Hello followers and fellow Steemians who managed to run into my post! (or how i would like to call you from now on, new follower? maybe?) I'm starting a new series of posts to talk about the flags of the countries around the world. Knowing about a country's flag gives you a small glimpse into the culture behind the flag, since the meanings and imagery found on the flag often reflects the culture, life style and beliefs of the people behind it! Well without much further ado, lets begin with today's flag. Also to avoid country favoritism, I'll be doing my flag reviews in alphabetical order.
Today's flag is: Afghanistan's Flag!
This flag was adopted recently in 2013 by Afghanistan, but its heavily inspired by older flags of the Afghan people.
It consists of a vertical tricolor with the classical national emblem on the center overlapping the 3 colors.
Colors
The black represents their struggles as a protected state in the 19th century.
The red represents the blood of those who fought for the freedom of the country.
The green represents the hope and prosperity for the future of the Afghan nation.
Little Facts
Did you know that the Afghan flag is one of the only three flags of the world that contain a building on it? The other two being the flag of Cambodia and the flag of Spain!
The classic national emblem has the inscription of the shahadah in Arabic on the top. The building below it is the image of a mosque with a mihrab or pulpit, within. To the sides of the mosque are two flags of Afghanistan. Beneath the mosque there is an inscription that states the name of the nation. Around the mosque are sheaves of wheat, and underneath that, the Hijri year 1298 (1919 in the Gregorian calendar), the year Afghanistan gained independence from British influence.
The Afghan nation has gone through many names, flags, leaders, it has been conquered and gained its independence just to be conquered again. To me this flag represents the will of the people of Afghanistan to not only remember their past and honor those who fought for the nation but also as a hopeful message to keep striving for a better future!