The flag of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia ( ar, علم المملكة العربية السعودية) is the flag used by the government of

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in Western Asia. It covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and has a land area of about , making it the fifth-largest country in Asia, the second-largest in the A ...

since 15 March 1973. It is a green flag featuring in white an

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...

inscription and a sword. The inscription is the Islamic creed, or ''

shahada The ''Shahada'' ( Arabic: ٱلشَّهَادَةُ , "the testimony"), also transliterated as ''Shahadah'', is an Islamic oath and creed, and one of the Five Pillars of Islam and part of the Adhan. It reads: "I bear witness that there i ...

'': "There is no deity but

God In monotheistic thought, God is usually viewed as the supreme being, creator, and principal object of faith. Swinburne, R.G. "God" in Honderich, Ted. (ed)''The Oxford Companion to Philosophy'', Oxford University Press, 1995. God is typically ...

;

Muhammad Muhammad ( ar, مُحَمَّد; 570 – 8 June 632 CE) was an Arab religious, social, and political leader and the founder of Islam. According to Islamic doctrine, he was a prophet divinely inspired to preach and confirm the mo ...

is the Messenger of God".

Design

The Arabic inscription on the flag, written in the calligraphic

Thuluth ''Thuluth'' ( ar, ثُلُث, ' or ar, خَطُّ الثُّلُثِ, '; fa, ثلث, ''Sols''; Turkish: ''Sülüs'', from ' "one-third") is a script variety of Islamic calligraphy. The straight angular forms of Kufic were replaced in the new s ...

script, is the ''

'' or Islamic declaration of faith: : : ' :''"There is no deity but

;

is the Messenger of God."'' The green of the flag represents Islam and the sword stands for the strictness in applying justice. The flag is manufactured with identical obverse and reverse sides, to ensure the ''shahada'' reads correctly, from right to left, from either side. The sword also points to the left on both sides, in the direction of the script. The flag is sinister hoisted, meaning that when viewed from the obverse (front) side, it is hoisted to the left of the flagpole. The usual color of the flag's green was approximated by Album des pavillons as Pantone 330 C, while the color used on flags at

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...

is approximately Pantone 349. At the

2012 London Olympics The 2012 Summer Olympics (officially the Games of the XXX Olympiad and also known as London 2012) was an international multi-sport event held from 27 July to 12 August 2012 in London, England, United Kingdom. The first event, the ...

, Pantone 355 was used.Saudi Arabia
FOTW Flags Of The World, 19 January 2008. Accessed 13 May 2009.

Use

Flags at half-staff outside Central Plaza

Because the ''shahada'' is considered holy, the flag is not normally used on T-shirts or other items. Saudi Arabia protested against its inclusion on a planned football to be issued by FIFA, bearing all the flags of the participants of the 2002 FIFA World Cup. Saudi officials said that kicking the creed with the foot was completely unacceptable. Similarly, an attempt by the U.S. military to win favour with children of the

Khost Province Khost ( Pashto/ Dari: ) is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, located in the southeastern part of the country. Khost consists of thirteen districts and the city of Khost serves as the capital of the province. To the east, Khost Province is ...

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

by distributing footballs adorned with flags, including that of Saudi Arabia, ended in demonstrations. The flag is never lowered to

half-mast Half-mast or half-staff (American English) refers to a flag flying below the summit of a ship mast, a pole on land, or a pole on a building. In many countries this is seen as a symbol of respect, mourning, distress, or, in some cases, a salut ...

as a sign of mourning, because lowering it would be considered

blasphemous Blasphemy is a speech crime and religious crime usually defined as an utterance that shows contempt, disrespects or insults a deity, an object considered sacred or something considered inviolable. Some religions regard blasphemy as a religio ...

. Similarly, the flags of

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to the north, Iran to the east, the Persian Gulf and K ...

and self-declared Somaliland are also never at half-mast. The normal flag cannot be hoisted vertically according to Saudi legislation. Special vertical flags are manufactured where both the inscription (the creed) and the emblem (the sword) are rotated, although this is rare, as most Arab countries traditionally do not hoist flags vertically.

History

The precursor states to Saudi Arabia were Nejd and Hejaz. The state flag of Nejd followed today's Saudi flag pattern very closely. The state of Hejaz followed the patterns seen in countries like Palestine and Sudan. Caliphates such as the Rashiduns, the Umayyads and the Abbasids used other flags with only one color. After the Sack of Baghdad in 1258 by the Mongols, the primary caliphate became the

Mamluk Sultanate The Mamluk Sultanate ( ar, سلطنة المماليك, translit=Salṭanat al-Mamālīk), also known as Mamluk Egypt or the Mamluk Empire, was a state that ruled Egypt, the Levant and the Hejaz (western Arabia) from the mid-13th to early 16t ...

