 More than green, white, and
red
History of the Iranian flag
Davood N. Rahni
January 15, 2005
iranian.com
The Persian
Parade in New York adopted the Iranian flag with the following resolution:
-Whereas
a
Flag
is
said
to
symbolize
the
beliefs
and
aspirations
of
a
nation
throughout its life,
-Whereas a Flag is an icon that represents the cultural
and historical identity and integrity of a nation,
-and Whereas a Flag is the manifestation of a nation's
independence, pride, and her unique lifestyles and norms,
It is henceforth resolved that,
The Persian Parade
Committee unanimously adopts the historical three colored (Green-White-Red)
Flag of Iran with the archaeologically
inscribed Lion, Sword
and Sun emblem as present in Persepolis as the official Flag of the Persian
Parade.
It is further resolved that the selection of this
historical Flag as a national symbol should not bemisconstrued
as an endorsement by the Persian
Parade
of political organizations that have also adopted it as their symbols
in the past
few decades. The Flag does belong to ALL Iranian peoples.
The decision
for the adoption of the above Flag is based upon exhaustive deliberations
and feedback from representatives of the Iranian American
Community of nearly
a million strong, and through full participations by organizational
board members and civic leaders of our community as present at
numerous inaugural
meetings
of the Persian Parade.
The mythological and symbolic meanings for the
Flag are as follows:
Color
Green: Appreciation of natural esthetics. Green is
a sacred color in Islam attributed to Mohammad's descendents.
Green is also denoted in Pire-Sabz (the green pontiff), the
Zoroastrian
pilgrimage near Yazd.
Color
White: Friendship, reconciliation, peace, purity, passage from the
material world, Zoroaster's favorite sacred color
Color Red: Sacrifice, revolution,
martyrdom, tinkering and dynamical thinking safeguarding the country's
and nation's independent and integrity
Lion: Bravery, magnificence
Sun: Warmth, source
of energy and life, continuity
Sword: Resistance,
strength, triumph, resilience
Pishdadian era (circa 750 BCE)
The first legendary Flag of Iran is said to be the Derafshe Kaviani. It was
made of a long rectangular leather apron as used by national hero Kaveh the
ironsmith during the reign of King Fereidoun. Ferdowsi the Persian "Homer"
referred to this leather apron as the symbol of Iranian independence, resistance,
resilience and the revolutionary momentum of the masses revolt against evil
invaders. This Flag was decorated with yellow, magenta and scarlet silk string
tassels. Kaveh was later pronounced Kavak in Sassanid Pahlavi language meaning
"glorious",
and so the Derafshe Kaviani was also called, the Glorious Flag of Iran.
Achaemenians
Empire (559-323 BCE)
During the Achaemenians, especially the Cyrus era, the Persian Empire Flag
was made of up of a kinglike image, rectangular in shape, split into four
equivalent
triangles. Each two of these four train triangles had the same color. The
national Iranian Flag was, however, the same as the Derafshe Kaviani as
cited earlier.
Sassanian Dynasty (224-642)
The Flag at this historical juncture was again made of rectangular
leather, covered with thin layer of silk ornamented with
jewels, in the center of which
there was a four cornered star, pointing to the four corners of the world.
This is the same star referred to as Akhtare Kaviani (the Kaviani star)
by Ferdowsi in the epics of Shahnameh (the Book of Kings).
This Flag was larger
than the original Derafshe Kaviani installed on a long javelin, the tip
of which was shown above the flag. At the bottom of this flag
there were woven
strings of yellow, magenta and scarlet, hanging from them were large jewels. The Iranian Flag after the advent of Islam (650-900)
Although there was no universally accepted flag in Iran at the
time, one should nonetheless cite the existence of two flags
that ultimately became symbols
of resistance against the Arabian Islamic invaders:
1. Moslem Khorasani who led the resistance struggle against the
invaders mostly in eastern Iran's Khorasan and central Asia, used
a large rectangular
Flag in solid black and with no other symbols on it.
2. Bobak Khorram Din, who primarily led the resistance struggle
against the Arab invaders along the Caspian Sea in today's Mazandaran
and Guilan,
employed a large rectangular Flag in solid red with no other symbols
on it.
