Flag of Bahrain

Flag origins

Bahrain’s flag has white at the hoist and red on the fly, separated by a serrated boundary. Red is a traditional color long used around the Persian Gulf. White represents peace and truce. Originally entirely red, the flag gained a white band following the General Maritime Treaty with Britain in 1820. The five triangles on the boundary represent Islam’s Five Pillars: profession of faith, prayer, almsgiving, fasting and pilgrimage. The current five-point serration dates to 2002, and government materials explicitly identify this symbolism.

Flag story

Bahrain originally used an all-red flag. White was added in 1820, and a serrated boundary was introduced in 1932 to help distinguish it from other flags. The serration initially had twenty-eight points, reduced to eight in 1971 and five in 2002.

Editorial notes and references

Edited by ABELHA WORKS. The English text translates the administrator-edited Japanese description. Legends should be distinguished from documented history. General reference links do not substantiate every statement in the text.

• Bahrain — general information on Wikipedia
• Japan MOFA: countries and regions (Japanese)

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