Star polygon In geometry, a star polygon is a type of non-convex polygon. Regular star polygons have been studied in depth; while star polygons in general appear not to have been formally defined, Decagram (geometry)#Related figures, certain notable ones can ...

s and polygonal compounds are the basis for numerous figures of significance in arts and culture. The figure may be the border or interior of the polygon, or one or more closed polygonal paths that include all of the border and also have some legs crossing the interior. The name is derived from the polygon's similarity to the

diffraction spike Diffraction spikes are lines radiating from bright light sources, causing what is known as the starburst effect or sunstars in photographs and in vision. They are artifacts caused by light diffracting around the support vanes of the secondary m ...

s of astronomical stars, but specific uses may exploit the connection or not. Stars often represent the unity of states within a country when they are used as a part of the flag.

Emblematic use

*In

heraldry Heraldry is a discipline relating to the design, display and study of armorial bearings (known as armory), as well as related disciplines, such as vexillology, together with the study of ceremony, Imperial, royal and noble ranks, rank and genealo ...

, a mullet is a star with straight arms and typically five points. A star with wavy rather than straight rays is called an estoile. The mullet, used as an

heraldic charge In heraldry, a charge is any emblem or device occupying the field of an '' escutcheon'' (shield). That may be a geometric design (sometimes called an '' ordinary'') or a symbolic representation of a person, animal, plant, object, building, or o ...

, is the ensign of knightly rank, and every order of knighthood incorporates this symbol in some way. It has traditionally been used in British heraldry as a mark of

cadency In heraldry, cadency is any systematic way to distinguish Coat of arms, arms displayed by Lineal descendant, descendants of the holder of a coat of arms when those family members have not been granted arms in their own right. Cadency is necessa ...

for the third son. *In Christian art, St. Bruno bears a star on his breast;

Saint Dominic Saint Dominic, (; 8 August 1170 – 6 August 1221), also known as Dominic de Guzmán (), was a Castilians, Castilian Catholic priest and the founder of the Dominican Order. He is the patron saint of astronomers and natural scientists, and he a ...

, Saint Humbert and Saint Peter of Alcantara have a star on their head or forehead. *The star with six (or less commonly five, sometimes seven) points is associated with

law enforcement Law enforcement is the activity of some members of the government or other social institutions who act in an organized manner to enforce the law by investigating, deterring, rehabilitating, or punishing people who violate the rules and norms gove ...

in the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

, and forms the basis of the

sheriff A sheriff is a government official, with varying duties, existing in some countries with historical ties to England where the office originated. There is an analogous, although independently developed, office in Iceland, the , which is common ...

's badge.

Three-pointed stars

The three-pointed star is used much less often than other types of stars. but it appears in one of the versions of the flag of the

International Brigades The International Brigades () were soldiers recruited and organized by the Communist International to assist the Popular Front (Spain), Popular Front government of the Second Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil War. The International Bri ...

in the

Spanish civil war The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...

. It also appears in the symbol of the

Mercedes-Benz Mercedes-Benz (), commonly referred to simply as Mercedes and occasionally as Benz, is a German automotive brand that was founded in 1926. Mercedes-Benz AG (a subsidiary of the Mercedes-Benz Group, established in 2019) is based in Stuttgart, ...

car manufacturer.

Four-pointed stars

Several varieties of four-pointed stars were used in cultures around the world: The 1914-15 star campaign medal of the British army was based on a four-pointed star. A

compass rose A compass rose or compass star, sometimes called a wind rose or rose of the winds, is a polar coordinates, polar diagram displaying the orientation of the cardinal directions (north, east, south, and west) and their points of the compass, inter ...

in the form of a four pointed-star also appears in the

flag of NATO The flag of NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization) consists of a dark blue field charged with a white compass rose emblem, with four white lines radiating from the four cardinal directions. Adopted three years after the creation of NATO ...

and the flag of the country of

Aruba Aruba, officially the Country of Aruba, is a constituent island country within the Kingdom of the Netherlands, in the southern Caribbean Sea north of the Venezuelan peninsula of Paraguaná Peninsula, Paraguaná and northwest of Curaçao. In 19 ...

