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Turkmenistan

by mark sensen 11-SEP-1995.

Flag before 1997
Presentation of Turkmenistan

See also:

CIA World factbook 1995 for information about Turkmenistan

Flag before 1997

by mark sensen 11-SEP-1995.

Presentation of Turkmenistan

Full name: Republic of Turkmenistan
Location: Central Asia
Status: Internationally recognized independent state since 27 October 1991. Member of the UN and the Commonwealth of Independent States.

Notes: One of the last Central Asian regions to be brought fully under Russian control, parts of modern Turkmenistan continued to cling to independence until 1884, when the Khanate of Merv was annexed. This Khanate flew a plain red flag. A Turkmen SSR was created in 1925.

A year after independence was regained, in 1992, Turkmenistan adopted a new national flag of extraordinary complexity. In the hoist of a relatively straightforward green flag with a white crescent and stars (symbolising Islam) are placed five traditional carpet designs or 'guls'. The hoist stripe itself is dark red, while the guls are primarily in black, white and orange. Turkmenistan is famous for its carpets and each tribe has its own distinctive gul. Since the five guls in the flag are reportedly named after five tribes, they presumably stand for the various tribal groupings in the country.

stuart notholt 25-NOV-1995