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Flags of South Sudan

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Flags of South Sudan

South Sudan is the world's newest widely-recognized sovereign state, born in 2011 after more than fifty years of near-continuous conflict with the government in Khartoum — two full civil wars, from 1955 to 1972 and again from 1983 to 2005, fought over the south's place within a unified Sudan its Nilotic peoples had never really chosen. A 2011 referendum settled the question about as decisively as a vote can: roughly 98 percent in favor of independence.

Its flag, adopted at that independence, is built directly from the flag of the SPLM, the movement that led the south's fight for self-determination for over two decades.

Scope of this page: the lands of present-day South Sudan, Ottoman-Egyptian era–present, five political entries. The country's own internal civil war since 2013 is noted briefly in the final entry rather than given a separate one, since the page's core scope is the flag lineage through the 2011 independence moment. Part of a larger atlas — see the linked pages at the bottom.

Five eras, one real border

South Sudan's own present-day border, traced whole and used retrospectively — the territory's own recorded history doesn't split into two further sub-regions of its own; what changes is only who held it. Press play, or drag the slider.

This page doesn't split internally. The region's defining split — south versus north within a unified Sudan — is between this territory and the rest of Sudan, not inside it, so it belongs on the map as a change of ruler, not an internal partition. See Sudan's own page for the northern side of that same story.
before c. 1821
ETHIOPIA SUDAN C.A.R. UGANDA / KENYA SOUTH SUDAN
Stateless Nilotic peoples

Real traced border (South Sudan's present-day extent, used retrospectively) — no internal partition; see the rule box above.

How we know this. 5 of 5 eras on this page carry an evidence panel (1 attested, 1 placeholder image, 3 not yet checked). Only the ones marked attested are confirmed by the sources named under them; where sources disagree or a claim could not be confirmed, the panel says so.
black-red-green bands with white fimbriation, blue hoist triangle with a gold star
9 July 2011 – present

Republic of South Sudan

Republic, independentSalva KiirSecular (no state religion)
Migration & conquest:Immigration: southern returnees from SudanEmigration: refugees fleeing the 2013– civil war

Who & why: the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement, ending the Second Sudanese Civil War, grants the south six years of autonomy and a promised independence referendum; that vote, held in January 2011, returns an overwhelming result — roughly 98 percent in favor — and South Sudan becomes independent on 9 July 2011 under President Salva Kiir, the SPLM's leader since John Garang's death in 2005. It is the world's newest widely-recognized sovereign state. Independence does not bring lasting internal peace: a political split within the SPLM erupts into a further civil war from December 2013, formally ended by a 2018 peace agreement whose implementation has continued unevenly since.

What it represents: black for the people, red for the blood shed in the conflict, green for the land and agricultural wealth, white fimbriation for peace, a blue triangle for the Nile and a yellow star (Wikipedia, citing the government: unity of the states, hope; Flags of the World: optimism, or unity per the CIA). Wikipedia dates adoption to 9 July 2005 and national-flag status to 9 July 2011; Flags of the World says the cabinet approved the flag, reportedly the SPLM flag of 2005, on 22 March 2011. Both say it derives from an SPLM flag.

Attestedhow we know this

Wikipedia: the flag was adopted 9 July 2005 after the Comprehensive Peace Agreement and became the national flag on 9 July 2011 at independence (standardised 25 August 2023); the government's meanings are black the people, red blood shed, green land and agricultural wealth, white peace, blue the Nile, yellow unity of the states, hope and determination; a different version had been the SPLM flag. FOTW: three equal bands of black, red and green, the red edged in white, with a blue hoist triangle holding a yellow five-pointed star; the Transitional Constitution of 6 July 2005 gave the South its own flag; the cabinet approved the flag, the SPLM flag of 2005 used as interim flag by the Government of Southern Sudan, on 22 March 2011 and it became the national flag on 9 July 2011.

Not established: The sources agree on design and on 9 July 2011 as national flag status. They differ on whether the 2005 adoption was Wikipedia's 9 July or FOTW's 6 July constitution date, on whether the 2005 flag was the SPLM flag exactly, and on the meaning of the star (optimism per FOTW, unity per the government).

