Which countries have stars on their flag? The full list
Quick answer: 65 of the national flags in the Trivillion flags quiz show at least one star. They include the United States (50 stars), Brazil (27), Cape Verde and Dominica (10 each), Tuvalu (9) and Venezuela (8), plus single-star flags such as Vietnam, Ghana, Cuba and Somalia. Africa has the most, with 26.
Flags with stars by region
Stars are one of the most common symbols on national flags. Here is every flag with at least one star in our flags quiz, grouped by region:
| Region | Count | Countries |
|---|---|---|
| Africa | 26 | Algeria, Angola, Burkina Faso, Burundi, Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Comoros, DR Congo, Djibouti, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Ghana, Guinea-Bissau, Liberia, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, Mozambique, São Tomé and Príncipe, Senegal, Somalia, South Sudan, Togo, Tunisia, Zimbabwe |
| Asia and the Middle East | 16 | Azerbaijan, China, Jordan, Malaysia, Myanmar, North Korea, Pakistan, Philippines, Singapore, Syria, Tajikistan, Timor-Leste, Turkey, Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan, Vietnam |
| Europe | 2 | Bosnia and Herzegovina, Slovenia |
| Americas | 12 | Brazil, Chile, Cuba, Dominica, Grenada, Honduras, Panama, Paraguay, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Suriname, United States, Venezuela |
| Oceania | 9 | Australia, Marshall Islands, Micronesia, Nauru, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tuvalu |
The flags with the most stars
Most flags have one star, but some have many, and the number usually counts something:
| Flag | Stars | What they stand for |
|---|---|---|
| United States | 50 | The 50 states |
| Brazil | 27 | The states and the Federal District, arranged as the sky over Rio de Janeiro on 15 November 1889 |
| Cape Verde | 10 | The ten main islands |
| Dominica | 10 | The ten parishes |
| Tuvalu | 9 | The islands of Tuvalu |
| Venezuela | 8 | The provinces that signed the 1811 declaration of independence, plus Guayana |
| Grenada | 7 | The seven parishes |
| Tajikistan | 7 | Seven stars under a crown |
| Equatorial Guinea | 6 | The mainland and five islands |
| Australia | 6 | The Commonwealth Star and the five stars of the Southern Cross |
What stars mean on flags
Stars carry a few recurring meanings. Many count parts of a country, such as states on the United States flag, islands on Cape Verde’s and states on Micronesia’s. Others show the Southern Cross, the constellation seen from the southern hemisphere, which appears on the flags of Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea and Samoa.
A single star often stands for independence, freedom or unity. Ghana’s black star became a symbol of African freedom, and the lone stars of Cuba, Chile and Somalia stand for independence and unity. Somalia’s five-pointed star stands for the five regions where Somali people live.
Some stars have religious meaning. Morocco’s green five-pointed star is known as the Seal of Solomon, and the seven points of the star on Jordan’s flag are commonly linked to the seven verses of Al-Fatiha, the opening chapter of the Quran. Red or yellow stars on the flags of China, Vietnam and North Korea come from communist symbolism.
Stars with a crescent
Twelve flags combine a star with a crescent: Algeria, Azerbaijan, Comoros, Libya, Malaysia, Mauritania, Pakistan, Singapore, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. The pairing is closely linked to the Ottoman Empire and the Islamic world. Comoros has four stars beside its crescent, one for each main island, and Uzbekistan has twelve.
Unusual stars
A few stars stand out. Malaysia’s star has 14 points, for its 13 states and the federal territories. The Marshall Islands’ star has 24 points, one for each municipality, and Nauru’s star has 12 points, for the island’s 12 original tribes; it sits just below a yellow line that represents the Equator, showing where Nauru lies. On Bosnia and Herzegovina’s flag, the stars run off the top and bottom edges to suggest they continue.
How to remember them
In a quiz, group flags by star colour and layout rather than by region. Learn the Southern Cross flags together, then the star-and-crescent flags, then the single-star flags of Africa, which are the easiest to confuse: Ghana, Togo, Senegal, Cameroon, Burkina Faso and Guinea-Bissau all use red, yellow and green with one star. Play the flags quiz below and focus on the ones you miss.
Every flag with stars in our flags quiz
Related reading
More articles and games on the same topic.
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Frequently asked questions
Which flag has the most stars?
The United States, with 50 stars, one for each state. Brazil is second with 27.
How many flags have stars?
65 of the national flags in the Trivillion flags quiz show at least one star.
Which flags have one star?
Many, including Vietnam, Ghana, Cuba, Chile, Somalia, Senegal, Cameroon, Myanmar, North Korea, Liberia, Togo and Suriname.
What does the star on Jordan’s flag mean?
Its seven points are commonly linked to the seven verses of Al-Fatiha.
Which flags show the Southern Cross?
Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea and Samoa.
Which flags have a star and a crescent?
Algeria, Azerbaijan, Comoros, Libya, Malaysia, Mauritania, Pakistan, Singapore, Tunisia, Turkey, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.