Afghanistan flag picture
| Adopted | August 15, 2021 (reinstated) October 27, 1997 (original) |
|---|---|
| Design | White field with the Shahada in black Thuluth script |
| Proportion | 2 : 1 (fly : hoist, as commonly made) |
| Former flag | Black-red-green tricolor (2002–2021, still used abroad) |
Afghanistan’s flag is a white field bearing the Shahada — the Islamic declaration of faith — in black calligraphy. The black, red, and green tricolor of the former Islamic Republic remains in use at many Afghan missions abroad.
An overview
The flag of Afghanistan is a white field bearing the Shahada — the Islamic declaration of faith — in black calligraphy. It has flown since August 15, 2021, when the Islamic Emirate took power, and the same design served as the national flag from 1997 to 2001.
It replaced the black, red, and green tricolor of the Islamic Republic, the flag defined by the 2004 constitution. That tricolor has not disappeared: it remains in use at many Afghan diplomatic missions abroad and among Afghans worldwide, so two flags represent the country in practice today.
Few national flags have changed hands so often. Since the first standard flag was raised in 1880, nearly every change of government has brought a new banner — a history traced flag by flag in the timeline below.
لَا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا ٱللَّٰهُ
مُحَمَّدٌ رَسُولُ ٱللَّٰهِ
The Shahada
The flag carries no device — only words. Centered on the white field is the Shahada, the Islamic declaration of faith: “There is no deity but God; Muhammad is the messenger of God.” It is written in black in the Thuluth style of Arabic calligraphy, the large, sweeping script long used for headings and inscriptions.
The same declaration appears, much smaller, above the emblem of the black-red-green tricolor, where it sits with the takbir over a mosque ringed by wheat. On the white flag it stands alone, and the flag’s whole meaning rests on it.
Color specification
The current flag uses two colors: white for the field and black for the inscription. No official shade has been specified, so the values below are the standard white and black used to reproduce the flag. The 2004 constitution named the tricolor’s colors — black, red, and green — but likewise prescribed no exact shades.
| Color | Hex | Pantone | RGB |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | #FFFFFF | White | 255, 255, 255 |
| Black | #000000 | Black | 0, 0, 0 |
Symbolism and meaning
The current flag carries one message. The Shahada reads, “There is no deity but God; Muhammad is the messenger of God” — the declaration of faith at the foundation of Islam. The white field, in the Islamic Emirate’s account, stands for the purity of its faith and government.
The tricolor still seen abroad carries the meanings King Amanullah gave it in 1928: black for the dark ages of the past, red for the blood shed in the independence struggle, and green for the hope and wealth of the future. Its white emblem — a mosque with a mihrab and minbar, ringed by wheat — has roots in a seal first placed on the flag in 1901.
The tricolor meanings date to King Amanullah’s 1928 design; the white flag’s meaning is as stated by the Islamic Emirate. Neither is fixed in a published law.
Design and specification
The current flag is a plain white rectangle with the Shahada centered in black, written in the Thuluth style of Arabic calligraphy. It is commonly made at a hoist-to-fly ratio of 1 : 2, though proportions vary in practice; the Islamic Emirate has published no construction sheet or color standard. A state variant adds “Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan” in Pashto below the inscription.
The tricolor it replaced was precisely defined. Article 19 of the 2004 constitution set three equal vertical bands — black at the hoist, then red, then green — at a 2 : 3 ratio, with the national emblem in white at the center of the red band. Its last version was adopted on August 19, 2013.
| Element | The white flag (2021–) | The tricolor (2002–2021) |
|---|---|---|
| Field | White, with the Shahada in black Thuluth script | Three equal vertical bands — black, red, green — with the national emblem in white on the red band |
| Proportion | 1 : 2 (hoist to fly), commonly; proportions vary in practice | 2 : 3 (hoist to fly), by Article 19 of the 2004 constitution |
| Adopted | August 15, 2021 (first flown nationally October 27, 1997) | January 29, 2002; constitutional from 2004; last version August 19, 2013 |
| Color standard | None published | None published — the colors named, not their shades |
| Where seen | Government buildings and official events inside Afghanistan | Many Afghan missions abroad, the diaspora, the United Nations |
How the flag evolved
Afghanistan’s flags have tracked its politics. A black emirate banner gave way to a European-style tricolor in 1928; republics, communist governments, and Islamic governments each redrew it; and the white Shahada flag has now flown twice. The timeline below traces every major design since 1880.
1880
Plain black
Emir Abdur Rahman Khan, who unified the country after the Second Anglo-Afghan War, flew a solid black flag — the color of his dynasty. It was Afghanistan’s first standard national flag.
1901
A white seal on black
Habibullah Khan added a white emblem — a mosque with a mihrab (prayer niche) and minbar (pulpit). That motif has appeared on most Afghan flags since.
1919
Independence rays
After Afghanistan won full independence from British control in 1919, Amanullah Khan set the seal inside an eight-pointed burst of rays.
1928
The first tricolor
Back from a tour of Europe, King Amanullah introduced black, red, and green — black for the dark ages of the past, red for the blood shed in the independence struggle, and green for the hope and wealth of the future. His reforms provoked a revolt, and the tricolor briefly fell with him.
1930
The tricolor returns
Mohammed Nadir Shah restored the vertical tricolor, with the mosque emblem set in a wreath of wheat at the center. With small changes it flew for more than four decades — Afghanistan’s longest-serving flag.
