Tajikistan Flag

The flag of Tajikistan is composed of three horizontal bands of green, white, and red with a 2:3:2 ratio. There is also a yellow crown in the center of the white band which has seven five-pointed stars arching over the top. The crown takes up approximately 80 percent of the height of the central white band. This flag was officially adopted by the country on 24 November 1992, 11 months after declaring independence from the now-defunct Soviet Union.

The Pan-Iranian colour scheme within the flag of Tajikistan can also be seen in the flags of Afghanistan and Iran, as well as the autonomous region of Kurdistan. The colors are associated with an ideology of uniting the Iranian peoples spread across the area as well as having an association with Iranian and Persian cultures. The crown on the flag represents the Tajik people, and the stars symbolize the number seven, which is in many Tajik legends such as the belief that heaven has seven orchards and seven mountains. The stars are also said to symbolize the seven different classes of Tajik society.

The design of the flag of independent Tajikistan is based on the flag while under Soviet rule and administration. The Soviet Union decided that its member republic nations would fly flags that had national colours as well as the hammer and sickle emblem and a healthy dose of red. Tajikistan was the last of 15 countries to act on this request and the flag that was created at this time serves as a basis for the modern design.

Previous versions of the flag include the flag of the Tajik Soviet Republic which was in use from 1953 until 1991. This historical flag was designed by the Union of The Tajik Soviet Republic who administered the country on behalf of the Soviet Union. This flag also gives the nod to Iranian influenced culture and language, using similar colours to the flag of Iran. The Tajik Soviet Republic flag consists of a red, white, green, red band configuration with a color scheme of 50 percent red, 20 percent white, 10 percent green, and 20 percent red. In the top left-hand corner, there is a hammer and sickle which is a symbol of communism. The rear side of this flag did not contain the hammer and sickle and was used from 1991-1992 as the flag of the new, independent Tajikistan by many until the new flag was created.