Colors and the Meaning of the Iraq Flag
The Iraqi flag consists of three equal-sized horizontal strips. On the white lane, the word ‘Allah is the Great’ is written in green. There are also 3 green stars in the lane. Red, white, black and green are called pan-Arab colors. These have been the representation of the Arab people and Islam for centuries.
The Iraqi flag is composed of traditional Arab national colors representing the Arabs, as in the flags of Yemen, Egypt, Sudan, Syria, Jordan, and the United Arab Emirates. Red color, dynasty, black color symbolizes Abbasids and Arabs. Allahu Akbar (God Is The Greatest) script in the middle of the flag on the white stripe is green and written in the Islamic calligraphy represents the Iraqi people.
History of the Iraq Flag
In 1921, the flag of the Arab Nationalist Movement, which started with Hussein bin Ali, Sharif of Mecca, was accepted as the unifying flag of the country. After being elected Iraqi King of Hussein bin Ali’s son Faisal I, he was declared Kingdom of Iraq. The flag is an equilateral trapezoid with a red background on the top and a seven-pointed star symbolizing fourteen kingdoms in black, white and green, respectively.
On June 14, 1958, the Kingdom regime was demolished and the Republic was declared and Abd al-Karim Qasim was elected as the Prime Minister of the country. The flag shape is then changed vertically to black and white and green. The symbol of freedom is complemented by an eight-pointed yellow sun with red light. When the flag appears, the national anthem is immediately composed by an Iraqi musician studying in the Austrian capital and is accepted as the national anthem of the newborn republic.
In 1963, the Treaty of Trinity was signed with Egypt and Syria. Then it was decided to change the shape of the flag. It consists of red, white, black, and green colors and 3 stars in the middle. The flag of the two countries had two stars, so the newborn flag had to be added to the third star. But after the death of Iraqi President Abdul Salam Arif, this tripartite alliance was destroyed. The song “Walla Zaman Ya Selahy”, made by Egyptian musician Kamal Al Taweel, was considered as the national anthem of the Republic.
Saddam Hussein Period
In 1979, Saddam Hussein came to power. In 1981, the Lebanese musician Walid Georges Gholmieh was commissioned to compose the new national anthem written by the Iraqi poet Shafiq al-Kamali. On August 8, 1988, after the Iran-Iraq war ended, a conflict between Iraq and Kuwait began. This crisis ends when Iraq invades Iraq.
On January 14, 1991, a simple arrangement was made on the Iraqi Flag and added the expression Allahu Akbar (God Is The Greatest). It is said that Saddam Hussein wrote this with his own blood. On March 20, 2003, US-led coalition forces began bombing the capital, Baghdad with missiles, and followed the ground operation. On April 9, 2003, the Iraqi government falls. The new flag proposed by the artist Rifat Chadirji after the occupation is selected from between 30 designs.
The white color of this flag outweighs, and in the middle of the crescent was the two blue stripes symbolizing the Tigris and Euphrates rivers. The yellow strip symbolized the minority Kurdish people. In addition, the phrase “Allahu Akbar” was removed. The design of this flag was different from other traditional Arab flags. This flag was never used because it was thought that Iraqis were intended to destroy the social consciousness and resembled the Israeli Flag.
In 2004, the old flag was returned. But the phrase Allahu Akbar written by Saddam Hussein was replaced by the Islamic calligraphy.
On 22 January 2008, the Iraqi parliament passed a law to change the flag. According to this law, the phrase “Allahu Akbar” remained in the flag while the three stars were removed. After the change of the flag after the occupation, the national anthem last changed. Mawtini (My Homeland), which was used in 1930-1950 years, was accepted as the national anthem.
Neighboring Countries of Iraq
Iraq, or the Republic of Iraq under its official name, is a country in West Asia. It is surrounded by Turkey in the north, east Iran, in southeast Kuwait, Saudi Arabia to the south, southwest, Jordan, the West borders with Syria.
Main Characteristics of Iraq
The Republic of Iraq is located in the Lower Mesopotamian region, which is home to the oldest civilizations in the world. It has the traces of dozens of civilizations that have lived in the past. The foundations of the country’s economy are based on oil revenues. The capital Baghdad is the country’s largest city. The official languages are Arabic and Kurdish. In addition, Turkish and Syriac are among the languages spoken. The currency is the Iraqi dinar.
Summer is long, hot and dry in the south, cool and short in the north. While the winter season is cool and short in the south, it is very snowy and long in the north.
They were influenced by Lebanese and Persian cuisine. International dishes are served in the international safe area.
| Country | Iraq |
| Code | IQ (IRQ) |
| Calling Code | 964 |
| Capital City | Baghdad |
| Currency | iraqi dinar (IQD) |
| Emoji Symbol | 🇮🇶 |
| Highest Point | Cheekha Dar (3,611 m) |
| Internet TLD | .iq |
| Population(2018) | 39,339,753 |
| Total Area | 438,317 km2 |