Why Iran’s national flag hides a secret countdown to a revolutionary date

History · Published 3 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: The current flag of Iran is more than a tricolor; it is a meticulously coded political statement. While the green, white, and red stripes represent Islamic faith, peace, and valor, the central emblem and repeated inscriptions serve as a permanent, symbolic reminder of the 1979 revolution that transformed the nation.

The flag’s design is deeply rooted in the religious and political shifts of 1979. Following the overthrow of the shah, the new regime replaced the traditional Lion and Sun emblem with a stylized coat of arms. This central design is highly symbolic, interpreted variously as a representation of the globe, two crescents, or a calligraphic rendering of the word 'Allāh' in Arabic. The emblem’s complexity reflects the sectarian nature of the state established after the revolution.

Framing the central emblem are two rows of Arabic script—the Takbir, or 'Allāhu akbar' ('God is great'). This phrase, which serves as both a call to prayer and an Islamic battle cry, is repeated 11 times along the bottom edge of the green stripe and 11 times along the top edge of the red stripe. The total of 22 inscriptions is not arbitrary; it commemorates the date of the revolution, which occurred on 22 Bahrām in the Iranian calendar.

Before this transformation, the Iranian flag featured the Lion and Sun, a motif with a long history dating back to at least the 15th century. By the late 19th century, green and red borders were added to a white flag bearing these symbols. Following the 1906 constitution, a tricolor design was officially recognized. Today, opposition groups often reject the current Islamic Republic flag, sometimes opting for the older Lion and Sun version or a plain tricolor, though these variants remain unrecognized by the government.

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