The Secret History Behind Mauritania's Flag
Mauritania added two red stripes to its flag in 2017, in memory of those who died for independence.
The first national flag was introduced in 1959, under President Moktar Ould Daddah, and it was a green field with a golden crescent and star. A referendum in August 2017 approved a change, and the new flag was adopted on August 15, 2017.
The change was the addition of a red stripe at the top and another at the bottom, to commemorate the blood shed by those who fought for independence from France. The green is tied to Islam, the state religion, and the gold of the crescent and star recalls the sands of the Sahara.
The date printed on every Mauritania design in our catalog, November 28, 1960, is Independence Day.
Green, gold and two stripes of remembrance.
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