The Flag of Kurdistan first appeared during the Kurdish

Kurdish people

The Kurdish people, or Kurds , are an Iranian people native to the Middle East, mostly inhabiting a region known as Kurdistan, which includes adjacent parts of Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey...

 independence movement from the Ottoman Empire

Ottoman Empire

The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...

. It is said to have been created in the 1900s by the organisation of Xoybûn

Xoybûn

Xoybûn or Khoyboun , meaning oneself/being oneself in Kurdish language, was a Kurdish nationalist organization that is known with Ararat rebellion commanded by Ihsan Nuri.-Establishment:...

 (Khoyboon). An earlier version of this flag was flown by the break-away Republic of Ararat

Republic of Ararat

The Republic of Ararat or Kurdish Republic of Ararat was a self-proclaimed Kurdish state. It was located in the northeasten part of modern Turkey, being centered on Karaköse Province...

 in Turkey

Turkey

Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...

 during the period 1927-1931. A similar flag was later used by the Soviet

Soviet Union

The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....

-backed Kurdish autonomous state known as the Republic of Mahabad

Republic of Mahabad

The Republic of Mahabad , officially known as Republic of Kurdistan and established in Iranian Kurdistan, was a short-lived, Kurdish government that sought Kurdish autonomy within the limits of the Iranian state. The capital was the city of Mahabad in northwestern Iran...

 in 1946. It is currently used as the official flag of the autonomous Kurdistan Region in Iraq

Iraq

Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....

 which is under control of the Kurdistan Regional Government

Kurdistan Regional Government

The Kurdistan Regional Government , , is the official ruling body of the predominantly Kurds-populated Kurdistan Region in Northern Iraq...

. The flag is banned in Turkey

Turkey

Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...

.

The main Kurdish characteristic of the flag is the blazing 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, equal in size and shape. The number 21 holds importance in the ancient Yazdani

Yazdânism

Yazdânism is a neologism introduced by Mehrdad Izady in 1992 to denote a group of native Kurdish monotheistic religions: Alevism, Yarsan and Yazidism....

 religious traditions of the Kurds.

The symbolism of the colors are:

• Red symbolizes the blood of Kurdish
  Kurdish people
  The Kurdish people, or Kurds , are an Iranian people native to the Middle East, mostly inhabiting a region known as Kurdistan, which includes adjacent parts of Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey...
  
   martyrs and the continued struggle for Kurdish
  Kurdish people
  The Kurdish people, or Kurds , are an Iranian people native to the Middle East, mostly inhabiting a region known as Kurdistan, which includes adjacent parts of Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Turkey...
  
   freedom and dignity.
• Green expresses the beauty and the landscapes of Kurdistan.
• White expresses peace and equality.
• Yellow represents the source of life and light of the people.