. The seal of the (now cancelled)

United States Civil Service Commission The United States Civil Service Commission was a government agency of the federal government of the United States. It was created to select employees of federal government on merit rather than relationships. In 1979, it was dissolved as part of ...

included a four-pointed star between the years 1963-1979. Four-pointed stars also appears in the symbols of the

Subaru is the automaker, automobile manufacturing division of Japanese transportation conglomerate (company), conglomerate Subaru Corporation (formerly known as Fuji Heavy Industries), the Automotive industry#By manufacturer, twenty-first largest aut ...

car company and

Philips Koninklijke Philips N.V. (), simply branded Philips, is a Dutch multinational health technology company that was founded in Eindhoven in 1891. Since 1997, its world headquarters have been situated in Amsterdam, though the Benelux headquarter ...

corporation.

Five-pointed stars

The five-pointed star, if drawn with points of equal length and angles of 36° at each point, is sometimes termed a golden five pointed star.The five-pointed star
from . Retrieved 19 July 2006. If the colinear edges are joined, a

pentagram A pentagram (sometimes known as a pentalpha, pentangle, or star pentagon) is a regular five-pointed star polygon, formed from the diagonal line segments of a convex (or simple, or non-self-intersecting) regular pentagon. Drawing a circle around ...

is produced, which is the simplest of the unicursal

star polygon In geometry, a star polygon is a type of non-convex polygon. Regular star polygons have been studied in depth; while star polygons in general appear not to have been formally defined, Decagram (geometry)#Related figures, certain notable ones can ...

s, and a symbol of

mystical Mysticism is popularly known as becoming one with God or the Absolute, but may refer to any kind of ecstasy or altered state of consciousness which is given a religious or spiritual meaning. It may also refer to the attainment of insight ...

and magical significance. The golden five-pointed star is a very common

ideogram An ideogram or ideograph (from Ancient Greek, Greek 'idea' + 'to write') is a symbol that is used within a given writing system to represent an idea or concept in a given language. (Ideograms are contrasted with phonogram (linguistics), phono ...

in the western world, and has particularly strong associations with military power and war. Many

communist Communism () is a sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology within the socialist movement, whose goal is the creation of a communist society, a socioeconomic order centered on common ownership of the means of production, di ...

countries (such as

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

and

Vietnam Vietnam, officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam (SRV), is a country at the eastern edge of mainland Southeast Asia, with an area of about and a population of over 100 million, making it the world's List of countries and depende ...

) and symbols also incorporate five-pointed stars. Image:VIIcorpsbadge.png, Union Army, VII Corps, 3rd Division Badge Image:XIIcorpsbadge.png, Union Army, XII Corps, 3rd Division Badge The five-pointed star appears in the flags of 35 countries, and also appears commonly in the

of the

, and stands in contrast to the vexillologically rarer

seven-pointed star A heptagram, septagram, septegram or septogram is a seven-point star polygon, star drawn with seven straight strokes. The name ''heptagram'' combines a numeral prefix, ''hepta-'', with the Greek language, Greek suffix ''wikt:-gram, -gram ...

. The five-pointed star occurs in conjunction with a

crescent A crescent shape (, ) is a symbol or emblem used to represent the lunar phase (as it appears in the northern hemisphere) in the first quarter (the "sickle moon"), or by extension a symbol representing the Moon itself. In Hindu iconography, Hind ...

in the flags of several countries to symbolize

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

, appearing for example as part of the symbol of the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire (), also called the Turkish Empire, was an empire, imperial realm that controlled much of Southeast Europe, West Asia, and North Africa from the 14th to early 20th centuries; it also controlled parts of southeastern Centr ...

