In 1952, theEgyptian Free Officers who toppledKing Farouk in the23 July Revolution assigned specific symbolism to each of the three bands of the revolutionary and liberation flag. The red band symbolizes the Egyptians’ blood in the war against colonization. The white band symbolizes the purity of the Egyptians’ hearts. The black band below the white symbolizes the manner in which darkness is overcome.[1]
Egypt's Revolutionary and Liberation flag, which was designed on 23 July 1952, was then an inspiration to several Arab countries and was adopted by many Arab states. The same horizontal tricolour is used byIraq,Sudan andYemen (and formerlyLibya andSyria), the only difference being the presence (or absence) of distinguishing national emblems in the white band.
WhenMuhammad Ali successfullyseized power in Egypt, at that time the country was officially anEyalet (Egypt Eyalet) of theOttoman Empire. However, throughout his reign, and that of his sons and grandsons, Egypt enjoyed virtual independence as an ownKhedivate. The meaning of the three stars and crescents has been suggested that this was to symbolise the victory of his armies in three continents (Africa, Asia, and Europe), and his own sovereignty overEgypt,Sudan, andHejaz. The similarity with theflag of the Ottoman Empire was deliberate, as Muhammad Ali harbored grandiose ambitions of deposing theOttoman dynasty, and seizing thesultanic throne himself.
Egypt retained this flag even after formal Ottoman sovereignty was terminated in 1914, when Egypt was declared to be asultanate, and aBritish protectorate.
Flag of theKingdom of Egypt (1922–1953) and co-official flag of the Republic of Egypt (1953–1958)
In 1922, the UK agreed toformally recognize Egyptian independence, but only on the condition that theSultan of Egypt,Fuad I, change his title toKing. Upon so doing, the now King Fuad issued a Royal Decree formally adopting a new national flag of a white crescent with three white stars on a green background in it.
The three stars symbolised the three component territories of theKingdom, namely Egypt,Nubia, andSudan,[7] while the green signifies the agricultural nature of the country,[citation needed] other sources suggest that it symbolised the predominant religion of the country,Islam. It has also been suggested that the three stars represented the three religious communities of the country:Muslims,Christians andJews.[8]
Republic of Egypt (1953–1958) – Egyptian Free Officers movement
Egyptian Revolution Flag (1953–1958) – the tricolor of the1952 Egypt Revolution, with theEagle of Saladin in the center and symbolic three stars representing the 3 Abrahamic religions
Following the Revolution of 1952, theEgyptian free officers retained the flag of the Kingdom, but also introduced the Revolutionary and Liberation flag of red, white, and black horizontal bands, with the emblem of the Revolution, theEagle of Saladin, in the center band. This earlier version of the eagle differs somewhat from the one later adopted. Even when the Kingdom was formally abolished by the declaration of the Republic on July 18, 1953, the flag of the Kingdom remained in official use, untilGamal Abdel Nasser announced the formation of a new regional political union and changed the name toUnited Arab Republic in 1958.[9] The new flag symbolised a break from theOttoman-inspired flags of the monarchical period, placing emphasis on the Arab nationalism then espoused by the Nasser government.
United Arab Republic – Egyptian-Syrian Union under President Gamal Abdel Nasser (1958–1972)
flag of theUnited Arab Republic (1958–1971) – though Syria withdrew from the union in 1961, Egypt retained the official name until 1971
In 1958,Syria united withEgypt to form theUnited Arab Republic (UAR) and adopted a national flag based on the original Egyptian Liberation flag after the revolution, but with two green stars (representing the two countries of the union) replacing the former Egyptian Eagle in the white band. A modified version of that eagle was then adopted as the UAR's coat of arms. The flag with the 2 green stars, representing the two constituent nations was used as the nationalflag of Syria until the ousting ofBashar al-Assad in December 2024. It was briefly used by theYemen Arab Republic for two months in 1962.
Though Syria withdrew from the UAR in 1961, Egypt continued to use the official name of the United Arab Republic until 1971, when the country was renamed officially as the Arab Republic of Egypt. In 1972, when Egypt formed theFederation of Arab Republics along with Syria, andLibya, the UAR's flag (whose design Syria would reuse fortheir own flag, eight years later) was replaced by a common flag for the Federation, once again based on theArab Liberation Flag. The two green stars in the white band were replaced by theHawk of Qureish, which had been thecoat of arms of Syria prior to the formation of the UAR in 1958. The Hawk of Qureish was also adopted as the Federation's coat of arms.
While the Federation of Arab Republics was dissolved in 1977, Egypt retained the Federation's flag until October 4, 1984, when the gold Hawk of Qureish was replaced in the white band (and on the coat of arms) by theEagle of Saladin (the 1958 version as opposed to the 1952 version). The shield held by the eagle is colored entirely gold and white, as opposed to the colors seen on the shield on Egypt's coat of arms.
The flag is hoisted on all Egyptian governmental buildings on Fridays, national holidays, the opening session of the House of Representatives, and any other occasions as determined by the Minister of the Interior. The flag is hoisted daily on border posts, customs buildings, Egyptian consulates, and embassies overseas on Revolution Day (July 23), and other national holidays, as well as during the visit of theEgyptian President to the country hosting the diplomatic mission.
Abusing the flag in any way is a criminal offense and is punishable under law as it implies the contempt of the power of the state. Penal provisions also govern abuse of foreign flags or national emblems of other countries.
^el Ansary, Nasser (2001). "Évolution du Drapeau égyptien" [Evolution of the Egyptian flag].L'Encyclopédie des souverains d'Égypte des pharaons à nos jours [The Encyclopedia of rulers of Egypt from the Pharaohs until today] (in French). Alleur: Éditions du Perron. p. 144.ISBN978-2-87114-173-0.OCLC48965345.
^W. Smith, O. Neubecker:Die Zeichen der Menschen und Völker: Unsere Welt in Fahnen und Flaggen. Reich Verlag Luzern, 1975,ISBN3-7243-0115-4
^Podeh, Elie (2011). "The symbolism of the Arab flag in modern Arab states: between commonality and uniqueness".Nations and Nationalism.17 (2):419–442.doi:10.1111/j.1469-8129.2010.00475.x.
^Podeh, Elie. "The symbolism of the Arab flag in modern Arab states: between commonality and uniqueness." Nations and Nationalism 17.2 (2011): p. 435.
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