Each country has its own flag. America is no exception. For US citizens, such concepts as patriotism, Motherland, a sense of duty to it, etc. mean a lot. Therefore, they are very sensitive to their national symbol - the US flag. For Americans, this is not just an ordinary flag, but a universal symbol of their nation.
The US flag with its stars and stripes is the main official symbol of America. The flag is a rectangular canvas with red and white, horizontal and alternating stripes and a blue square with numerous stars depicted on it. And each color of the American flag has its own meaning. The red symbolizes the spilled blood of the founders of the colonies, and the white symbolizes the moral principles on which the United States was founded.
Of course, everyone has seen the American flag with its stars and stripes. But not everyone knows how many stars are on the American flag, what they mean. And this is quite an interesting question. After all, the US flag has changed many times overthroughout its history, and the number of stars on it also has not remained unchanged.
So, in order to figure out how many stars on the American flag really are and what they symbolize, we need to turn to history. And the history of the American flag began on the day when the United States was proclaimed an independent state - July 4, 1776. Up to this point, the country did not have its own official banner. Therefore, on the first version of the American flag, instead of the current stars, the symbol of Great Britain was depicted. It was called the "Continental Flag". For the next year and a half, this flag was carried by North American revolutionaries under the command of George Washington.
However, everyone understood that the new independent state needed its own, own and unique symbol. Therefore, in June 1777, a new official American flag was approved by Congress. Instead of the symbol of Great Britain, stars appeared on it. They began to symbolize the annexed states. So, how many stars did the American flag have from the very beginning? 13 states - 13 stars.
According to legend, the first flag of America was made by seamstress Betsy Ross from Philadelphia for Independence Day. And the day it was adopted by Congress (June 14) is still celebrated in America as Flag Day.
Throughout the history of the United States, the number of stars on the flag has changed several times. So, in 1795, two more states joined the USA: Kentucky and Vermont, and the number of stars on the flag was increased to 15. It was this flag that received titled "The Star Spangled Banner". And so it was repeated every time a new state joined the United States. The banner with 48 stars lasted the longest (1912-1959).
So how many stars are on the American flag today?
In 1960, the last state, Hawaii, joined the United States. At the moment when he became part of the country, the last, 50th star flashed on the flag. To this day, the American flag has 13 stripes and 50 stars.
However, since 2012, negotiations have already been underway to make Puerto Rico the official 51st state of America. And the US Army Institute of Heraldry has even prepared proposals for changing the design of the future flag.
Now you know exactly how many stars are on the American flag. As well as the fact that they mean the number of US states.