. In

philately Philately (; ) is the study of postage stamps and postal history. It also refers to the collection and appreciation of stamps and other philatelic products. While closely associated with stamp collecting and the study of postage, it is possibl ...

, the five-pointed star signifies stamps that have not been

postmark A postmark is a postal marking made on an envelope, parcel, postcard or the like, indicating the place, date and time that the item was delivered into the care of a postal service, or sometimes indicating where and when received or in transit. ...

ed. The five-pointed star is used as the symbol of the

People Nation The People Nation is an American alliance of street gangs generally associated with the Chicago area. They are rivals of the Folk Nation alliance of gangs. Formation In 1978, Mickey Cogwell and Jeff Fort (now Black P. Stones), Vice Lords and ...

alliance of gangs from Chicago.

Blood Blood is a body fluid in the circulatory system of humans and other vertebrates that delivers necessary substances such as nutrients and oxygen to the cells, and transports metabolic waste products away from those same cells. Blood is com ...

gangs who originated from New York, known as the United Blood Nation, also use this as a symbol as they have emulated the People Nation alliance. RWS Tarot 15 Devil

In the Armenian Pantheon, there is a goddess called Astlik/Astghik. In the Armenian language Astgh means star, Astghik - Little Star. Compared with Ishtar, Astara, this goddess' sign should have been the (probably)eight-pointed star. Image:Pentagram.svg, The

, a five-pointed star drawn with five straight strokes Image:Star and Crescent.svg, The

star and crescent The conjoined representation of a star and a crescent is used in various historical contexts, including as a prominent symbol of the Ottoman Empire, and in contemporary times, as a national symbol by some countries, and by some Muslims as a sym ...

symbol is mostly shown with five-pointed stars in modern flags, but in the oldest

Ottoman flag The Ottoman Empire used various flags and naval ensigns during its history. The crescent and star came into use in the second half of the 18th century. A ' (decree) from 1793 required that the ships of the Ottoman Navy were to use a red flag with ...

of this design as well as the

flag of Azerbaijan The national flag of Azerbaijan (), often referred to as the tricolour flag (), is a horizontal tricolour that features three equally sized bars of bright blue, red, and green; a white crescent; and a centred eight-pointed star. The flag has ...

, the star is eight-pointed. Image:Flag of the United States (1777–1795).svg, The 1777

Flag of the United States The national flag of the United States, often referred to as the American flag or the U.S. flag, consists of thirteen horizontal Bar (heraldry), stripes, Variation of the field, alternating red and white, with a blue rectangle in the Canton ( ...

had 13 stars of an unspecified number of points.

Six-pointed stars

Several varieties of six-pointed stars are used in cultures around the world: * If the collinear edges of a regular six-pointed star are connected, so that two interlaced triangles are formed, a symbol results that is variously known as the

hexagram , can be seen as a compound polygon, compound composed of an upwards (blue here) and downwards (pink) facing equilateral triangle, with their intersection as a regular hexagon (in green). A hexagram (Greek language, Greek) or sexagram (Latin l ...

Star of David The Star of David (, , ) is a symbol generally recognized as representing both Jewish identity and Judaism. Its shape is that of a hexagram: the compound of two equilateral triangles. A derivation of the Seal of Solomon was used for decora ...

, or Shield of David (Magen David). This symbol is most commonly associated with

Judaism Judaism () is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic, Monotheism, monotheistic, ethnic religion that comprises the collective spiritual, cultural, and legal traditions of the Jews, Jewish people. Religious Jews regard Judaism as their means of o ...

. It is also used in

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

and

Hinduism Hinduism () is an Hypernymy and hyponymy, umbrella term for a range of Indian religions, Indian List of religions and spiritual traditions#Indian religions, religious and spiritual traditions (Sampradaya, ''sampradaya''s) that are unified ...