. In 1517, the Ottomans invaded Egypt and inherited Hejaz and ruled it until the Great Arab Revolt of 1916. From 1902 until 1921 a different Arabic inscription was used. One of the primary opponents to the Saudis was the Emirate of Jabal Shammar of the Al Rashid family in the north of the peninsula, until their defeat in 1921. File:Black flag.svg, The Black Standard was one of the flags used by the Rashidun and Abbasiуd Caliphates File:Umayyad Flag.svg, The white flag was used by the

Umayyad Caliphate The Umayyad Caliphate (661–750 CE; , ; ar, ٱلْخِلَافَة ٱلْأُمَوِيَّة, al-Khilāfah al-ʾUmawīyah) was the second of the four major caliphates established after the death of Muhammad. The caliphate was ruled by th ...

and the Fatimids File:Flag of Ayyubid Dynasty.svg, The yellow flag was the royal banner of the Fatimid caliph and the state flag of the Ayyubid Caliphate, which conquered what is now Hejaz File:Mameluke Flag.svg, This flag was used by the

, which inherited Hejaz from the Ayyubids File:Flag of the Emirate of Riyadh (1902-1913).svg, Flag of the

Emirate of Diriyah The Emirate of Diriyah (), also known as the First Saudi State, was established in February 1727 (1139 Hijri year, AH). In 1744, the emir of Najdi town called Diriyah Muhammad bin Saud and the religious leader Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab formed a ...

from 1744 to 1818 and Flag of the Emirate of Nejd from 1822 to 1891 and the Flag of the

Emirate of Riyadh The Emirate of Riyadh Madawi Al-Rasheed. ''A History of Saudi Arabia''. Cambridge, England, UK: Cambridge University Press, 2002. Pp. 40. was the first iteration of the Third Saudi State from 1902 to 1913. J. A. Hammerton. ''Peoples Of All Natio ...

from 1902 to 1913 File:Flag of the Emirate of Ha'il.svg, Flag of the Emirate of Jabal Shammar from 1835 to 1921 File:Flag of the Ottoman Empire (1844–1922).svg, This flag was used by the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...

and correspondingly by Ottoman Hejaz and

Arabia The Arabian Peninsula, (; ar, شِبْهُ الْجَزِيرَةِ الْعَرَبِيَّة, , "Arabian Peninsula" or , , "Island of the Arabs") or Arabia, is a peninsula of Western Asia, situated northeast of Africa on the Arabian Plat ...

from 1844-

1916 Events Below, the events of the First World War have the "WWI" prefix. January * January 1 – The British Royal Army Medical Corps carries out the first successful blood transfusion, using blood that had been stored and cooled. * J ...

. The Ottomans captured Hejaz from the Mamluks in 1517. File:Flag of the Emirate of Riyadh (1902-1913).svg, Flag of the Emirate of Riyadh from 1902 to 1913 File:Flag of the Idrisid Emirate of Asir (1909-1927).svg, Flag of the Idrisid Emirate of Asir from 1909 to 1927 File:Flag of the Emirate of Nejd and Hasa.svg, Flag of the Emirate of Nejd and Hasa from 1913 to 1921 File:Red flag.svg, Provisional flag of the Kingdom of Hejaz from 1916 to 1917 File:Flag of Upper Asir.svg, Flag of the Sheikdom of Upper Asir from 1916 to 1920 File:Flag of Hejaz 1917.svg, Flag of the Kingdom of Hejaz from 1917 to 1920, based on the

flag of the Arab Revolt The flag of the Arab Revolt, also known as the flag of Hejaz, was a flag used by the Arab nationalists during the Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire during World War I, and as the first flag of the Kingdom of Hejaz. History It has been sug ...

File:Flag of Hejaz 1920.svg, Flag of the Kingdom of Hejaz from 1920 to 1926 and This flag was also used by the Sharifian Caliphate from 1924 to 1925, before Hejaz merged with Nejd to form a

union Union commonly refers to: * Trade union, an organization of workers * Union (set theory), in mathematics, a fundamental operation on sets Union may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * Union (band), an American rock group ** ''Un ...

. File:Flag of the Sultanate of Nejd.svg, Flag of the

Sultanate of Nejd The Sultanate of Nejd ( ar, سلطنة نجد, ') was the third iteration of the Third Saudi State, from 1921 to 1926. It was a monarchy led by the House of Saud. This version of the Third Saudi State was created when Abdul Aziz ibn Saud, Emi ...

from 1921 to 1926 File:Flag of the Kingdom of Hejaz and Nejd.svg, Flag of Nejd as part of the

Kingdom of Hejaz and Nejd The Kingdom of Hejaz and Nejd ( ar, مملكة الحجاز ونجد, '), initially the Kingdom of Hejaz and Sultanate of Nejd (, '), was a dual monarchy ruled by Abdulaziz following the victory of the Saudi Sultanate of Nejd over the Hashemite ...

from 1926 to 1932 File:Flag of the Idrisid Emirate of Asir (1927-1930).svg, Flag of the Idrisid Emirate of Asir from 1927 to 1930 Flag of Saudi Arabia (Hanging)

The Al Saud, the ruling family of Saudi Arabia, has long been closely related with

Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab ibn Sulayman al-Tamimi ( ar, محمد بن عبد الوهاب بن سليمان , translit=Muḥammad ibn ʿAbd al-Wahhāb ibn Sulaymān al-Tamīmī; 1703–1792) was an Arabian Islamic scholar, theologian, preacher, ac ...

