🇰🇪

Flag of Kenya

Africa

Download SVG

Quick Facts

Capital
Nairobi
Flag adopted
1963
Population
53,330,978
Area
580,367 km²
Languages
English, Swahili
Currency
Kenyan shilling (Sh) — KES
Demonym
Kenyan
Government
presidential republic
Subregion
Eastern Africa
Driving side
Left
Timezones
UTC+03:00
Independence
1963

Religions

  • Christian 85.5%
  • Muslim 10.9%
  • Other 1.8%
  • None 1.6%
  • Unspecified 0.2%

About This Flag

Three equal horizontal bands of black (top), red (center), and green (bottom), separated by narrow white stripes. Superimposed at the center is a large red Maasai shield and two crossed white spears.

The flag was adopted on December 12, 1963, upon independence from Britain. The design is derived from the flag of the Kenya African National Union (KANU), the political party that led the independence movement.

The Maasai shield and spears were added to the KANU tricolor to transform a party symbol into a national one.

What the colors & design mean

Black represents the people of Kenya. Red symbolizes the blood shed during the fight for independence. Green stands for the country's natural wealth and landscape. White signifies peace and unity. The Maasai shield and crossed spears represent the defense of freedom.

black red green white

Pattern: Horizontal Stripes

Bordering countries (5)

🇪🇹 Ethiopia 🇸🇴 Somalia 🇸🇸 South Sudan 🇹🇿 Tanzania 🇺🇬 Uganda

Fun Facts

  • Kenya's flag is one of the few national flags to feature a traditional indigenous shield, making it instantly recognizable among African flags.
  • The Maasai shield depicted is a specific ceremonial war shield design, not a generic heraldic device, grounding the flag in authentic cultural tradition.
  • Kenya is named after Mount Kenya, which in the Kikuyu language is called Kirinyaga, meaning 'place of brightness.'
  • The Great Rift Valley, which runs through Kenya, is visible from space and is often called the cradle of humanity due to early hominid fossils discovered there.

Similar looking flags

These flags share similar colors and patterns:

🇰🇪 Libya 🇰🇪 Sudan 🇰🇪 Iraq 🇰🇪 Jordan 🇰🇪 Kuwait

More Africa Flags

🇩🇿 Algeria · 🇦🇴 Angola · 🇧🇯 Benin · 🇧🇼 Botswana · 🇧🇫 Burkina Faso · 🇧🇮 Burundi · 🇨🇲 Cameroon · 🇨🇻 Cape Verde

View all Africa flags →

Explore by Category

Flags with black Flags with red Flags with green Flags with white Horizontal Stripes

Test Your Knowledge!

Think you can identify the flag of Kenya?

Play Flag Quiz