Last Updated on December 7, 2021
The flag of the State of Israel.
Hebrew: דגל מדינת ישראל
The official flag of the State of Israel (Israel Flag) , which represents the State, its sovereignty, institutions and citizens, both in Israel and around the world has a white background, with two horizontal stripes of dark blue and a Star of David with the same color.
After the establishment of the State of Israel, the Provisional Council of State debated the flag of the State. On October 28, 1948 the flag of the Zionist movement was officially chosen to serve as the flag of the State of Israel mainly because of its popularity among the Jewish public.
The legal status of the flag was anchored in the Law of the Flag and the Symbol, and in the year 2018 it was granted constitutional status in the Basic Law: Israel – the nation-state of the Jewish people.
In the days preceding Yom HaAtzmaut – Israel Independence Day – the flag is proudly displayed on homes and cars.
Why is Israel’s flag blue and white
The famous Austrian Jewish poet Ludwig August Frankl devotes one of his poems to the “colors of the land of Judah”:
He stands in prayer and wrapped in a white robe. The hem of the white robe has broad blue stripes, crowned like the coat of the High Priest, adorned with ribbons of blue thread. The colors of the beloved country are white, blue and white, the borders of Judea and white, the glory of the priesthood, and the blueness of the heavens.
History of the flag of The State of Israel
After many design proposals and rejections, the flag with two stripes of blue (Tekhelet) on a white background (Lavan) representing an image of the prayer shawl with a blue thread was presented in 1884 at the celebrations marking the 100th anniversary of Moses Montefiore.
Tekhelet is a blue dye which was mentioned 49 times in the Hebrew Bible. It was used in the clothing of the High Priest, the tapestries in the Tabernacle, and the tassels on the Prayer Shawl. The dye is sourced from a sea snail called the Chillazon
Another delightful story is that the flag represent the Exodus from Egypt. The Hebrew people are represented by the Star of David and the blue stripes represent the blue waters of the Red Sea.
