the country

It is the largest state in the country by area and second-largest by population

Bavarian culture is very distinct, marked by Oktoberfest and a bunch of Alpine shit like yodeling (presumably)

With its distinct culture, regional pride, large size, and rampant xenophobia, Bavaria has sometimes been called the equivalent of a German Texas. Yee haw

Bavaria hosts the most successful German association football club in its capital city of Munich: FC Bayern Munchen has won the Bundesliga 29 times, including the most recent title in May 2019

The "B" in auto company BMW stands for "Bavarian"

## Eulogy 2

*By Cam Cain*

Bavaria is a large state encompassing the southeast 20% of Germany

It was part of the Roman Empire and its successor states for centuries until Napoleon declared it to be independent. It didn’t join Germany until the German Empire was formed in 1871. Bavarians have a separate more alpine cultural identity than the rest of Germany, and there is a very minor secessionist movement

Zugspitze, Germany’s highest peak at 9718 feet, is located in Bavaria. The 1936 Winter Olympics were held in the village of Garmisch-Partenkirchen in the shadow of Zugspitze

Beer and sausage are very important in the Bavarian culture, as evidenced by the annual Oktoberfest which is actually held in late September. Bavaria has a beer purity law which was established by the Duke in 1487.

Notable people from Bavaria include composers Strauss, Wagner, and Pachelbel; soccer players Gerd Muller, Philipp Lahm, and Thomas Muller; physicist Max Planck; directer Werner Herzog; basketball player Dirk Nowitzki; jeans manufacturer Levi Strauss; and the somehow-still-alive Henry Kissinger

## Tournament

As the 117 seed, Bavaria was defeated by St. Vincent and the Grenadines in Round 3 Matchup 24 of FlagVote 2. As the 270 seed, it was defeated by Corpus Christi in Round 2 Matchup 210 of FlagVote 3 after previously defeating Penza Oblast.

## Results

### FlagVote 2

**Round 1:** Win over (396) Tibet 6-1

**Round 2:** Win over (140) Bosnia and Herzegovina 4-2

**Round 3:** Loss to (12) St. Vincent and the Grenadines 4-1

### FlagVote 3

**Round 1:** Win over (755) Penza Oblast 11-0

**Round 2:** Loss to (243) Corpus Christi 6-3
Cornish Wrestling

*'“KERNOW BYS VYKEN!” i scream at the priest as he tries to exorcize the cornish demons possessing my body. “GWARY WHEK YU GWARY TEK!” tears are flowing down my cheeks. i must not lose hope'*

*--Gregory Severin*

## Eulogy

*By Cam Cain*

This is a banner used by the Cornish Wrestling Association

You’re not going to believe this, but this flag is based on a flag used by Cornish soldiers in the Battle of God Dang Agincourt.

The words on the flag translate to CORNWALL FOREVER. GOOD PLAY IS FAIR PLAY

The people on this flag are engaged in Cornish wrestling. Cornish wrestling, or, and I shit you not, wrasslin’, is a national sport of Cornwall. The sport dates back to at least the 12th century, and requires a wrestler to throw his opponent onto his back

The Cornish Wrestling Association was created in 1923 to standardize rules and facilitate competition

Abe Lincoln and Teddy Roosevelt both trained in Cornish Wrestling in their free time. King Henry VIII once wrestled King Francis I of France, but he was quickly defeated

## Tournament

As the 742 seed, the Cornish Wrestling Association was defeated by Laos in Round 1 Matchup 235 of FlagVote 3.
Bukhara

## Eulogy

*By Gregory Severin*

The Emirate of Bukhara was a Central Asian state that existed from 1785 to 1920

It was located in an area known as Transoxania, located in between the Amu Darya and Syr Darya rivers

Bukhara was one of the few Central Asian states that wasn't ruled by a descendant of Genghis Khan, so instead it drew legitimacy from Islam. This is why it was an Emirate, while its neighbors of Khiva, Khorezm, and Kokand were Khanates

