---
title: "Flag of South Sudan: colours and meaning"
description: "What every colour and symbol on the South Sudan flag stands for, its official 1:2 ratio, and the year the current design was adopted."
url: https://atoneplace.net/flag/south-sudan/
site: "At One Place"
---

# The flag of South Sudan

**The flag of South Sudan: Black, red and green horizontal bands separated by thin white stripes, with a blue triangle at the hoist bearing a gold five-pointed star.**

Ratio 1:2 · current design adopted 2011

This is the newest national flag of any UN member state, raised at independence on 9 July 2011, though the design had served as the SPLM's flag since 2005. Its six colours match South Africa's and Belize's at the top of the count. The star is officially the Star of Bethlehem, a Christian reference unusual on an African flag and reflecting the country's religious makeup. Kenya's flag uses the same black-red-green with white fimbriations, from the same Pan-African source.

## Flags it gets confused with

| Flag | How to tell them apart |
| --- | --- |
| Kenya | Kenya has no blue triangle and carries a Maasai shield at the centre. |
| Sudan | Sudan's bands are red, white and black with a green triangle. |

## 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.*

- **Black** (#000000) — The people of South Sudan
- **Red** (#DA121A) — The blood shed for freedom
- **Green** (#078930) — The land and its agricultural wealth
- **White** (#FFFFFF) — Peace, in the dividing stripes
- **Blue** (#0F47AF) — The waters of the Nile
- **Gold** (#FCDD09) — The Star of Bethlehem, for unity

- **Ratio:** 1:2
- **Current design adopted:** 2011
- **Colours:** black, red, green, white, blue, gold

## Common questions

### What does the flag of South Sudan look like?

Black, red and green horizontal bands separated by thin white stripes, with a blue triangle at the hoist bearing a gold five-pointed star.

### What do the colours of the South Sudan flag mean?

Black: the people of South Sudan. Red: the blood shed for freedom. Green: the land and its agricultural wealth. White: peace, in the dividing stripes. Blue: the waters of the Nile. Gold: the Star of Bethlehem, for unity.

### How do you tell the South Sudan flag from the Kenya one?

Kenya has no blue triangle and carries a Maasai shield at the centre.

### When was the South Sudan flag adopted?

The current design dates from 2011, and its official ratio is 1:2.

## Related pages

- [South Sudan](https://atoneplace.net/country/south-sudan/)
- [The flag of Kenya](https://atoneplace.net/flag/kenya/)
- [The flag of Sudan](https://atoneplace.net/flag/sudan/)
- [Every flag with black in it](https://atoneplace.net/flag/colour/black/)
- [The flag of Germany](https://atoneplace.net/flag/germany/)
- [The flag of South Korea](https://atoneplace.net/flag/south-korea/)
- [The flag of South Africa](https://atoneplace.net/flag/south-africa/)
- [The flag of Jamaica](https://atoneplace.net/flag/jamaica/)
- [The flag of Egypt](https://atoneplace.net/flag/egypt/)
- [The flag of Palestine](https://atoneplace.net/flag/palestine/)
- [The flag of Belgium](https://atoneplace.net/flag/belgium/)
- [The flag of United Arab Emirates](https://atoneplace.net/flag/united-arab-emirates/)

## Sources

- The World Factbook — Central Intelligence Agency (https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/) [Public domain (US Government)]