Countries

Sudan

Where the Blue Nile and White Nile meet at Khartoum. Sudan was the heart of the ancient Kingdom of Kush, whose kings once ruled Egypt, and its desert holds more pyramids than Egypt's. Independent since 1956, it was Africa's largest country until South Sudan seceded in 2011.

The flat-topped sandstone butte of Jebel Barkal rising from desert sand, a sacred site of the Kingdom of Kush

Jebel Barkal

Photo: Mojtaba Abdlbagi, CC0

Adopted in 1970: red, white and black bands with a green triangle at the hoist. These are the pan-Arab colors, drawn from the flag of the Arab Revolt of 1916 and shared with many Arab states.

How it has changed

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