Paint guide
Proportions1:2.
LayoutBlack-red-green horizontal bands, thin white fimbriation between each; blue hoist triangle bearing a gold five-pointed star.
Black#050505
Red#A4302A
Green#1E7A4A
Blue#1A3A6B
Gold star#F9D616
SUDAN, INDEPENDENT & DIVIDED
independent Sudan's flag flown over the south, through two long civil wars
1956 – 2011

South within independent Sudan (two civil wars)

Civil war / state collapseJohn GarangIslam (Sharia imposed by Khartoum)
Migration & conquest:Emigration: refugees from decades of civil warEmigration: "Lost Boys" resettled to the United States

Who & why: Sudan becomes independent from Britain and Egypt on 1 January 1956, incorporating the south into a single unified state, but southern fears of northern political and cultural domination trigger the First Sudanese Civil War, which actually begins in 1955, just before independence itself, and runs until 1972, when the Addis Ababa Agreement grants the south regional autonomy. That autonomy is revoked in 1983 when President Nimeiry imposes Sharia law nationwide, triggering the Second Sudanese Civil War, fought largely by the SPLA/SPLM under John Garang against Khartoum's government for the next twenty-two years — one of Africa's longest and deadliest conflicts — ended by the 2005 Comprehensive Peace Agreement, which sets the terms for the 2011 independence referendum.

What it represents: Wikipedia's captions give the 1956-1970 flag of Sudan as used in South Sudan, followed by the 1970-2011 flag, and list SPLM/SPLA flag variants from 1983 and 1995. Neither source read describes who controlled the south or gives the colours of these Sudanese flags.

Not yet checked against sourceshow we know this

WP captions: 1956-1970 Sudan flag used in South Sudan, then the 1970-2011 flag; SPLM/SPLA flag variants from 1983 and 1995. Nile Republic flag 1969-71 caption. FOTW (sd.html): the national flag was adopted 20 May 1970, three horizontal stripes of red, white and black with a green triangle at the hoist, the black stripe said to represent the Mahdiya; the page describes the 1956 emblem (a rhinoceros between palms) but not a 1956-70 flag.

Not established: Wikipedia's captions are the only evidence that Sudan's flags were used in the south and they give no colours; FOTW dates and describes only the 1970 flag. Who controlled the south and the two civil wars are not covered.

Paint guide
Proportions1:2.
LayoutRed-white-black horizontal bands, green hoist triangle, simplified here.
Green#1E7A4A
White#F4EFE1
Black#050505
ANGLO-EGYPTIAN SUDAN
Union Flag flown by the Condominium's dominant British administration
1899 – 1956

Anglo-Egyptian Sudan

Colonial ruleLord Kitchener (founding Governor-General)No official state religion (Christian missions encouraged)
Ruling house:House of Muhammad Ali (Egypt)House of Windsor

Who & why: after defeating the Mahdist State, Britain and Egypt establish the Anglo-Egyptian Condominium over Sudan in 1899 — nominally joint rule, in practice administered mainly by Britain. Colonial policy treats the south differently from the Arabic-speaking, Muslim-majority north for much of this period (the "Southern Policy," restricting northern administrative and missionary influence in southern provinces until the early 1940s), a distinction that later feeds directly into southern anxieties about union with the north at independence.

What it represents: Wikipedia's captions list Anglo-Egyptian Sudan flags for 1914-1922 and 1922-1955 without describing them; Flags of the World does not cover the period. The sources read do not confirm that the Union Flag was flown alongside the Egyptian flag.

Not yet checked against sourceshow we know this

Wikipedia (Anglo-Egyptian Sudan): the condominium was agreed in 1899 (infobox 19 June 1899) and lasted to 1956; the infobox caption reads 'Flags of the United Kingdom and the Kingdom of Egypt respectively', with a governor-general flag and the April 1955 provisional flag also shown; no southern flag is mentioned. Wikipedia (Flag of South Sudan): Anglo-Egyptian Sudan flags 1914-1922 and 1922-1955 shown, undescribed.

Not established: The sources show the British and Egyptian flags as the condominium's symbols but do not say the Union Flag was dominant or how they were flown together; FOTW is silent. The 1899 start is from Wikipedia only.

