Flag of Chad
Native & traditional name: Drapeau du Tchad / علم تشاد
| Flag | Chad (TD) |
|---|---|
| Type | National flag (national, civil, state, war) |
| Proportion | 2:3 (2:3) |
| Primary colors | blue, yellow, red |
| Main symbol | None (geometric bands) |
| Arrangement | vertical tricolor (blue · yellow · red) |
| Official adoption | 1959-11-06 — Constitutional Law No. 59-13 adopting a blend of the French tricolor and Pan-African colors |
| Region | Middle Africa |
Plain-language visual description
The flag of Chad is a 2:3 vertical tricolor of three equal stripes: dark indigo blue at the hoist, golden yellow in the center, and red at the fly.
Construction and geometry
Proportion & symmetry: The Flag of Chad uses a statutory 2:3 height-to-width ratio on a rectangular field with horizontal mirror symmetry. Three equal vertical bands of indigo blue (hoist), yellow, and red in 2:3 proportion.
- 2:3 aspect ratio with three equal vertical bands (1:1:1). Chad's hoist stripe is conventionally rendered in a darker indigo blue (Pantone 281 C / #002664) than Romania's cobalt blue (#002B7F).
Official colors and specification system
Rather than manufacturing false RGB precision where a statute specifies dyed cloth, Pantone, Munsell, or CIE coordinates, the table below records the governing color system alongside a calibrated display hex approximation.
| Color | Official shade name | Specification system | Statutory / standard code | Display hex |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| blue | Indigo Blue | pantone | Pantone 281 C (commonly used darker indigo) | #002664 |
| yellow | Golden Yellow | pantone | Pantone 116 C | #FECB00 |
| red | Red | pantone | Pantone 186 C | #C60C30 |
Meaning and symbolism
Documented symbolism
Under Chadian constitutional descriptions, the indigo blue stripe represents the sky, southern waters (including Lake Chad), and hope; the central yellow stripe represents the sun and the desert sands of northern Chad; and the red fly stripe represents progress, unity, and sacrifice for the nation.
Common interpretations
Observers frequently ask whether Chad copied Romania's flag; when Chad adopted its plain blue-yellow-red tricolor in November 1959, Romania's flag carried a large communist coat of arms in the center, so the two flags did not look identical until Romania removed its emblem thirty years later in December 1989.
History and design evolution
As the autonomous Republic of Chad prepared for independence from France in 1959, lawmakers sought a design that combined the vertical geometry and blue-and-red heritage of the French tricolor with the red-and-yellow palette of the Pan-African movement, while avoiding green so the flag would not be confused with neighboring Mali or Senegal.
Constitutional Law No. 59-13, enacted on 6 November 1959, established the vertical blue, yellow, and red tricolor, which was raised at full independence on 11 August 1960. At that time Romania's flag featured the Socialist Republic coat of arms in the middle of the yellow band, so no confusion existed at international summits.
After Romania dropped its central coat of arms in December 1989, the two flags became virtually indistinguishable except for a subtle difference in the shade of blue. Chadian officials raised the similarity with the United Nations in 2004, and both nations have retained their historic flags.
Key historical milestones
- 1959Enactment of Law No. 59-13: Chad adopts the vertical blue, yellow, and red tricolor on 6 November 1959.
- 1960Sovereign independence: Flown as the national flag upon Chad's independence on 11 August 1960.
- 1989Onset of Romania overlap: Romania removes its central state emblem in December 1989, making the two national flags near-identical.
Frequently confused with
The Flag of Chad is commonly confused with the following national flags due to shared colors, stripe geometry, or central emblems:
Visually and structurally similar flags
Ranked deterministically across layout family (35%), color overlap and stripe order (25%), symbols (20%), aspect ratio (10%), and stripe/symmetry geometry (10%):
Sources and image-rights provenance
- CIA World Factbook — Chad Flag Description & History
- Whitney Smith — Flag of Chad (Encyclopædia Britannica)
SVG artwork provenance: Constructed from statutory specifications (public-domain-statute, verified 2026-10-13, SHA-256 872c2ca90135…).