The Republic of Azerbaijan is the largest country in the Caucasus region in Eurasia. It is found along the borders of Eastern Europe and West Asia. For a long time, it has been under the control of the Soviet Union up until 1991 when it gained a lasting independence. During the call for the new era of independence, the people of the country were able to show the true power of the democratic process by having an election in September of 1991. The collapse of the Soviet Union ushered by the growing public cry for liberation paved the way for Azerbaijan’s independence. This movement’s victory is still enjoyed up to this day contrary to the first attempt to break free earlier in the century.
The flag of Azerbaijan shows a vivid reminder the strong influences of being a Eurasian country as well as the cultural inputs that are prevalent in the nation’s populace. The emblem is characterized by three horizontal stripes of equal widths. The topmost stripe is colored blue in depiction of the Turkish influences in the country’s history. Being one of the six independent Turkic states, Azerbaijan has proven to be one of the successful countries to launch a democratic and secular organization with its proximity to the Muslim world. The middle bar is colored red which symbolizes progress, improvement and the European influences on the country’s way of life. In the center is a white crescent moon with an eight-pointed star. The crescent moon depicts the Islamic influences while the eight points of the star symbolized the eight Turkic peoples of the world. The moon and star is a sign of the Ottoman Empire to which Azerbaijan is a successor state. The bottom bar is green which reinforces the significance of Islam in the nation’s culture and history.