. He and the people who followed him, since the 18th century, had used the ''shahada'' on their flags. In 1921, Abdulaziz Abdulrahman Al-Saud, leader of the Al Saud and the future founder of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, added a sword to this flag. The design of the flag was not standardized prior to March 15, 1973, and variants with two swords and/or a white vertical stripe at the hoist were frequently used. By 1938, the flag had basically assumed its present form, except the sword had a different design (with a more curved blade) and it, along with the ''shahada'' above, took up more of the flag's space. File:Flag of Saudi Arabia (1932-1934).svg, alt=wikapidea 2003, Flag of Saudi Arabia from 1932 to 1934, with white stripe on the hoist File:Flag of Saudi Arabia (1934-1938).svg, Flag of Saudi Arabia from 1934 to 1938, with a thinner white stripe File:Flag of Saudi Arabia (1938-1973).svg, Flag of Saudi Arabia from 1938 to 1973, with no stripe File:Flag of Saudi Arabia.svg, Flag of Saudi Arabia since 1973

Royal Standard

The Royal Standard consists of a green flag, with an

inscription and a sword featured in white, and with the

national emblem A national emblem is an emblem or seal that is reserved for use by a nation state or multi-national state as a symbol of that nation. Many nations have a seal or emblem in addition to a national flag A national flag is a flag that represents ...

embroidered in gold in the lower right canton of the year 1973. The script on the flag is written in the Thuluth script. It is the ''

'' or Islamic declaration of faith: : : ' :''There is no deity but God; Muhammad is the Messenger of God'' File:Royal Standard of Saudi Arabia.svg, Royal Flag of the King of Saudi Arabia. (Ratio: 2:3) File:Royal Standard of Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.svg, Royal Standard of the King of Saudi Arabia. (Ratio: 1:1) File:Royal Standard of the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia.svg, Royal Flag of the Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia. (Ratio: 2:3) File:Royal Flag of Saudi Arabia (1938-1953).svg, Royal Flag of the King (1938-1953)
(Ratio: 2:3) File:Royal Banner of Saudi Arabia (1938-1953).svg, Royal Banner of the King (1938-1953)
(Ratio: 12:25) File:Royal Standard of Saudi Arabia (1938-1953).svg, Royal Standard of the King (1938-1953)
(Ratio: 1:1) File:Royal Flag of Saudi Arabia (1953-1964).svg, Royal Flag of the King (1953-1964)
(Ratio: 2:3) File:Royal Standard of Saudi Arabia (1953-1964).svg, Royal Standard of the King (1953-1964)
(Ratio: 1:1) File:Royal Flag of Saudi Arabia (1964-1973).svg, Royal Flag of the King (1964-1973)
(Ratio: 2:3) File:Royal Standard of Saudi Arabia (1964-1973).svg, Royal Standard of the King (1964-1973)
(Ratio: 1:1)

Other flags

The

civil ensign A civil ensign is an ensign (maritime flag) used by civilian vessels to denote their nationality. It can be the same or different from the state ensign and the naval ensign (or war ensign). It is also known as the merchant ensign or merchant flag ...

, for use by merchant vessels at sea, is a green flag with the state flag in the canton with a white border. The royal standard is the state flag with the palm tree and swords in the canton. File:Civil Ensign of Saudi Arabia (obverse).svg,

Civil ensign A civil ensign is an ensign (maritime flag) used by civilian vessels to denote their nationality. It can be the same or different from the state ensign and the naval ensign (or war ensign). It is also known as the merchant ensign or merchant flag ...

. (Ratio: 2:3) File:Civil Ensign of Saudi Arabia.svg,

. (Ratio: 2:3) File:Flag of the Royal Saudi Land Forces.png, Flag of the Royal Saudi Land Forces. (Ratio: 2:3) File:Flag of the Royal Saudi Air Force (Seal).svg, Flag of the Royal Saudi Air Force (Seal). (Ratio: 2:3) File:Air Force Ensign of Saudi Arabia.svg, Ensign of the Royal Saudi Air Force (Roundel). (Ratio: 2:3) File:Naval base flag of the Royal Saudi Navy.svg, Flag of the Royal Saudi Naval Forces. (Ratio: 2:3) File:Naval Ensign of Saudi Arabia.svg, Naval Ensign of Saudi Arabia. (Ratio: 12:25) File:Flag of the Royal Saudi Air Defense Forces.svg, Flag of the Royal Saudi Air Defense Force (Ratio: 2:3) File:Flag of the Ministry of Interior of Saudi Arabia.svg, Flag of the Ministry of Interior. (Ratio: 2:3)

References

External links

*
World Flags Information, Saudi Arabian page

{{DEFAULTSORT:Flag Of Saudi Arabia

National symbols of Saudi Arabia