Kosovo Flag - Republic of

The Republic of Kosovo officially adopted its flag immediately following a unilateral declaration of independence from the Republic of Serbia on February 17th, 2008. Both the declaration of independence and the new flag were debated and adopted by the Kosovo Assembly established by the United Nations.

The provisional government under the auspices of the U.N. organised an international design competition attracting around 1,000 entries. The rules stated that the final design was to avoid the use of ethnic or national symbols and or colours in order to ensure that all citizens of Kosovo could identify with the new flag. The winning design is based on an entry from Muhamer Ibrahimi with changes made by the Assembly.

The new flag consists of a blue field containing a golden map of Kosovo in the centre field. Forming an arc above the map are six white stars each formally symbolising one of the six major Kosovoan ethnic communities. These include the Albanians, the Serbs, the Turks, the Gorani, the Roma, and the Bosniaks. This new flag bears the dreams and aspirations of a new nation in search of a new peace and prosperity.