Azerbaijan’s State Flag Day is a typical example of a holiday that quickly became popular, the senior analyst at Vestnik Kavkaza, Andrey Petrov said in the National Question program on Vesti.FM radio. Today, the State Flag Day is celebrated in Azerbaijan for the 10th time.
“In the shaping of the modern state holiday traditions, the meanings that the authorities and people see in them are extremely important, and the coincidence of these meanings directly determines whether the new holiday will become a public holiday. A typical example is the State Flag Day of Azerbaijan, which has a whole series of natural and widely understood meanings,” the expert said.
"Firstly, this is a celebration of the Republic’s independence symbol. The blue-red-green flag was approved as a flag of the 1st Azerbaijan Republic on November 9, 1918. Its return to the status of the state symbol is perceived as a sign of the restoration of Azerbaijan’s sovereignty," Andrey Petrov said.
"Secondly, this is a celebration of the national idea, which is symbolically embodied in the flag: blue means Turkic culture, red - democracy and progress, green - Islam, the synthesis of these elements makes up the national idea of modern Azerbaijan, the successor to the 1st democratic republic in the Muslim world,” the Vestnik Kavkaza senior analyst drew attention.
"Thirdly, it is also a celebration of Azerbaijani achievements and victories, both in 1918, when the flag was first raised above the ADR parliament, and after the return of independence. Three simple meanings - the independence, national idea and victory - make State Flag Day clear and pleasant holiday with logical traditions,” the analyst stressed.
"This is a national holiday that people begin to celebrate a week before November 9, first of all, by hanging national flags. Thus, citizens emphasize that they recognize and support the meaning of this holiday. Various celebrations, concerts are held in cities, tricolor flashmobs are organized by youth in Baku,” Andrey Petrov said.
"A holiday is very important for the Azerbaijani diaspora, which sees the 4th meaning in it - the national unity and integrity of the Azerbaijani people, which symbolically embodies the blue-red-green flag. Traditionally, many buildings around the world are decorated with the Azerbaijani flag,” the Vestnik Kavkaza senior analyst said.
"The example of Azerbaijan shows that the national symbol holiday quickly takes root among people and begins to live its own life," the expert concluded.