, but less frequently. *The

Ahmadiyya Ahmadiyya, officially the Ahmadiyya Muslim Jama'at (AMJ), is an Islamic messianic movement originating in British India in the late 19th century. It was founded by Mirza Ghulam Ahmad (1835–1908), who said he had been divinely appointed a ...

flag, ''Lawa-e-Ahmaddiyat'', contains a six-pointed star, adjacent to a crescent. * The

Star of Life The Star of Life is a symbol used to identify emergency medical services. It features a blue six-pointed star, outlined by a white border. The middle contains a Rod of Asclepius – an ancient symbol of medicine. The Star of Life can be found on ...

, which is a six-armed cross. * The municipal

flag of Chicago The flag of Chicago consists of two light blue horizontal bars, or stripes, on a field of white, each bar one-sixth the height of the full flag, and placed slightly less than one-sixth of the way from the top and bottom. Four bright red stars ...

has four six-pointed stars. * in the

flag of Nagaland The Flag of Nagaland is the flag used to represent the Naga people. Currently it does not have official status in any area where the Nagas live, but it is allowed at cultural events. The color of the flag is medium sky blue which symbolizes th ...

the six-pointed

Star of Bethlehem The Star of Bethlehem, or Christmas Star, appears in the nativity of Jesus, nativity story of the Gospel of Matthew Matthew 2, chapter 2 where "wise men from the East" (biblical Magi, Magi) are inspired by the star to travel to Jerusalem. There, ...

is a symbol of the Christian identity of the

Naga people Nagas are various Tibeto-Burman languages, Tibeto-Burman ethnic groups native to northeastern India and northwestern Myanmar. The groups have similar cultures and traditions, and form the majority of population in the Indian state of Nagaland ...

. * German and German-American

hex sign Hex signs are a form of Pennsylvania Dutch folk art, related to Fraktur (Pennsylvania German folk art), fraktur, found in the Fancy Dutch tradition in Pennsylvania Dutch Country. Barn paintings, usually in the form of "stars in circles", began to ...

s and barn stars often incorporate both five- and six-pointed stars as central themes. * The six-pointed star is used as the symbol for the

Folk Nation The Folk Nation is an alliance of street gangs originating in Chicago, established in 1978. The alliance has since spread throughout the United States, particularly the Midwestern United States. Formation The Folk Nation was formed on November ...

alliance of gangs from Chicago. Crip gang members tend to use this symbol also. Apart from these, six-pointed star formations are rare as an

ideograph An ideogram or ideograph (from Ancient Greek, Greek 'idea' + 'to write') is a symbol that is used within a given writing system to represent an idea or concept in a given language. (Ideograms are contrasted with phonogram (linguistics), phono ...

in Western cultures except in the case of law enforcement badges.The sixpointed star
from . Retrieved 19 July 2006. In

astrology Astrology is a range of Divination, divinatory practices, recognized as pseudoscientific since the 18th century, that propose that information about human affairs and terrestrial events may be discerned by studying the apparent positions ...

, some formations of a six-pointed star can signify

fixed star In astronomy, the fixed stars () are the luminary points, mainly stars, that appear not to move relative to one another against the darkness of the night sky in the background. This is in contrast to those lights visible to the naked eye, name ...

s. In some rare instances, it can signify the date of birth on a gravestone, synonymous with the five-point star. File:Star of David.svg,

File:Liwa-e-Ahmadiyya 1-2.svg,

flag File:All for Australia League logo.svg,

All for Australia League The All for Australia League (AFAL) was an Australian political movement during the Great Depression. It was founded in early 1931 and claimed to have amassed 130,000 members by June 1931. Right-wing and anti-establishment in nature, the league h ...

emblem File:Flag_of_Chicago,_Illinois.svg, alt=four red stars on a white flag with a blue stripe above and below,

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

Flag File:Ulster banner.svg, alt=Flag showing red hand in a white six-pointed star under a crown, overlaid on flag of England, Flag of

Northern Ireland Northern Ireland ( ; ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, part of the United Kingdom in the north-east of the island of Ireland. It has been #Descriptions, variously described as a country, province or region. Northern Ireland shares Repub ...

