İsmet Vahid Güney (15 July 1923 – 23 June 2009)[1] was a Turkish Cypriot artist, cartoonist, teacher and painter.

[1] Güney's design was unique, as the Republic of Cyprus is the first country in the world to display a map on its flag.

[2] In 1947, Güney became the first Turkish Cypriot painter to open a solo art exhibition.

Thus the Greek blue and Turkish red were avoided by Güney and the other design competitors.

Currently, only the government-controlled southern part of Cyprus uses Güney's original since the division of the island in 1974.

[1] Güney sought payment from the government of the Republic of Cyprus for his flag design, in addition to compensation for its copyright use in 2006.