Maldives

About the flag

This flag belongs to the Maldives: the white crescent signals the country’s Islamic identity, the green panel stands for peace and the nation’s lush islands, and the red border honors the sacrifice of national heroes. That contrasts with China’s stars, Cambodia’s Angkor Wat, and Bhutan’s dragon. The Maldives is a small Indian Ocean archipelago of 26 atolls, renowned for coral reefs and tourism—and it’s the world’s lowest-lying country, making sea-level rise a major concern. Memory aid: think “Muslim island paradise”—a crescent over green “islands” framed in red equals Maldives.