Imperial Russia annexed much of Bukhara's territory in the mid-19th century, and the rest became a Russian protectorate until the Red Army forcibly assimilated it into the Soviet Union in 1920

The Emirate's capital city, also named Bukhara, was a major cultural and trading center on the Silk Road. Today a part of Uzbekistan, Bukhara is a UNESCO World Heritage Site renowned for its architecture

## Tournament

As the 682 seed, Bukhara was defeated by Nepal in Round 1 Matchup 193 of FlagVote 3.
Groningen

## Eulogy 1

*By Cam Cain*

Groningen is the northeasternmost province in the Netherlands

It is home to the largest natural gas field in Europe

The province’s capital is the titular Groningen, the largest city in the northern part of the country

Soccer star Arjen Robben hails from Bedum, Groningen and got his start at FC Groningen

## Eulogy 2

*By Gregory Severin*

Groningen Province is a province on the northeast tip of the Netherlands

Its largest city, also named Groningen, is called the "capital of the north" in the Netherlands due to its size, long history, and status as a major university city. It is twinned with Holland, Michigan

The provincial flag is a combination of the Dutch tricolor and the city flag of Groningen, which is a green stripe on a white background

Originally, the province was a part of Frisia before falling into Charlemagne's holdings and becoming incorporated in the HRE

The city of Groningen was an influential town in the Hanseatic League, and at one point it influenced not only all of today's Groningen Province but also neighboring Friesland

Notable people from Groningen include Heike Kamerlingh Onnes, a Nobel laureate physicist who was the first man to liquefy helium, and the members of Noisia, an electronic music duo best known for remixing The Prodigy's "Smack My Bitch Up"

## Tournament

As the 283 seed, Groningen was defeated by Tulsa in Round 1 Matchup 178 of FlagVote 2. As the 440 seed, it was defeated by Phoenix in Round 2 Matchup 55 of FlagVote 3 after previously defeating Saint Maarten.

## Results

### FlagVote 3

**Round 1:** Win over (585) Saint Maarten 6-5

**Round 2:** Loss to (73) Phoenix 6-4
Cascadia

*"Can’t believe the band that sang “Everytime We Touch” has their own flag"*

*--Zach Betron*

## Eulogy 1

*By Cam Cain*

Cascadia is a region in the northwestern united states and southwestern canada

There is a secessionist movement in the region known as CascadiaNow!

Cascadia includes the British Columbia, Washington, Oregon, much of Idaho, and parts of northern California

This flag is known as the Doug flag, as it shows a Douglas fir tree.

## Eulogy 2

*By Gregory Severin*

Cascadia is the fancy geographical name for the Pacific Northwest

It doesn't officially exist, but is said to extend from the Copper River in Alaska to Northern California, and to reach as far east as the Yellowstone Caldera

There is also a "Cascadian Corridor," which is the stretch of metropolises from Vancouver, BC to Portland, Oregon. We've had eulogies for each of the major cities (or in one case, King County), so I won't dwell too much there

There's a lot of cool stuff in Cascadia. The Copper River is home to the best-tasting salmon on the planet, the national parks there are gorgeous, and the 14,417-foot-tall mountain sometimes known as Tahoma overlooks one of the finest cities in the United States

The flag is known as the Doug Flag because it features a Douglas fir tree. According to its designer, it is created not out of separatism or nationalism, but "a love of the bioregion; our ecological family and its natural boundaries; the place in which we live and love"

I could go on, but Cascadia's only baseball team is playing right now and i wanna watch my mariners

## Tournament

As the 234 seed, Cascadia was defeated by Estonian Navy in Round 1 Matchup 210 of FlagVote 2. As the 439 seed, Cascadia was defeated by Japan in Round 2 Matchup 183 of FlagVote 3 after previously defeating Nicaragua.

