At One Place

The flag of Iraq

The flag of Iraq
Three equal horizontal bands of red, white and black, with the phrase ALLĀHU AKBAR in green Kufic script on the white band.
Ratio 2:3 · current design adopted 2008

The three green stars that stood on the white band from 1963 were removed in 2008 and the takbir was rendered in Kufic script, replacing the handwriting version added in 1991 which had been widely reported as Saddam Hussein's own. Iraq is one of the few countries whose flag changed four times in fifty years, each change legible as a political statement. The Arab Liberation colours it shares with Egypt, Syria, Yemen and Sudan make the emblem the only reliable identifier. A 2008 competition to replace the design entirely was abandoned.

What the colours mean

  • Red #CE1126 Courage; an Arab Liberation colour
  • White #FFFFFF Generosity; an Arab Liberation colour
  • Black #000000 The battles of Islam; an Arab Liberation colour
  • Green #007A3D The script; the colour of Islam

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.

Ratio
2:3
Current design adopted
2008
Colours
red, white, black, green

Common questions

What does the flag of Iraq look like?
Three equal horizontal bands of red, white and black, with the phrase ALLĀHU AKBAR in green Kufic script on the white band.
What do the colours of the Iraq flag mean?
Red: courage; an Arab Liberation colour. White: generosity; an Arab Liberation colour. Black: the battles of Islam; an Arab Liberation colour. Green: the script; the colour of Islam.
When was the Iraq flag adopted?
The current design dates from 2008, and its official ratio is 2:3.

Related pages

Sources

  1. The World Factbook — Central Intelligence Agency (Public domain (US Government))

How these figures are compiled and checked