Colors and the Meaning of the Azerbaijan Flag
The first decision of the Azerbaijani flag was taken by the government of the Democratic Republic of Azerbaijan in 1918. Accordingly, the Azerbaijani flag is composed of blue sky color, red and green horizontal stripes, and there are a crescent and an eight-pointed star on the red ground facing the right in white.
The sky color in the flag represents Turkishness, green color represents Islam and red color represents civilization. Official colors and size were adopted on 5 February 1991.
History of the Azerbaijan Flag
In 1828, after the last Russian-Iranian War, several Khanates of the Caucasus joined the Russian Empire. When the Russian Empire collapsed, Russian Azerbaijan declared its independence and for a short time joined the Transcaucasian Democratic Federative Republic with Georgia and Armenia. This unified state continued its existence for almost a year and then disintegrated. Since the Republic was short-lived, it did not use any flags or symbols.
However, some historians argue that they use a horizontal golden-black-red tricolor flag, similar to that of the German flag, but arranged differently to the Transcaucasian flag.
On May 26, 1918, when the Federation declared its independence as the Democratic Republic of Georgia, it was completely dissolved. Two days later, on 28 May 1918, Armenia and Azerbaijan declared their independence as the First Republic of Armenia and the Democratic Republic of Azerbaijan, respectively.
Also read: Where is Azerbaijan Located?
After gaining its independence, the blue-red-green tricolor was adopted by the government of the Democratic Republic of Azerbaijan on November 9, 1918. Azerbaijan was the first modern democratic state in the Muslim world.
The Democratic Republic of Azerbaijan lasted only 23 months until the Bolshevik 11th Soviet Red Army established the Azerbaijan SSR on April 28, 1920.
Although most of the newly formed Azerbaijani army was busy suppressing an emerging Armenian rebellion in Karabakh, Azerbaijanis did not deliver their independence easily. More than 20,000 Azerbaijani soldiers were killed in the Russian occupation.
Soviet Union Period
On 12 March 1922, the Azerbaijan SSR, the Georgian SSR and Transcaucasia merged with the Armenian SSR under the SFSR. On December 30, 1922, the Transcaucasus SFSR became one of the four Soviet republics that brought the USSR together.
During this period, Soviet flag was used like other Soviet countries. During the Soviet rule, the Azerbaijani SSR used eight different flags. But there were slight differences between these flags. The first unofficial Soviet Azeri flag was used when the Russians conquered Baku on April 28, 1920.
Current Flag
The first flag of the Azerbaijan People’s Republic was used between 21 June and 9 November 1918. It was replaced by a modern flag from November 9, 1918.
The first government decision on the flag of the Republic of Azerbaijan was given on 24 June 1918. The same decision stated the flag of Azerbaijan as red material, white crescent on top, and white eight-pointed star on a red background.
Shortly after the Azerbaijan Peoples Republic started to operate in Baku, the second decision on the flag was adopted.
On November 17, 1990, with the decision of the Supreme Council of the Nakhchivan Autonomous Republic, the three-colored flag that existed during the People’s Republic of Azerbaijan was accepted as the flag of the autonomous republic.
On October 18, 1991, the Constitutional Treaty on independence was adopted and the three-color flag was again determined as the state flag of the Republic of Azerbaijan.
Neighboring Countries of Azerbaijan
Azerbaijan is a Caucasus country. Its neighbors are Russia in the north, Iran in the south, Armenia in the west and Georgia in the southwest. Turkey has a short border with the Nakhichevan. To the east is the Caspian Sea.
Main Characteristics of Azerbaijan
The capital of Azerbaijan is Baku. The official language in Azerbaijan is Azerbaijani. Azerbaijan Manat is used as currency.
Azerbaijan has quite different climates due to the geography and landforms. For this reason, Azerbaijan deserves the name of the Sunny. Sunny days are waiting for you when you go in summer.
The middle and east of the country reign in the subtropical climate. Southeastern regions are more rainy.
You can find various and delicious dishes in Azerbaijan. In addition, it is affected by the cuisines of these countries due to its proximity to the Middle East and Asian countries.
| Country | Azerbaijan |
| Code | AZ (AZE) |
| Calling code | 994 |
| Capital city | Baku |
| Currency | azerbaijani manat (AZN) |
| Emoji symbol | 🇦🇿 |
| Highest point | Bazarduzu Dagi (4,485 m) |
| Internet TLD | .az |
| Population(2017) | 9,827,589 |
| Total area | 86,600 km2 |