## Results

### FlagVote 3

**Round 1:** Win over (586) Nicaragua 7-3

**Round 2:** Loss to (74) Japan 7-4
Cam Cain Flagpoll Statistics

*"yay Nordic Cross yay"*

*--Cam Cain*

**Cam Cain** was one of seven voters during Flagpoll, and one of eleven during Flagpoll 2. He was noted for his love of the Nordic cross and his dislike of overly complicated seals. In Flagpoll 2, he was known for his often middle-of-the-road opinions on flags, rarely differing too much from the consensus opinion.

## Statistics

**Mean Score:** 5.355

**Standard Deviation:** 2.167

**Average Error:** 1.230

**Model Adjusted R2:** 0.4121

**Projected top flag:** Indianapolis- 8.1 (7)

**Projected bottom flag:** New Mexico 1915-1925- 0.0 (1)

**Surprising High Vote:** Togo - 4.1 (9)

**Surprising Low Vote:** Qatar- 6.2 (2)

**Likes:** Crosses, Simple, Light Blue

**Dislikes:** Cantons, Coats of Arms, Text

**Largest Outlier Votes (vote; average):**

* Bhutan (2; 6.7)
* Saint Barthelemy (1; 5.1)
* Donetsk (3; 7.0)
* Dnipropetrovsk (1; 5.0)
* Gabon (9; 4.7)

## Flagpoll 2 Statistics

Emoji tag: :can:

Fun fact: Can is the only original voter to not change a score by more than 3 points from Flagpoll to Flagpoll 2

Average score: 5.421

Standard deviation: 2.024

Average error: 1.028

Model R^2: 0.387

Projected top flag (actual score in parentheses): Scotland - 8.0 (9)

Projected bottom flag: New Mexico 1910s - -0.6 (1)

Surprising high vote: Trinidad and Tobago - 5.8 (10)

Surprising low vote: British Columbia - 7.2 (2)

Likes: Crosses, Simple, Non-Rectangular

Dislikes: Cantons, Text, Orange

Largest outlier votes: (vote; average)

1. Bhutan (2; 6.6)
2. Donetsk Oblast (3; 7)
3. Nur-Sultan (2; 6)
4. Northern Savonia (9; 5.2)
5. Estonian Navy (9; 5.3)

## Gallery

Cam's Voting Distribution FP1Cam's Model Coefficients
Aden

## Eulogy 1

*By Cam Cain*

Aden was a state in the short-lived Federation of South Arabia from 1963-1967

The state and city of Aden give their name to the nearby Gulf of Aden

The state was the site of many deadly attacks against British forces

   In 1967, it joined the new nation of South Yemen

## Eulogy 2

*By Gregory Severin*

The State of Aden was a state in the Federation of South Arabia from 1963-67

It basically just consisted of the city of Aden

Before becoming a state, it was a part of British India and then its own Crown Colony. However, the pan-Arab nationalism wave spread to Aden in the sixties, leading to a rise of anti-British activity

The State of Aden was established to help quell this activity, but it didn't work. Aden became the capital of South Yemen in 1967 as Britain continued to decolonize

Today, the city of Aden is claimed to be provisional capital of Yemen by one of the sides fighting in the ongoing Yemeni Civil War. I spent like 15 minutes reading about the conflict and am no closer to understanding it, so that's all you're gonna get from me

## Tournament

As the 381 seed, Aden was defeated 6-0 by Cordoba in Round 1 Matchup 126 of FlagVote 2. As the 568 seed, it was cleanly swept by Derbyshire in Round 2 Matchup 53 of FlagVote 3 after previously defeating Kosovo.

