White Standards in War: Arabs and Others

(If you've decided to read this under the presumption that it's a discussion on race, I'm afraid you've misunderstood. "Standards" here refers to official banners of war.)

The white flag in Western culture denotes surrender. The Wikipedia page on "White flag" (at time of writing) says, "The white flag is an internationally recognized protective sign of truce or ceasefire, and request for negotiation." Its first use in surrender may have been during the East Han dynasty.

To contrast, in pre-Islamic Arab culture up through the Umayyad period, white flags were used as banners of war. Amr ibn Kulthoum (a pre-Islamic poet) says:

بأنا نورد الرايات بيضا * ونصدرهن حمرا قد روينا

That we forward standards while they are white

 And return them red, their thirst having been quenched.

In other words, Amr is boasting that his tribe goes to war with white standards and returns them red, having been drenched in the blood of its enemies. Given that standards are the focal points of belligerents in war, this would likely indicate a deep, strong penetration of enemy lines while proudly erecting the standard. The Muslim army marched under white standards during the Battle of Badr.

White evolved as the colour of valour in pre-Islamic Arabia. During the thick of battle, everything surrounding one--animal, plant, or mineral--other than the blue sky above, was a shade of brown, black, or steel grey. The bravest of men would wear white during battle to ensure they were easily visible, similar to how a matador's outfit is highly colourful: it is an outward show of readiness to be attacked.