, 19531972 File:Unofficial flag of Nagaland.svg,

Flag of Nagaland The Flag of Nagaland is the flag used to represent the Naga people. Currently it does not have official status in any area where the Nagas live, but it is allowed at cultural events. The color of the flag is medium sky blue which symbolizes th ...

with the

symbol

Seven-pointed stars

Political

A seven-pointed star appears in the

flag A flag is a piece of textile, fabric (most often rectangular) with distinctive colours and design. It is used as a symbol, a signalling device, or for decoration. The term ''flag'' is also used to refer to the graphic design employed, and fla ...

and

heraldic Heraldry is a discipline relating to the design, display and study of armorial bearings (known as armory), as well as related disciplines, such as vexillology, together with the study of ceremony, rank and pedigree. Armory, the best-known branc ...

symbolism of

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...

. In the Australian context, the seven points (also known as the Commonwealth Star, the Federation Star, the Seven Point Star, or the Star of Federation) is a seven-pointed star symbolising the

Federation of Australia The Federation of Australia was the process by which the six separate British self-governing colonies of Queensland, New South Wales, Victoria, Tasmania, South Australia (which also governed what is now the Northern Territory), and Wester ...

which came into force on 1 January 1901. Six points of the Star represent the six original states of the

Commonwealth of Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and numerous smaller islands. It has a total area of , making it the sixth-largest country in ...

, while the seventh point represents the territories. The seven-pointed stars stand in contrast to the vexillologically more conventional

five-pointed star A five-pointed star (☆), geometrically an equilateral concave decagon, is a common ideogram in modern culture. Comparatively rare in classical heraldry, it was notably introduced for the flag of the United States in the Flag Act of 1777 and si ...

s. The Seal of the

Cherokee Nation The Cherokee Nation ( or ) is the largest of three list of federally recognized tribes, federally recognized tribes of Cherokees in the United States. It includes people descended from members of the Cherokee Nation (1794–1907), Old Cheroke ...

has an acute gold seven-pointed star in its seal. The seven-pointed star is also used as a symbol of the

Trinitarios The Trinitarios is a Dominican American criminal organization founded by Dominicans in New York City, New York in 1993. History The Trinitarios were established in 1993 on Rikers Island, the New York City jail,Luis Ferré-Sadurní & Barbara Mar ...

gang from New York City. Image:Flag of Australia.svg,

Flag of Australia The national flag of Australia is based on the British Blue Ensign—a blue field with the Union Jack in the upper hoist quarter—augmented with a large white seven-pointed star (the Commonwealth Star) and a representation of the Crux, Southe ...

Image:Flag of Jordan.svg,

Flag of Jordan The flag of Jordan, officially adopted on 16 April 1928, is based on the 1916 flag of the Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire during World War I. The flag consists of horizontal black, white, and green bands that are connected by a red Flag ...

Image:Flag of Iraq 1924.svg, 1924 Flag of Iraq

Heptagram

heptagram A heptagram, septagram, septegram or septogram is a seven-point star polygon, star drawn with seven straight strokes. The name ''heptagram'' combines a numeral prefix, ''hepta-'', with the Greek language, Greek suffix ''wikt:-gram, -gram ...

or septagram is a seven-pointed star drawn with seven straight strokes. There are two kinds of heptagrams: * ''Acute heptagram'', the star polygon. * ''Obtuse heptagram'', the star polygon.

Eight-pointed stars

Political

Image:Flag of Iraq 1959-1963.svg, 1959 Flag of Iraq Image:Flag of Azerbaijan.svg,

Flag of Azerbaijan The national flag of Azerbaijan (), often referred to as the tricolour flag (), is a horizontal tricolour that features three equally sized bars of bright blue, red, and green; a white crescent; and a centred eight-pointed star. The flag has ...