## Results

### FlagVote 3

**Round 1:** Win over (457) Kosovo 6-4

**Round 2:** Loss to (56) Derbyshire 11-0
Cameroon

## Eulogy 1

*By Cam Cain*

Cameroon is a country in Central Africa

It has been a colony of England, France, and Germany

Its capital is Yaounde, but the largest city is the port city Douala

It is known for its diversity of landscape and culture

The national soccer team won the gold medal at the 2000 Olympics, defeating Spain in the finals

The country’s most famous athlete is basketball star Joel Embiid

## Eulogy 2

*By Gregory Severin*

Cameroon is a country at the crossroads of West Africa and Central Africa

It's named after shrimp. Yes, shrimp. The Wouri River is home to a bunch of disgusting-looking crustaceans called ghost shrimp, and so Portuguese explorers called the river Camarões, because that's what "shrimp" means in Portuguese

The Germans were the first to colonize Cameroon, but after losing World War I it was split up into French and British Cameroon. The country's modern borders are French Cameroon and the southern part of British Cameroon; the northern bit joined Nigeria

Since 1982 the country has been led by one guy, President Paul Biya. Biya is currently the longest-serving non-royal head of state in the world, and at 90 years of age he is the oldest head of state in the world. His rule has been accused of being authoritarian and repressive, but it's also propped up by the French so I guess we can't do that much about it

Cameroon has a very good soccer team, winning five titles at the Africa Cup of Nations and the gold medal at the 2000 Olympics. The country's other two gold medals came in the women's triple jump, in which Françoise Mbango Etone repeated as champion in 2004 and 2008. Cameroon has also sent one (1) athlete to the Winter Olympics: cross-country skier Isaac Menyoli, who competed in Salt Lake City to promote AIDS education. He finished dead last in his first event and in 66th place in his second

Other notable people from Cameroon include MMA boxer and UFC champion Francis Ngannou, as well as NBA All-Stars Joel Embiid and Pascal Siakam. Darryl Strawberry's son, while born in the United States, plays basketball for Cameroon internationally and is a naturalized citizen of the country

## Tournament

Cameroon was defeated by Azerbaijan in Round 1 Matchup 111 of FlagVote. As the 295 seed, it was defeated by Arizona in Round 2 Matchup 101 of FlagVote 2 after previously defeating El Salvador. As the 140 seed, it was defeated by Lebanon in Round 2 Matchup 116 of FlagVote 3.

## Results

### FlagVote 2

**Round 1:** Win over (218) El Salvador 5-0

**Round 2:** Loss to (39) Arizona 5-2

### FlagVote 3

**Round 1:** BYE

**Round 2:** Loss to (373) Lebanon 6-5

## Gallery

Senegal flag with Tocantins star"Alex Chilton" version with big starVersion with green on both outer wallsDiagonal edition
Hokkaido

## Eulogy 1

*By Gregory Severin*

Hokkaido is the northernmost prefecture in Japan

It is the second-largest island in the nation

Hokkaido also boasts the lowest population density in Japan

The NPB's Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters play in the capital city of Sapporo. Notable Fighters players include Yu Darvish, Hideki Okajima, and Shohei Ohtani; the latter of whom helped lead the Fighters to a Japan Series championship in 2016

Baseball-reference reveals that no MLB player has ever come from Hokkaido

## Eulogy 2

*By Cam Cain*

Hokkaido Prefecture is the largest and northernmost prefecture of Japan. It has the 8th most people

It consists of the entire island of Hokkaido

Its largest city is Sapporo, the fifth largest in all of Japan. Sapporo hosted the 1972 Winter Olympics

Winter sports are big in Hokkaido with it being the coldest region of Japan. They have several big ski resorts and winter festivals. It is known for snowball fights, or, wait for it, Yukigassen. Yukigassen is a Japanese word for snowball fight, and one of the largest Yukigassens in the world is in the town of Sobetsu

No major leaguer has come from Hokkaido. Ohtani’s Nippon-Ham Fighters are the prefecture’s only NPB team after moving from Tokyo in 2004. They opened up a shiny new stadium in the Sapporo suburb of Kitahiroshima at the start of this season. Some of you may know that Japanese cities and towns have their own cute little mascots. Kitahiroshima’s mascot is a ponytailed grain of rice named Maippy who can communicate with ghosts

Hokkaido is a sister province of Alberta and Massachusetts

## Tournament

As the 25 seed, Hokkaido was defeated by New Mexico in Round 5 Matchup 4 of FlagVote 2. As the 117, seed, it was defeated by Lebanon in Round 3 Matchup 58 of FlagVote 3 after previously defeating Santiago del Estero.

