Flag of Bulgaria

Meaning and history of the flag of Bulgaria

The flag of Bulgaria is made up of three equal horizontal stripes: white on top, green in the middle, and red on the bottom. White symbolizes peace and freedom, green represents the country's agricultural fertility and forests, and red embodies the courage and bloodshed of the struggle for national independence.

The flag was first adopted in 1879, following liberation from Ottoman rule with the help of Russian intervention in the Russo-Turkish War of 1877-1878. Its original design drew on the Russian tricolor of white, blue, and red, but replaced the blue with green. During the communist period (1946-1990), the coat of arms of the People's Republic of Bulgaria, featuring a lion, wheat sheaves, and a red star, was added in the upper hoist corner; it was removed in 1990 with the end of communist rule.

Bulgaria's flag can be confused with Hungary's, which uses the same three colors, red, white, and green, but in reversed order: red on top, white in the middle, and green on the bottom, the exact mirror image of Bulgaria's arrangement. It also resembles Italy's flag in sharing white, green, and red, though Italy arranges them in vertical stripes. Bulgaria is the only national flag with this specific color combination in a horizontal layout.

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