Azerbaijan marks State Flag Day on Wednesday. Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev set the day for November 9 in his decree signed on November 17, 2009.
The state flag of Azerbaijan is a heritage of the Azerbaijani Democratic Republic adopted on November 9, 1918. The parliament introduced amendments to the Labour Code and made November 9 a day off.
Chairman of the Council of Ministries Fatali Khan Khoyski signed the law on the national flag on November 9, 1918. It consisted of green, red and blue colours with a white crescent and an 8-pointed star. The Supreme Council of Azerbaijan announced it as a state flag on February 5, 1991.
Foundation of the State Flag Square started near the naval base of Bail Village with attendance of President Ilham Aliyev on December 30, 2007. Aliyev signed a decree to open the square on November 17, 2007. An honorary ceremony of opening of the State Flag Square was held in Baku on September 1, 2010.
The flag can be seen from any point of the capital. The pole covers 20,000 square meters and has a length of 162 meters. Its diameter at the base is 3.2 meters and 1.09 meters on top. The construction weighs 220 tons. The flag is 35 meters wide and 70 meters long with a surface of 2,450 square meters, weighing 350 kg. The square has the national symbol of Azerbaijan, text of the national anthem and a map of the country made of gold-plated bronze. The square also has the Museum of State Flag.
