Middle East

Flag of Turkey

Turkey is a transcontinental country bridging Europe and Asia, with most of its territory on the Anatolian Peninsula. Istanbul, its largest city, was historically known as Constantinople and served as the imperial capital of both the Byzantine and Ottoman Empires for over a millennium. Turkey is home to extraordinary natural and archaeological wonders including Cappadocia's surreal rock formations, the ancient Greek city of Ephesus, and the Hagia Sophia.

CapitalAnkara
RegionMiddle East
Current flag since1923
Main coloursRed, White
Populationabout 85 million
Areaabout 783,000 km²
Flags in history7

Population and area are rounded.

What the flag of Turkey means

The red flag with a white crescent and star, the Ay Yıldız, comes from the late Ottoman Empire, where it was standardised in 1844. A legend says it reflects the moon and a star seen in pools of blood after a battle. The Turkish Republic set its exact proportions by law in 1936.

How to recognise it

Red with a white crescent and five-pointed star. Tunisia is similar but has a white disc behind the crescent.

Did you know?

Istanbul (Turkey) is the only city in the world located on two continents — Europe and Asia.

Easily confused with

Turkey's flag is often mixed up with these. Learn to tell them apart:

Tunisia

Azerbaijan

Flag history of Turkey

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

1923–present

Flag of Turkey

When Atatürk proclaimed the Republic in 1923, Turkey kept the Ottoman red star-and-crescent almost unchanged, signaling continuity rather than rupture. Its exact proportions were only codified by the 1936 Turkish Flag Law.

Transient republic that joined Turkey:

1938–1939

State of Hatay

Carved from French-mandate Syria, the Republic of Hatay existed for one year (1938–39) before voting to join Turkey. Its flag is near-identical to Turkey's but with a hollow (outlined) star. The annexation is still disputed by Syria.

1844–1922

Ottoman flag (1844)

The Tanzimat reforms of 1844 fixed the modern five-pointed star on the red field, creating essentially today's design. This is the direct template the Republic inherited nearly 80 years later.

1517–1793

Early Ottoman red flag

For centuries the Ottomans flew plain red banners and crescent flags with no fixed design; the star-and-crescent was not yet standardized before the 1793 naval decree.

1927–1930

Republic of Ararat

A self-declared Kurdish republic in the mountains of eastern Turkey, crushed by the Turkish army.

1918–1919

Kars Republic

A short-lived Muslim provisional government around Kars after the Russian collapse, suppressed by the British and Armenians.

1915

Republic of Van

A short-lived Armenian self-defence administration during WWI, amid the genocide, in eastern Anatolia.

1204–1461

Empire of Trebizond

A Byzantine Greek successor empire on the Black Sea coast, the last fragment of the Roman world to fall to the Ottomans.

Related historical states

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

1261–1453

Byzantine Empire

The four gold firesteels (often glossed 'King of Kings, Ruling over Kings') were the emblem of the Palaiologos dynasty, the last imperial house, which fell with Constantinople in 1453.

1204–1461

Empire of Trebizond

A Byzantine Greek successor state on the Black Sea coast of Anatolia, the last fragment of the Roman world, which outlasted Constantinople by eight years before falling to the Ottomans.

1938–1939

Hatay State

A short-lived republic around Alexandretta, carved from French-mandate Syria with a flag nearly identical to Turkey's, before it voted to join Turkey in 1939.

1077–1308

Sultanate of Rum

The Seljuk Turkish sultanate that ruled much of Anatolia after the Battle of Manzikert, flying a double-headed eagle; its collapse opened the way for the rise of the Ottomans.