Flag of Turkmenistan

What the flag of Turkmenistan looks like

The flag of Turkmenistan has a width-to-height ratio of 2:3 and a green field. Near the hoist runs a vertical red stripe, and on it are five carpet guls stacked one above the other. The guls are designs used in producing rugs. Under the guls, two crossed olive branches are shown in the same stripe.

In the upper green field next to the stripe is a white crescent, and to its right are five white five-pointed stars arranged in an arc that follows the curve of the crescent. The detail makes the flag one of the more complex designs in use. You can see a simplified version at the Turkmenistan flag emoji page.

Turkmenistan flag meaning and symbolism

No official explanation has been given for the symbolism of the flag's colors or white symbols, but there are several leading theories. According to the Russian Centre of Vexillology and Heraldry, the green field stands for life, land, grass, prosperity and peace, and the crescent symbolizes the clear sky above the Turkmen people. The five stars represent the five regions (welaýatlar) of the country: Ahal, Balkan, Daşoguz, Lebap and Mary. The crescent and five stars are also said to refer to the Five Pillars of Islam.

The red stripe is a symbolic representation of the country's carpet industry. The five carpet guls represent the five major tribes of Turkmenistan, in traditional order from top to bottom: Teke, Yomut, Saryk, Chowdur and Ersari. The olive branches, similar to those on the flag of the United Nations, were added in 1997 after the UN proclaimed Turkmenistan's permanent neutrality on 12 December 1995.

History of the Turkmenistan flag

In the Soviet era the republic flew the flag of the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic, a red flag with a hammer and sickle and a red star in the canton. After independence in 1991, the government decided to change its national symbols. An exhibition of proposed flags was held in Ashgabat in February 1992, and the new flag was signed into law on 19 February 1992. President Saparmurat Niyazov raised it for the first time on 21 March 1992, the Turkmen New Year.

Amendments to the flag law on 29 January 1997 added the olive branches, to mark the neutrality proclaimed in 1995, and changed the positions of the crescent and stars. On 24 January 2001 the proportion was changed from 1:2 to 2:3 and the green field was made lighter, giving the flag its present form. The State Flag and Constitution Day is celebrated on 18 May.

Facts about the flag

• The capital is Ashgabat, and the flag flies on public buildings there and across the country.
• In 2008 a flagpole 133 meters tall, flying a Turkmen flag measuring 52.5 by 35 meters, was installed in Ashgabat, and it was entered into the Guinness World Records.
• For flags of nearby countries see the flags of Asia.