Flag of Israel

Meaning and history of the flag of Israel

Israel's flag has a white field with two horizontal blue stripes near the top and bottom edges, and a blue six-pointed Star of David (Magen David) at the center. The design is inspired by the tallit, the traditional Jewish prayer shawl, which is typically white with blue stripes. The particular shade of blue used, known as 'Israel blue,' evokes tekhelet, a sacred dye mentioned in the Torah.

The flag was originally designed for the Zionist movement in 1891 by David Wolffsohn, and was officially presented at the First Zionist Congress in Basel in 1897. It was adopted as the national flag on October 28, 1948, five months after Israel's declaration of independence. The Star of David has been associated with the Jewish people since the Middle Ages and became the emblem of Zionism in the nineteenth century.

Israel's flag is one of the most recognizable in the world for its Star of David, a hexagram that appears on no other national flag. Its minimalist two-color design stands in contrast to the complexity of many flags in the region. The official proportions are 8:11, and unlike other Middle Eastern flags, it uses neither the pan-Arab colors nor Islamic elements, reflecting Israel's distinct identity in the region.

You can view the flag of Israel in high resolution above and download it in several sizes for personal, educational or reference use. To explore more, visit the full Israel profile, its map, or the current local time in Jerusalem.