Flag of Bahrain

The flag of the Kingdom of Bahrain consists of red and white colors separated by five triangles in a zigzag shape. The red color occupies the majority of the flag, while the white color is only a third of it. According to history, it was the first flag to be chosen in the nineteenth century in agreement with Great Britain.

Meaning of the colors and symbols of the Bahraini flag

The flag of Bahrain is the official flag of the Kingdom of Bahrain, made of red and white colors separated by five zigzag triangles. The red color dominates several flags of the Gulf countries, but with some differences: the size and location of the red color on the flags of the Arab Gulf countries. This is what the flag of the Kingdom of Bahrain symbolizes:

• The red color symbolizes battles;
• white color symbolizes peace;
• five triangles in the middle of the white and red colors symbolize the five pillars of the Islamic religion.

The five pillars of Islam (Arabic: ركان الإسلام خمسة):

• The Creed (Shahada);
• Prayer (Salat);
• Payment of purification donation (Zakat);
• Fasting in the month of Ramadan (Eid al-Adha);
• Pilgrimage (Hajj).

History of the Bahrain flag

According to historical books, the oldest flag ever created for the Kingdom of Bahrain was only red. In the nineteenth century, by agreement with Great Britain, white was added to the flag color, but without the placement of triangles.

In 1932, the government added a white scalloped stripe to distinguish the flag from the flags of Dubai, Ajman and the old Abu Dhabi flag. During this period, the number of triangles was 28, decreasing in 1972 to eight, referring to the number of wars that took place between the Kingdom of Bahrain and its neighboring countries. On February 17, 2002, the flag of the Kingdom of Bahrain was changed to the form it has today, with only five triangles between the two colors, symbolizing the number of pillars of the Islamic religion.

Similarity between the flag of the Kingdom of Bahrain and the flag of Qatar

The flag of the Kingdom of Bahrain is very similar to the flag of the State of Qatar, so they can be confused, but there are many fundamental differences:

• The flag of the Kingdom of Bahrain consists of two colors: red and white, while the flag of the State of Qatar is white and maroon. In both cases, the red color symbolizes shed blood, but it is believed that on the Qatari flag it is rolled up;
• There are only five triangles inside the Qatari flag, while there are nine triangles on the flag of Qatar.
• The five triangles on the Bahraini flag indicate the pillars of the Islamic religion, while the nine of Qatar have a different meaning, as they likely symbolize the fact that the State of Qatar is the ninth Emirati country to sign the Gulf Arab Reconciliation Agreement, where it was concluded. The State of Qatar was added to the list of tolerant countries in 1916.
• It is possible that there are similarities between the flags of Qatar and the Kingdom of Bahrain in terms of design, but the colors and symbols are significantly different.