---
title: "Flag of Albania: colours and meaning"
description: "What every colour and symbol on the Albania flag stands for, its official 5:7 ratio, and the year the current design was adopted."
url: https://atoneplace.net/flag/albania/
site: "At One Place"
---

# The flag of Albania

**The flag of Albania: A red field with a black double-headed eagle at the centre.**

Ratio 5:7 · current design adopted 1992

Albania calls itself Shqipëria, usually glossed as "land of the eagles", and the flag has carried the double-headed eagle in some form since Skanderbeg's revolt in 1443. Everything else on it has changed repeatedly — a crown, a star, a helmet — and the 1992 version simply removed the socialist star and left the eagle alone on red. The bird faces both ways because it is a Byzantine device, adopted by Skanderbeg from imperial heraldry rather than invented. It is one of very few national flags with a single charge on a plain field and no other element.

## What the colours mean

*Flag laws usually specify a Pantone chip, a CMYK mix or just a colour name. Converting any of those to sRGB is lossy, which is why published hex values disagree.*

- **Red** (#E41E20) — Bravery, strength and valour
- **Black** (#000000) — The eagle; the country's own name for itself means "land of the eagles"

## The symbols on it

| What | What it stands for |
| --- | --- |
| Double-headed eagle | The seal of Gjergj Kastrioti Skanderbeg, who resisted the Ottomans in the 1400s |

- **Ratio:** 5:7
- **Current design adopted:** 1992
- **Colours:** red, black

## Common questions

### What does the flag of Albania look like?

A red field with a black double-headed eagle at the centre.

### What do the colours of the Albania flag mean?

Red: bravery, strength and valour. Black: the eagle; the country's own name for itself means "land of the eagles".

### When was the Albania flag adopted?

The current design dates from 1992, and its official ratio is 5:7.

## Related pages

- [Albania](https://atoneplace.net/country/albania/)
- [Every flag with red in it](https://atoneplace.net/flag/colour/red/)
- [The flag of United States](https://atoneplace.net/flag/united-states/)
- [The flag of United Kingdom](https://atoneplace.net/flag/united-kingdom/)
- [The flag of Canada](https://atoneplace.net/flag/canada/)
- [The flag of France](https://atoneplace.net/flag/france/)
- [The flag of China](https://atoneplace.net/flag/china/)
- [The flag of Germany](https://atoneplace.net/flag/germany/)
- [The flag of Russia](https://atoneplace.net/flag/russia/)
- [The flag of Italy](https://atoneplace.net/flag/italy/)

## Sources

- Wikidata — Wikimedia Foundation (https://www.wikidata.org/) [CC0 1.0]