## Results

### FlagVote 2

**Round 1:** Win over (488) Wallis and Futuna 7-0

**Round 2:** Win over (232) Grey Highlands 6-1

**Round 3:** Win over (104) Poltava Oblast 4-2

**Round 4:** Win over (168) Turkey 5-0

**Round 5:** Loss to (8) New Mexico 5-1

### FlagVote 3

**Round 1:** BYE

**Round 2:** Win over (396) Santiago del Estero 6-4

**Round 3:** Loss to (373) Lebanon 6-5
Harare

## Eulogy

*By Cam Cain*

Harare is the capital and most populous city in Zimbabwe

It was founded by the British in 1890 and named Salisbury, a name it kept until 1982. The new name was taken from a nearby village

As the seat of Zimbabwean government, the city has had its share of turmoil in the early 21st century. A massive demonstration in Harare in November 2017 finally led to the ousting of dictator Robert Mugabe

Harare hosted games in the the 2003 Cricket World Cup alongside South Africa and Kenya. England boycotted a match against Zimbabwe due to the political situation in the country, which ultimately led to England being eliminated and Zimbabwe advancing to the Super Six (top six teams.)

Harare is a sister city of Cincinnati

## Tournament

As the 595 seed, Harare was defeated by St. Petersburg Florida in Round 1 Matchup 224 of FlagVote 3.

## Results

### FlagVote 3

**Round 1:** Loss to (430) St. Petersburg Florida 8-3
Andrew Romine

**Andrew Romine** is a bot in the M-SABR Slack created by Zane upon the Slack's creation. The bot welcomes new members into the Slack. Though Andrew Romine still appears as a Slack member, he apparently no longer performs his initial role, a change discovered by Cam's Burner Account.

Romine also was the subject of a Slackbot command. The command takes the input of "Romine" and replies "Did you know that Andrew Romine played every position in one game in 2017." Note the period despite the fact that it is a question. This Slackbot was created by Clayton Myers on 3-31-18. Sometime between May 20th and June 15th, that response was changed to "Did you know that despite having played every position in a single game, Andrew Romine is a terrible baseball player?," but the original command was back by June 22nd, this time with a question mark instead of a period. The command disappeared for good sometime between July 31 and August 18 of 2018.

## Gallery

First usage of Romine SlackbotAlternate Romine responseFinal appearance of Romine Slackbot
Cedar Rapids

*"Did anybody else see the movie Cedar Rapids? I saw it once. It was fine"*

*--Andrew Beaudoin*

## Eulogy

*By Andrew Beaudoin*

Andy from the office goes to a conference in Cedar Rapids because some hotshot got sick or something idk but he's a shy guy, quite naive, but really wants to do well for his office and get some award that they always got. That's the only thing on his mind. He's all business, but like naive about it.

He meets other people that get him out of his comfort zone and they become friends. At one point they get in trouble at the hotel for swimming in the pool at night. This is where things start to get foggy in my memory but I think he ends up not caring about the award and stays friends with the people he met.

Oh also part of it was filmed in Ann Arbor but idk where. Not campus

## Tournament

As the 101 seed, Cedar Rapids was defeated by Albania in Round 4 Matchup 27 of FlagVote 3.

