How many stars does the United States flag have?

50 are the stars that the United States flag has, one of the symbols or national insignia that undoubtedly has the most international diffusion; we will find it in any television series from that country, in any American production film or in any official message broadcast from that nation. The flag is composed of stripes and stars. But how many stars does the United States flag have and, above all, what do they represent? In this article we will answer these questions and travel through time through this starry canvas.

How many stars does the United States flag have?

If our gaze goes to the upper left corner of the United States flag, we will see a rectangle full of white stars with five points that are arranged in nine rows, alternating between five and six stars.

They are in total fifty stars that represent the current states that make up the United States. For historical reasons, the number of stars has varied until reaching the current one, with the last added states: Hawaii (1959), Alaska (1959), Arizona (1912) and New Mexico (1912).

In this other article we discover the states of the United States and their capitals.

What was the first flag of the United States?

The United States declared itself an independent country of England on July 4, 1776. At that time, it had no official flag, although it had a badge used during the war of independence, a symbol that served as the basis for what we now know as the official flag of the United States. U.S. It was in 1777, on July 14, when it was stipulated that the flag of the United States would have thirteen red and white bands in total (coinciding with the number of states) and that the union would also be represented by thirteen white stars with a blue sky as background.

Popularly it is said that the United States flag was designed by a young upholsterer named Elizabeth Griscom, known as Betsy Ross, born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, in 1752. At the time of its design, the flag consisted of 13 stars and 13 horizontal bands, red and white, corresponding to the number of colonies annexed at the time of its creation, in 1776. Of this woman we know that she was the eighth daughter of the 17 offspring of the marriage composed of Rebecca and Samuel Griscom. Betsy studied at the Religious Society of Friends, where among other things she learned the art of upholstery.

In we discover what is the meaning of the United States flag .

How many times has the number of stars changed the flag?

Initially, with the creation of the flag in 1777, the number of stars was 13, corresponding to the states annexed up to that moment. Later, in 1795, the number of stars reached 15, with the annexation of the states of Kentacky and Vermont. And so the constellation of 15 stars remained until 1818, when a new flag was approved by law with 20 stars that symbolized the 20 states of the United States.

In that year, a norm was also approved that dictated the adhesion of a new star for each state that joined the union. Thus they were added, one by one, until reaching the current 50, after Hawai'i was incorporated in 1959.