Flag of Kazakhstan

What the flag of Kazakhstan looks like

The flag of Kazakhstan is a plain sky-blue rectangle with a height-to-length ratio of 1:2. In the middle is a golden sun with 32 rays. Under the sun is a golden steppe eagle with spread wings, shown in flight. Both images are centered on the flag.

Along the hoist side (the edge next to the flagpole) runs a vertical strip of gold ornament. It is the traditional koshkar-muiz pattern, stylized from ram's horns. The blue background is a single, light shade rather than a deep navy, which makes this one of the easiest flags to recognize at a distance. A common mistake is to confuse the bird with the eagle of Mexico, but the Kazakh one is a flying steppe eagle (berkut), not a perched one. See also the Kazakhstan flag emoji.

Kazakhstan flag meaning and symbolism

The sky-blue color is the main element. The blue color has religious significance for the Turkic peoples of the country, so it symbolizes cultural and ethnic unity. It also represents the endless sky and water.

The gold sun is a source of life and energy and stands for wealth and plenitude. Its 32 rays are shaped like grain, which is the basis of abundance and prosperity. The steppe eagle, soaring below it, has appeared on the flags of Kazakh tribes for centuries and stands for freedom, power and the flight to the future.

The ornament on the hoist is the national koshkar-muiz pattern, the horns of the ram. The gold and blue colors also recall the Soviet flag, reusing the gold of the hammer and sickle and the shade of blue of its bottom stripe.

History of the Kazakhstan flag

During the Soviet era, the Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic used a red flag with a light-blue stripe along the bottom and a gold hammer and sickle with a star in the upper left. That design was adopted in 1953 and used until the Soviet Union ended.

Kazakhstan declared independence in December 1991. The government organized a contest for a new flag in January 1992, and the design of the artist Shaken Niyazbekov was chosen. The new flag was approved on 4 June 1992 and replaced the Soviet version. Niyazbekov had first colored the ornament red, and it was changed to the current gold in July 1992.

Kazakhstan celebrates its State Symbols Day on 4 June.