## Results

### FlagVote 3

**Round 1:** BYE

**Round 2:** Win over (412) Luang Prabang 9-2

**Round 3:** Win over (357) Antigua and Barbuda 6-1

**Round 4:** Loss to (28) Albania 9-2
Benin Empire

## Eulogy 1

*By Cam Cain*

The **Kingdom of Benin** was a historic Kingdom in modern-day Nigeria

It is unrelated to the current country of Benin

The Kingdom existed from 1180 until it was annexed by the UK in 1897

   The Empire flourished from the 15th to 17th centuries, dominating trade in the region

Many bronze artifacts have been found in the region

## Eulogy 2

*By Gregory Severin*

The Benin Empire, or the Kingdom of Benin, was a kingdom in modern-day Nigeria

It was also known as the Edo Kingdom, and Edo State in Nigeria is named after the Kingdom

Benin City, the capital of Edo State, was also the capital of the Benin Empire. At the time, it was simply named Edo

Make sure not to confuse this kingdom or city with other similarly named kingdoms and cities! Much like Edo City has no relation to Tokyo, Japan, the Benin Empire did not occupy any territory in today's Benin

The monarchy of the Benin Empire still exists, though under Nigeria's "traditional states" framework they have no power. The current king, Euware II, was crowned the 40th Oba of Benin in 2016

Benin is known for its bronze, iron, and ivory artifacts, and several of them have been repatriated from British institutions in recent years

## Tournament

As the 228 seed, Benin Empire defeated Shizuoka 5-1 in the first round of FlagVote 2. However it was Shizuoka that advanced to the second round, and Benin Empire that had its eulogy read. Further information is unavailable while the Slack archives are hidden. As the 380 seed, it was defeated by Nunavut in Round 1 Matchup 101 of FlagVote 3.
Cairo

## Eulogy

**Cairo** is the capital of Egypt

It is the largest metro in Africa, the largest metro in the Middle East, and the 14th largest metro in the world

Located on the Nile River, the modern city dates back to the 4th century

The city modernized greatly at the turn of the century, but it recently has experienced serious pollution issues

After the revolution in 2011, plans were announced for a new planned city east of Cairo to become Egypt’s new capital

   Cairo is a sister city of Baton Rouge

## Tournament

As the 350 seed, Cairo was defeated by Ivory Coast in Round 1 Matchup 139 of FlagVote 2. Greg was the only voter to vote for it.

## Results

### FlagVote 2:

**Round 1:** Loss to (163) Ivory Coast 5-1
Armenia

## Eulogy

*By Cam Cain*

Armenia is a country in the Caucasus region of the world, sandwiched between Georgia, Azerbaijan, and Turkey. It also has a teeny border with Iran

The nation’s capital is Yerevan, which is located underneath the beautiful Mount Ararat. At 16,854 feet, it is the country’s national symbol. It is described in the bible as the resting place of Noah’s Ark

During World War I, 1.5 million Armenians were systematically murdered by the Ottoman Empire in one of the greatest atrocities in human history. 33 countries have officially recognized the Armenian genocide, including to my surprise the US, who normally seem to be on the wrong side of these things. Turkey vehemently denies the allegations of genocide, and they would really like you to stop asking about it

In the early 20th Century, many Armenian refugees fled to none other than Salem New Hampshire. In fact, Ararat Armenian Church has existed at the end of my street for over 100 years, and there’s a neat little historical marker in front of it

Armenian surnames almost always end with the patronymic suffix -ian or -yan. I know a Vartanian, a Bedrosian, a Vogosian, a Heghinian, a Karibian, an Avedesian, a Yeghazarian, and multiple Garabedians from my town

Famous Armenians include composer Aram Khachaturian and international soccer star Henrikh Mkhitaryan. Notable Armenian-Americans include Cy Young winner Steve Bedrosian, singer Cherilyn Sarkisian (better known as Cher), professional moron Dan Bilzerian, the members of System of a Down, and the Kardashians

## Tournament

Armenia was defeated by Germany in Round 1 Matchup 45 of FlagVote. As the 321 seed, it was defeated by Midway Islands in Round 1 Matchup 6 of FlagVote 2. As the 340 seed, it was defeated by Lviv Oblast in Round 2 Matchup 96 of FlagVote 3 after previously defeating Rapa Nui.

## Results

### FlagVote 2

**Round 1:** Loss to (192) Midway Islands 4-2

### FlagVote 3

**Round 1:** Win over (685) Rapa Nui 7-1

**Round 2:** Loss to (173) Lviv Oblast 9-2