KURDISTAN

Kurdistan is an extensive region in the Middle East, inhabited mainly by Kurds. It covers large parts of eastern Turkey, northern Iraq, northwestern Iran and smaller parts of northern Syria and Armenia. Iraqi Kurdistan is the only region which has gained official recognition internationally as an autonomous federal entity.

The Kurdish flag (Alay Rengîn) first appeared during the Kurdish independence movement from the Ottoman Empire. The main Kurdish characteristic of the flag is the golden sun emblem at the center, which is an ancient religious and cultural symbol among the Kurds. The sun disk of the emblem has 21 rays. The number 21 holds importance in the ancient Yazdani religious traditions of the Kurds.