Paint guide
Proportions1:2, standard Union Flag.
LayoutUnion Flag, flown alongside the Egyptian flag under the Condominium's nominal joint sovereignty.
Union blue#00247D
Union red#CF142B
MAHDIST STATE / OTTOMAN-EGYPTIAN SUDAN
no single flag survives for the south specifically under either regime
c. 1821 – 1899

Ottoman-Egyptian expansion & the Mahdist State

Colonial ruleMuhammad Ahmad (the Mahdi)Sunni Islam (Mahdist / Ottoman-Egyptian)
Migration & conquest:Emigration: peoples trafficked north by the slave tradeConquered by: Ottoman Egypt, then the Mahdist State
Ruling house:House of Muhammad Ali (Egypt)

Who & why: Ottoman Egypt pushes military expeditions up the Nile from the 1820s, gradually extending nominal control (and a brutal ivory-and-slave trading frontier) into the southern regions, including the era of Anglo-Egyptian officials like Charles Gordon serving as governor in the 1870s-80s. A large-scale religious and political uprising under Muhammad Ahmad, who declares himself the Mahdi, overthrows Egyptian control across most of Sudan from 1881, establishing the Mahdist State, which holds power (including over much of the south) until an Anglo-Egyptian army defeats it in 1898, leading to the Condominium the following year.

What it represents: neither Wikipedia's nor Flags of the World's page on South Sudan's flag covers the Ottoman-Egyptian or Mahdist periods. Their silence is not evidence either way about flags in the south.

Not yet checked against sourceshow we know this

Wikipedia (Mahdist State): 1885-1899; the infobox flag is a Mahdist flag (red with blue and salmon rectangles and black Arabic) with the caption that most Mahdist flags varied in colour but were similar in style, and the text says they were usually white with coloured borders and four lines of Arabic; the Ansar began to move into the southern region by the end of 1885. Neither Wikipedia nor FOTW's South Sudan page covers the Ottoman-Egyptian (from c.1821) period.

Not established: No flag specific to the south is described for either regime, and no source covers the Ottoman-Egyptian period; Mahdist flags are described generally. Wikipedia Mahdist text read to 100,000 characters.

Paint guide
ProportionsN/A — no flag with confirmed authority over the south specifically.
NO FLAG DOCUMENTED
placeholder maroon field — stateless Nilotic peoples, no flag survives
before c. 1821

Stateless Nilotic peoples of the upper Nile

Fragmented / pre-stateNo single ruler documentedTraditional Nilotic religion (no state establishment)
Ruling house:House of Chollo (Shilluk reth)

Who & why: before Ottoman-Egyptian expansion up the Nile, the region that becomes South Sudan is home to Nilotic peoples — the Dinka, Nuer, Shilluk, and others — organized through cattle-based kinship, age-set, and chiefdom-level structures rather than centralized states. No single authority governs the region as a whole in this period.

What it represents: no securely documented unified flag survives for this era. Shown here honestly blank rather than invented.

Placeholder imagehow we know this

This page's own caption calls the image a placeholder: «placeholder maroon field — stateless Nilotic peoples, no flag survives».

Not established: Whether a flag, banner or standard existed in this period was not checked. The colour shown is not evidence of one.

Paint guide
ProportionsN/A — no attested flag.

Reading the tags

Fragmented / pre-state — no single ruling authority
Colonial rule — imperial or condominium administration
Civil war / state collapse — sustained armed conflict over the region's status
Republic, independent — modern sovereign republic
Leader — the named ruler most associated with the era's start
State religion — the official/established faith, not the population's

Find the records

Family history research for South Sudan lives in a different project, Record Atlas, which maps which archive actually holds the paper for a given place and era.

Search Record Atlas for South Sudan →

More of the atlas

This page is one lineage in a larger set. See the region-wide hub and the other countries here:

Flags Atlas indexSearch every country and hub East Africa hubEleven countries, one region
Compiled from Wikipedia, Flags of the World (fotw.info / crwflags.com), and Britannica. Colors are close historical approximations for painting reference; pre-19th-century swatches are informed reconstructions, not official specifications. Map is schematic and not surveyed.