Asia

Flag of Nepal

Nepal is a small Himalayan country between India and China, home to eight of the world's ten highest mountain peaks, including Mount Everest at 8,849 metres. It is the birthplace of Siddhartha Gautama, the historical Buddha, born in Lumbini around 563 BCE. Despite being one of Asia's poorest nations, Nepal attracts hundreds of thousands of trekkers and mountaineers every year drawn by its extraordinary Himalayan landscapes and spiritual heritage.

CapitalKathmandu
RegionAsia
Current flag since1962
Main coloursRed, Blue, White
Populationabout 30 million
Areaabout 147,000 km²
GeographyLandlocked
Flags in history2

Population and area are rounded.

What the flag of Nepal means

Nepal's double pennant is the only non-rectangular national flag. Its crimson is the colour of the rhododendron, the national flower, and the blue border stands for peace. The moon and the sun express the hope that the nation will last as long as they do. The 1962 constitution includes step-by-step geometric instructions for drawing it.

More about the flag

Nepal's constitution includes an annex with step-by-step geometric instructions for drawing the flag. Before 1962 the sun and the moon had human faces; they were removed when the design was standardised. Nepal contains eight of the world's ten highest mountains, including Mount Everest, on its border with China. It became a federal republic in 2008, after the monarchy was abolished, but kept the flag.

How to recognise it

The world's only non-rectangular national flag — two stacked red triangles with blue borders.

Did you know?

Nepal is home to eight of the world's ten tallest mountains, including Mount Everest.

Flag history of Nepal

Every flag that has flown over Nepal, from today back through time.

1962–present

Flag of Nepal

Standardized in 1962, when the faces were removed from the sun and moon. It is the world's only non-rectangular national flag — two stacked pennants.

1743–1962

Pre-standardization double-pennon

The traditional double-pennon flag whose sun and crescent-moon emblems bore human faces, used for centuries before modernization.

Related historical states

Empires, kingdoms and republics that once covered part of Nepal.

1743–2008

Kingdom of Nepal

The world's only non-rectangular national flag, a double pennon of two stacked triangles bearing a moon and sun, flew over the Shah dynasty's kingdom until Nepal became a republic in 2008.