🇱🇾 The colours of Libya

Libya's flag features red, black, and green stripes with a white crescent and star. Red stands for sacrifice, black recalls the hardships under occupation, and green represents agriculture and future prosperity. The crescent and star reflect Islamic tradition and hope.

Where no official value is given, the swatch shows the colour family, not the exact shade.

• The black stripe is twice as wide as the red and green stripes.
• The crescent symbolises the Islamic lunar calendar and the Prophet's migration.
• Green stands for Libya's agricultural wealth and future prosperity.
• Red recalls the blood sacrificed for the country's freedom.
• The flag's colours match those of Libya's three historic regions.

The colours of the flag of Libya

Libya's flag is made up of three horizontal stripes: red at the top, black in the centre (twice as wide as the others), and green at the bottom. In the middle of the black stripe sits a white crescent and a five-pointed star. Official explanations say red stands for the blood shed for freedom, black for the difficult times under Italian rule, and green for the country's agricultural wealth and hopes for a prosperous future. The crescent and star are symbols from Islam, with the crescent marking the start of the lunar month and the star representing hope and faith. The colours also recall the three main regions: Fezzan (red), Cyrenaica (black), and Tripolitania (green).

How the colours were chosen of Libya

The flag was first introduced in 1951, inspired by the Senussi dynasty's black banner from Cyrenaica. Omar Faiek Shennib designed the flag and it was approved by King Idris. The colours were chosen to reflect sacrifice, hardship, and prosperity, as well as to echo the flags of Libya's three regions. The flag was replaced after the 1969 coup, first by a red-white-black flag, then by a plain green flag under Gaddafi. The original flag returned in 2011 following the fall of Gaddafi and is now used by all Libyan diplomatic posts and the United Nations.

Official shades and rules of Libya

The flag's length is twice its width. The black stripe is twice as wide as the red and green stripes. The crescent and star are centred in the black stripe, with precise proportions and placement detailed in the 1951 constitution and a government booklet. The red is called 'sign red' and the green 'permanent green,' but no exact colour codes are given.