Sudan: Flag and Facts
Sudan's flag has red, white and black horizontal stripes of equal width, with a green triangle pointing in from the left edge.
- Official name
- Republic of the Sudan
- Capital
- Khartoum
- Region
- Northern Africa
- Population
- 50 million (2024)
- Languages
- Arabic, English
- Currency
- Sudanese pound
- Area
- 1,886,068 km² (728,215 sq mi)
- People
- Sudanese
- Calling code
- +249
- Highest point
- Jabal Marrah 3,042 m
- Independence
- 1 January 1956 (from Egypt and the UK)
- National symbols
- secretary bird
- Borders
- Central African Republic, Chad, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Libya, South Sudan
About Sudan
Long ago this land was called Nubia. The Kingdom of Kerma flourished there before Egypt absorbed it, and later the Kingdom of Kush broke free and lasted into the 4th century A.D. Three Christian Nubian kingdoms came next, two of them surviving until about 1500. Arab nomads settled widely in the 14th and 15th centuries, and Islam spread over the following centuries. A deal in 1899 set up joint British and Egyptian rule, though Britain held the real power.
Independence arrived on 1 January 1956. Two long civil wars between north and south followed, and a 2005 peace agreement opened the door to a southern vote on breaking away. Most of the country is flat plain, with desert across the north. About 50.5 million people live here, and the Khartoum area alone holds roughly 6.3 million.
Did you know?
- The secretary bird is the national symbol of Sudan.
- Both the colors and the layout of Sudan's flag come from a World War I Arab Revolt banner.
- Jabal Marrah, the highest point, rises 3,042 meters.
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Questions about Sudan
What do the colors of Sudan's flag mean?
Red is the fight for freedom, white is peace and love, black is the people, and green stands for Islam and farming.
How many countries border Sudan?
Seven. Egypt and Libya lie to the north, South Sudan to the south, and Chad, Eritrea, Ethiopia and the Central African Republic complete the ring.
Sources
- CIA World Factbook, checked October 8, 2026
- REST Countries data (mledoze/countries), checked October 8, 2026
- Flag artwork: flag-icons (MIT), checked October 8, 2026
Facts are compiled from these open sources and rewritten in our own words. Spotted something out of date? Tell us.