1974
The republic’s eagle
After the 1973 coup ended the monarchy, the republic turned the three stripes horizontal and adopted a new state emblem built around an eagle.
1978
Communist red
The Saur Revolution brought a Soviet-style flag: an all-red field with a yellow state seal in the canton.
1980
Three colors, socialist emblem
Under the Soviet-backed government, black, red, and green returned in horizontal bands beneath a socialist state emblem in the canton.
1987
A softer emblem
As the government stepped back from communist symbolism, the state emblem was redrawn with Islamic elements restored.
1992
The Islamic State
With the communist government gone, the mujahideen-era Islamic State adopted horizontal green, white, and black bands on December 3, 1992, with the state emblem in gold at the center.
1996
Plain white
The Taliban, after taking Kabul in 1996, flew a plain white banner.
1997
The Shahada added
On October 27, 1997, the Shahada was added in black calligraphy — the design that returned in 2021. It flew until the government fell in late 2001.
2002
Tricolor restored
After the Taliban government fell, the interim administration formally readopted the black-red-green tricolor with a modified emblem on January 29, 2002.
2004
The Islamic Republic flag
Article 19 of the new constitution fixed the flag: three equal vertical bands of black, red, and green, with the national emblem in white at the center — a mosque flanked by two flags, sheaves of wheat, the Shahada and the takbir, and the year 1298 in the solar Hijri calendar (1919), when Afghanistan won independence. The last version of this flag was adopted on August 19, 2013, with a refined emblem; it remains the internationally recognized flag.
2021
The white flag returns
When the Islamic Emirate took power on August 15, 2021, the white Shahada flag replaced the tricolor. The tricolor remains in use at many Afghan missions abroad.
Who designed the flag of Afghanistan?
No individual designer is credited for either flag. The white Shahada flag has no named designer; it is the banner the Taliban carried into Kabul in 1996, given its inscription in 1997 and raised again in 2021. The tricolor descends from King Amanullah’s 1928 design, and its mosque emblem from the seal Habibullah Khan first placed on the black flag in 1901 — motifs redrawn by every government since rather than the work of one hand.
Status and use
The white Shahada flag is the flag of Afghanistan’s de facto authorities: it flies on government buildings and at official events inside the country. On March 20, 2022, the Islamic Emirate decreed it the sole official flag, banning the tricolor from government use at home and abroad and from public display. The Emirate has published no constitution, flag law, or display code defining the flag, and no protocol for mourning or half-masting — which is why this page has no Flag Code section.
Recognition has moved slowly. Russia became the first state to formally recognize the Islamic Emirate, on July 3, 2025, accepting its ambassador in Moscow; most governments have not followed, and the United Nations still displays the tricolor for Afghanistan. Because the Islamic Republic was the country’s last broadly recognized government, many Afghan embassies and consulates abroad continue to fly the tricolor, and Afghan teams competed under it at the 2020 Summer Paralympics and the 2021 T20 Cricket World Cup, both held after the change of government. Which flag appears at an international event depends on who represents Afghanistan there. Inside the country, displaying the tricolor has drawn arrests.
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Frequently asked questions
What does the flag of Afghanistan look like?
The flag in use since August 2021 is a plain white field bearing the Shahada — the Islamic declaration of faith — in black calligraphy. It is commonly made at a 1:2 ratio, though proportions vary in practice.
What does the writing on the Afghan flag say?
It is the Shahada, the Islamic declaration of faith: “There is no deity but God; Muhammad is the messenger of God.” It is written in the Thuluth style of Arabic calligraphy.
When was the current Afghan flag adopted?
The white Shahada flag returned on August 15, 2021, when the Islamic Emirate took power. The same design first flew nationally from October 27, 1997, until late 2001.
Is the black, red, and green Afghan flag still used?
Yes. The tricolor of the former Islamic Republic remains in use at many Afghan diplomatic missions abroad and among Afghans worldwide. It was the constitutional flag from 2002 to 2021, and its last version was adopted on August 19, 2013.
What do the black, red, and green colors mean?
In King Amanullah’s 1928 design, black stood for the dark ages of the past, red for the blood shed in the independence struggle, and green for the hope and wealth of the future.
What is on the tricolor’s emblem?
The national emblem of the 2004 flag shows a mosque with a mihrab and minbar, flanked by two flags and ringed by sheaves of wheat. Above it are the Shahada and the takbir; below are the word “Afghanistan” and the year 1298 (1919), when the country won independence.
Why has Afghanistan had so many flags?
Nearly every change of government since 1880 has brought a new flag — under emirs, kings, republics, communist governments, the mujahideen, and the Taliban. The black, red, and green tricolor, first raised in 1928, anchored most 20th-century designs.
Who designed the Afghan flag?
No individual designer is credited for either flag. King Amanullah introduced the tricolor concept in 1928, and the mosque emblem evolved from a seal first added in 1901. The white Shahada flag has no credited designer.
What is the ratio of the Afghan flag?
The white Shahada flag is commonly made at 1:2, though proportions vary in practice. The 2004 tricolor was defined at 2:3, with three equal vertical bands.
Why does the Afghanistan flag emoji still show the tricolor?
The 🇦🇫 emoji still displays the black, red, and green tricolor on most major platforms. Unicode allows only one flag per country and updates it only after a design is widely recognized, so the emoji has not changed to the white Shahada flag.
What was Afghanistan’s first national flag?
A solid black flag, flown from 1880 under Emir Abdur Rahman Khan. His son Habibullah added a white mosque seal in 1901 — the ancestor of the emblem on later Afghan flags.
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