Flag of Qatar

Theflag of Qatar(Arabic:علم قطر) is in the ratio of 11:28. It ismaroonwith a broad white serrated band (nine white points) on thehoistside. It was adopted shortly before the country declared independence from theUnited Kingdomon 3 September 1971.

State of Qatar

Al-Adaam
Use	National flagandensign
Proportion	11:28
Adopted	9 July 1971(1971-07-09)
Design	A white band on the hoist side, separated from a maroon area on the fly side by nine white triangles which act as a serrated line
Use	Air force ensign
Design	A light blue flag with the national flag in the canton, with theQatar Air Force's roundel on the fly side.

The flag is similar to theflag of Bahrain,which has fewer points, a 3:5 proportion, and a red colour instead of maroon.Qatar's flag is the only national flag having a width more than twice its height.

History

Qatar's historic flag was plain red, in correspondence with the red banner traditionally used by theKharjiteleaderQatari ibn al-Fuja'a.In the 19th century, the country modified its entirely red flag with the addition of a white vertical stripe at the hoist to suit the British directive.After this addition, SheikhMohammed bin Thaniofficially adopted a patterned purple-red and white flag which bore a strong resemblance to its modern derivative.Several additions were made to the Qatari flag in 1932, with the nine-pointed serrated edge, diamonds, and the word "Qatar" being integrated into its design.The maroon colour was standardised in 1936. In the 1960s, SheikhAli Al Thaniremoved the wording and diamonds from the flag.The flag was officially adopted on 9 July 1971 and was virtually identical to the 1960s flag, except the height-to-width proportion.

Characteristics

Flag and emblem ofQatar,displayed above the entrance of the Qatari Embassy inParis.

Pattern

Nine serrated edges separate the coloured and white portions. They signify Qatar's inclusion as the ninth member state of theEmirates of Trucial OmanafterBahrain,Dubai,Abu Dhabi,Ajman,Fujairah,Sharjah,Ras Al KhaimahandUmm Al Quwainat the conclusion of the Qatari-British treaty in 1916.

Colour

In 2012, the Qatari government defined the exact shade of the Qatari flag asPantone1955 C, or 'Qatar maroon'.The history of purple dye in the country dates back several centuries.It has been asserted that Qatar was the site of the earliest known production ofshellfishdye during the rule of theKassitesdue to the presence of a purple dye industry onAl Khor Islands.Qatar was also known for its production of purple dye during the rule of theSasanian Empire.Mohammed bin Thani,who ruled from 1847 to 1876, proposed the creation of a flag with a purple-red colour in order to unify the state, and to highlight its historic role in the production of dye. In 1932, the British Navy suggested an official flag should be designed. According to the Qatari government, the British proposed that the flag be white and red, but Qatar rejected the red colouring and continued using a mixture of purple and red instead.According to letters from the British political agent in the Persian Gulf toBritish India,the white cloth was purchased in Bahrain and was originally dyed red locally. The locally purchased dye was of poor quality that faded rapidly, causing the flag to take a chocolate colour.Due to the country's subtropical desert climate, the flag's colours were prone to be tinted darker by the sun, which resulted in the eventual adoption of a maroon colouring in 1936.The white portion of the flag symbolises the peace procured from signing anti-piracy treaties with the British.

Colour scheme	White	Maroon
Pantone	White	1955 C
RAL	9016	3003
CMYK	0-0-0-0	0-85-59-46
HEX	#FFFFFF	#8A1538
RGB	255-255-255	138-21-56

Construction sheet

• 
  flag construction sheet

Historical flags

• 
  18th century–1860
• 
  1860–1916, 1916–1932
• 
  1916
• 
  1932–1936
• 
  1936–1949
• 
  11:301949–1971

See also

• Qatar National Day
• Emblem of Qatar

External links

• Flag of Qatar
• al-adaam (qatar flag)Archived2020-10-21 at theWayback Machine