Black, White and Green Flags

Which countries have black, white and green flags?

Every flag on this list has a fourth color, most often red. Jordan and Palestine have black, white and green horizontal stripes with a red triangle at the hoist, and Jordan's triangle has a white star. Western Sahara uses the same pattern with a red crescent and star in the center stripe. Kuwait has green, white and red stripes with a black trapezoid. Sudan and Syria use red, white and black stripes with green triangle or stars. The United Arab Emirates has a red vertical bar beside green, white and black horizontal stripes.

Outside the Arab world, Kenya has black, red and green bands separated by white edges and a Maasai shield. South Sudan has black, red and green stripes with white edges and a blue triangle with a gold star. Zimbabwe and South Africa have more colors still, while Dominica and Guyana use all three with yellow and red.

Why do these colors usually come with red?

Black, white and green are three of the four Pan-Arab colors. The fourth, red, completes the set, which comes from the Arab Revolt flag of 1916. Because most flags that use black, white and green belong to this tradition, red nearly always appears too.

In Africa, black, green and red form a related palette tied to Pan-African movements. Kenya's version has white edges for peace, and South Sudan's flag uses the same idea. That is why you will find black, white and green only as part of a larger color set.

How can you tell these flags apart?

Start with the triangle. A red triangle on black, white and green stripes means Palestine, Jordan or Western Sahara, and the extras tell them apart: a star on Jordan's triangle, a crescent and star in the middle for Western Sahara. Kenya has a shield, Kuwait has a black trapezoid, and Sudan and Syria have a green triangle or stars on red, white and black. Use the grid above to compare.