Image:Hail flag.svg, Flag of Ha'il state (1834–1921) Image:Flag_of_Minnesota_(2023_redesign).svg, Flag of Minnesota (2024-present)

Other

The eight-pointed star is widely used in the Arabic states in decorative art,. It is sometimes similar to the Star of Lakshmi formed from overlapping squares but may also appear in the form of the Rub el Hizb which adds a central circle to the design. Image:Ashthalakshmi - Star of Laxmi.svg, Star of Lakshmi Image:ROUB EL HIZB 06DE.svg, Rub el Hizb A two-color, 8-pointed star associated with the

American Friends Service Committee The American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) is a Religious Society of Friends ('' Quaker)-founded'' organization working for peace and social justice in the United States and around the world. AFSC was founded in 1917 as a combined effort by ...

and other Quaker service groups since the 1870s is sometimes called "the Quaker star". Image:Quaker_star-T.svg

Nine-pointed stars

A nine-pointed star is the most common symbol of the

Baháʼí Faith The Baháʼí Faith is a religion founded in the 19th century that teaches the Baháʼí Faith and the unity of religion, essential worth of all religions and Baháʼí Faith and the unity of humanity, the unity of all people. Established by ...

, the number nine being significant in the religion. Image:Bahai star.svg

Eleven-pointed stars

The flag of the

Federation of Malaya Malaya, officially the Federation of Malaya, was a country in Southeast Asia from 1948 to 1963. It succeeded the Malayan Union and, before that, British Malaya. It comprised eleven states – nine Malay states and two of the Straits Settleme ...

used the eleven-pointed star from 1950 until 1963, with the star representing the 11 member states of the federation. File:Flag of Malaya.svg,

Flag of Malaya This is a list of flags used in Malaysia. National flags Monarch Governor Military Law Enforcement Flags Administrative divisions States Federal territories A common flag for the three federal territories was adopted by the ...

Twelve-pointed stars

The flag of

Nauru Nauru, officially the Republic of Nauru, formerly known as Pleasant Island, is an island country and microstate in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies within the Micronesia subregion of Oceania, with its nearest neighbour being Banaba (part of ...

uses a twelve-pointed star representing the 12 tribes on the island. Image:Flag of Nauru.svg,

Flag of Nauru Following the independence of Nauru, the flag of Nauru () was raised for the first time. The flag, chosen in a local design competition, was adopted on independence day, 31 January 1968. The design symbolically depicts Nauru's geographical pos ...

Fourteen-pointed stars

In the Church of Nativity in

Bethlehem Bethlehem is a city in the West Bank, Palestine, located about south of Jerusalem, and the capital of the Bethlehem Governorate. It had a population of people, as of . The city's economy is strongly linked to Tourism in the State of Palesti ...

the traditionally location of the birth of Jesus is marked by a silver star with 14 points that represents the three sets of 14 generations in the genealogy of Jesus. The flag of

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

uses the Federal Star, a fourteen-pointed star representing the unity between the 13 member states and the federal government. Image:Flag of Malaysia.svg,

Flag of Malaysia The national flag of Malaysia, also known as the Stripes of Glory (, also "Stripes of Excellence") is composed of a field of 14 alternating red and white stripes along the Flag terminology, fly and a blue Flag terminology, canton bearing a Star ...

References

*Graham, Dr. O.J. The Six-Pointed Star: Its Origin and Usage 4th ed.

External links

{{Commons, Star symbol
Moroccan Islamic Patterns: The Eight-Point Star
Examining the symbolic meaning of the eight-point star (khatam) in Islamic ornamentation. Heraldic charges Pictograms Topics in culture Topics in the arts

Emblematic use

Three-pointed stars

Four-pointed stars

Five-pointed stars

Six-pointed stars

Seven-pointed stars

Political

Heptagram

Eight-pointed stars

Political

Other

Nine-pointed stars

Eleven-pointed stars

Twelve-pointed stars

Fourteen-pointed stars

See also

References

External links