Mauritania

Mauritania
Adopted	August 15, 2017
Proportions	2:3

The flag of Mauritania is green with a yellow five-pointed star above a yellow, horizontal crescent with two red bands on the top and bottom of the flag.

Symbolism

Although Mauritania includes both black African and Arab-Berber populations, the official symbolism of the nation's flag and coat of arms is associated with the latter. The flag's green background and its star and crescent are traditional Islamic symbols, which have been in use for centuries. The two red stripes on the top and bottom represent the bloodshed of those who fought for independence.

History

Flag of Mauritania, from 1959 to 2017.

Mauritania was part of the French colonial empire until November 28, 1958, when an autonomous republic was established in order to meet rising nationalist expectations while preserving the French Community. The first national flag of the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, replacing the French Tricolor, was adopted on April 1, 1959. There was no change to the design when Mauritania became an independent country on November 28, 1960. On August 5, 2017, a referendum was held to change the national flag to add two red stripes on the top and bottom.

However, since the constitution amendments only mentioned the addition of the red stripes, this flag could have been used. This variant was the same as the previous flag, but with the crescent moved slightly to the center, along with the addition of said red stripes. However, during the 2017 change, officials used a different flag model that changed the layout of the crescent and star, and added a different shade of green. Eventually, a new construction sheet was released in 2020.

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