Wednesday 27 January 2016

The History Of Azerbaijanian Flag For The Future

By Barbara Jameson


Azerbaijan was known as Caucasian Albania in ancient times. The area was the site of many conflicts involving Arabs, Kazars, and Turks. After the 11th century, the territory became dominated by Turks and eventually was a stronghold of the Shiite Muslim religion and Islamic culture. The territory of Soviet Azerbaijan was acquired by Russia from Persia through the Treaty of Gulistan in 1813 and the Treaty of Turkamanchai in 1828.

Archaeological finds in Azerbaijan confirm that flags to be used as standards were present even in the Bronze Age (4th - 2nd Millennium B.C.). Circular bronze boards and bronze standards in other shapes, decorated with various geometrical figures, such as a horned deer, an eight-pointed star and a radiant sun, were found during archaeological excavations carried out in Shaki and Shamkir; they were probably the symbols of the head of a tribe or ruling authority.

Azerbaijanians had extraordinary banners. The banners were triangular, quadrangular, and pentagonal, sewed from fine eastern fabric and finished with different adornments and engravings. They were bordered with silk string of various hues and additionally with gold and silver string. The flagpoles were tube shaped and were produced using light wood; they were painted, their finish were brightened with enriched metal tops and decorations produced using the string of gold.

On 9, November 1918, the three-shading banner of Azerbaijan was acknowledged as the State Flag. The Azerbaijani banner comprised of three stripes of equivalent width. The upper stripe was blue, the center stripe was red and the lower stripe was green. Amidst the red stripe on both sides of the banner were delineated a white sickle and eight-pointed stars. The blue reflected Turkism, the red implied innovation and the green remained for Islam.

The crescent has been the emblem of Turks from ancient times. In Azerbaijani mythology, the moon is a male symbol and the star is a female symbol. The moon was also the emblem of Caucasian Albania. The priests of the Moon temple were regarded as the holiest men in Albania after the ruler. There are some explanations for the combination of the crescent and the eight-pointed star. According to the ADR, it was an allusion to equality of rights for men and women. It was also seen as a symbol of happiness.

There is another explanation, that the eight-pointed star reflects the writing of the word "Azerbaijan" in the old alphabet. According to another version, the eight-pointed star represented the "eight doors of Paradise". So the three-colour flag is waving today as a symbol of independence during the national liberation movement which began in 1988. The Flag Company Inc decided to assist with the history development by providing special decals and banners to make it easy to build a bit of history right at home.




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