Asia covers more ground, more history, and more flag traditions than any other continent, so its flags resist a single unifying thread the way Europe’s or Africa’s do. Still, a few patterns repeat. Crescents and stars show up across much of the Muslim world, from Turkey to Pakistan to Malaysia, tied to Islamic symbolism. Red remains the most common single color on the continent, carried over from Communist-era flags in China, Vietnam, and North Korea, but also from older dynastic traditions in Japan and elsewhere. And a handful of Asian flags, Nepal’s most famously, break from the standard rectangle altogether.
Below, every country’s flag on the continent, linked through to the full story behind each one.
Afghanistan · Armenia · Azerbaijan · Bahrain · Bangladesh · Bhutan · Brunei · Cambodia · China · Georgia · India · Indonesia · Iran · Iraq · Israel · Japan · Jordan · Kazakhstan · Kuwait · Kyrgyzstan · Laos · Lebanon · Malaysia · Maldives · Mongolia · Myanmar · Nepal · North Korea · Oman · Pakistan · Philippines · Qatar · Saudi Arabia · Singapore · South Korea · Sri Lanka · Syria · Tajikistan · Thailand · Timor-Leste · Turkey · Turkmenistan · United Arab Emirates · Uzbekistan · Vietnam · Yemen