It is believed that the two above plain Flags had no figurative
or other expressive symbols on them, since Islam, denouncing
the worship of idols,
had strongly
forbidden against such symbols. Ghaznavi Kings (998-1052)
Sultan Mahmoud Ghaznavi, the founder of the first Persian dynasty
after the Arab invasion who reinstated the use of symbolic
expressions on the Iranian
Flag. This solid rectangular black Flag had in its center inscribed a golden
moon.
Sultan Mahmoud Ghazavi is also credited as the first, whom inspired
by Lion's inscription on the walls of Perspolis and silverware
left from 2600 years ago,
began using the lion as a national symbol. It was indeed during Sultan
Mahmoud's rein when an archeological plate with a lion inscribed
on it, a sun on its
shoulders, and its right hand raised, was excavated in Rey. We now have
historical evidence to conclude that although both the lion and
the sun emerged on our
Flag 700 years ago, the lion image alone had appeared on the Iranian Flag
from at least 950 years ago. We must also emphasize that the
Lion and the sun were
inscribed on the walls of Persepolis 2500 years ago.
Many scholars believe Iranians used the sun to represent a reemergence
of Mitra in their culture after the advent of Islam, as the use
of figurative imagery
of Mitra herself was prohibited by Islamic decree. In Mehrism/Mithraism's
ascension to paradise, the fourth step is attributed to lion and the sixth
one attributed to the sun. The lion as icons for Iranians
As eluded to earlier the lion symbolized power, decisiveness,
and strong leadership with justice and equity in mind since
antiquity. Again with the advent of Islam
and the adoption of Shiisim in Iran, this lion was manifested with close
association to Ali, the Prophet Mohammad's cousin, thus the
Ali's lion (shire
Morteza Ali) as known in the Medieval Iranian literature. Although the Atabakan-e
Pars and Khawrizmshaian dynasties at times utilized Flags that were black
or red, the lion, nonetheless, remained an integral component
of their Flag.
The
sun for Iranians has remained a symbol of permanence, energy, life, light
and illumination and enlightenment, cleanliness and absolution,
the driving force
behind the cycles of animals and plants. It has been regarded as the celestial
body that plays a crucial role in human life since pre-historic antiquity.
Sun as the symbol of Mithraism, Mazdaism, Monism and Mehr faiths in Persia
preceded Christianity for almost 1400 years; Mithraism is said by some
to be the precursor of Christianity, as evident by archeological
ruins in the lower
level of the Vatican. The Safavid Dynasty (1502-1736)
Shah Esmail killing Uzbek leader Mohammad Sheybani in a battle
near Merv, 1510
The Safavids were the descendents of Sheik Joneid, who himself
was one of Sheikh Safiuddin Ardebili's grandsons. There is evidence
that the lion and sun
symbol appeared on Sheikh Joneid's Flag. One can therefore recognize
the regular and continuous use of the lion and the sun on Iranian Flag representing
the national identity since 1400 CE, notwithstanding the inevitable dynastic
changes in the government. Among the Safavid kings, Shah Esmail and Shah
Tahmasb were the only ones who adopted Flags without the lion
and the sun. Shah Esmail's
Flag was triangular green with a moon on top, while Shah Tahmasb's was
a green triangle with a sheep on top, since he was born in Farvardin (Capricorn
zodiac). The Afsharieh Dynasty (173-1805)
The Iranian Flag had one solid color: black, red or green since
the Sassanids through the Safavids. Nader Shah Afhar removed the
black and replaced it with
white while maintaining the other two, red and green. He still maintained the
triangular geometry of the Flag with the lion and the sun but no sword in the
lion's hand.
The Zandieh (1750-1794)
This was a very short period
in Iranian history and we do not know what their Flag looked like.
 The Qajar Dynasty (1779-1924)
The Iranian Flag became a four-cornered rectangle for the first
time one during the reign of Agha Mohammad Khan. The triangular
shaped Flag therefore, as "inspired" from
the Tazian (Arab) invasion of nearly a millennium earlier, was finally put
to oblivion. This king is the one who integrated in the two-edged "Ali" sword
as it had appeared in certain Safavid era Flags with the lion and the sun,
thus the lion, sun and sword as we still have it integral of the Flag today.
The sword was always regarded as a symbol for power, justice and people's
resistance, and thus had socio-cultural but equally significant religious meaning.
A royal crown appeared above the lion for a short period during the Qajar Fath-ali
shah.
It was during the Mohammad Shah reign
that the three colored flag (horizontal equal stripes of green
on top,
white in the middle, and green on bottom)
and a lion, sun and sword as inscribed or evolved in our history for at
least over
2500 years, was officially chartered as the Flag representing the Nation
of Iran (Persia) worldwide. During Nasser-eddin Shah, the crown, as it had for
a short period been accepted, was removed, presumably to differentiate the
national Flag from the monarchy. Mozaffar-eddin Shah officially endorsed
the Mashrootiat (Monarchy system) as adopted in part from the French
and Belgian systems of government and
consistent
with the unique cultural and religious traditions in the country. The
1906 Constitution cites in its Fifth Amendment: "The Official Flag of Iran
is the three striped colored green-white-red with a lion and sun
in its center. No mention of the royal crown is cited herein." The Pahlavi Dynasty
(1925-1979)
This Flag remained the official Flag during the reign of Pahlavi.
During the Pahlavi reign, a royal light blue Flag with a royal emblem as
below developed for the sole purpose of representing the Pahlavi family.
During the latter decades of the Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the three-colored
only Flag without the lion, sun and the sword was regarded as the National
Flag (Melli) and employed by the retailers and private sectors.
Islamic Republic (1979-)
In 1979, the newly established Islamic republic of IRAN removed
the lion and the sun, and replaced it with a calligraphic Arabic
word design in the
Flag
center that could either be read as "Allah" (GOD) and or Laelaha
Ellallah (there is no God but one almighty God). Then, a repetitious word
Allaho Akbar (God is the greatest) was placed along the white stripe in both
the green
and the red sections. For a short period in 1979-80, this was the sole flag of Iran. The same had
also been regarded as the National flag of Iran during the Pahlavi rein.
Some Organizations in the Iranian American
Community of nearly _ million strong have adopted the Flag below to represent
their
nostalgic cultural ties to their motherland of origin, while
reaffirming their commitment to their adopted land.
 Conclusions
A Flag as it continues to evolve throughout the history of nation
does belong to the nation as whole. For instance, the historical
three-colored green-white-red
Flag of Iran and the lion-sun-sword in its center belongs to ALL people
of Iranian heritage. So, if this Flag is also adopted by political
organizations
as their symbols, this in and of itself would not exclude its continuous
use and proprietorship by the Nation. The political establishment
and specific
forms of government come and go in history, but a nation's legacy, as
exemplified by its values, norms, symbols and aspirations remains eternal.
ABOUT
New York-based reporter Dr. Davood
N. Rahni is a novice commentator on cultural
and political affairs. By profession, he is professor of chemistry, environmental
science and environmental law. An excerpt of this flag chronology was presented
by Dr. Zia Ghavami at a recent Persian Heritgae
organizational meeting.
LITERATURE CITED
1. This article is in part the translation of the original article on the History
of Iranian
Flag in this issue of PHM by Dr. Zia Ghavami, M.D..
2. Lion and the sun emblem, the three thousand years old symbol By Nasser Entegha
Iranica Encyclopedia Ehsan Yarshater Columbia University Project
3. The History of lion and the sun By Ahmad Kassravi
4. The Iranian Flag and the its lion/sun emblem by Saeed Nafissi
5. The Mazdisna Literature Ostad Ebrahim Pourdavood
6. The History of Iranian Flag by Dr. Nosratollah Teymourtash
7. The Persian History by Dr. Mohammad Moein
8. The Iranian Constitution (1907) The Iranian Parliament
9. The Ancient Iranian History Moshiroddolah Pirnia
10. The Poetry Anthology Ahmad Shamloo
11. The current
Official Flag of Iran
12. Iranian national flag
13. Historical Flags of Iran
14. The Ethnic
Flags of Iran
15. History
of Iranian Flags Directory
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More than green, white, and
red
