A red star, five-pointed and filled, is a

symbol A symbol is a mark, sign, or word that indicates, signifies, or is understood as representing an idea, object, or relationship. Symbols allow people to go beyond what is known or seen by creating linkages between otherwise very different conc ...

that has often historically been associated with communist ideology, particularly in combination with the

hammer and sickle The hammer and sickle (Unicode: "☭") zh, s=锤子和镰刀, p=Chuízi hé liándāo or zh, s=镰刀锤子, p=Liándāo chuízi, labels=no is a symbol meant to represent proletarian solidarity, a union between agricultural and industr ...

, but is also used as a purely

socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the ...

symbol in the 21st century. It has been widely used in

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

s, state

emblem An emblem is an abstract or representational pictorial image that represents a concept, like a moral truth, or an allegory, or a person, like a king or saint. Emblems vs. symbols Although the words ''emblem'' and '' symbol'' are often use ...

monument A monument is a type of structure that was explicitly created to commemorate a person or event, or which has become relevant to a social group as a part of their remembrance of historic times or cultural heritage, due to its artistic, hist ...

s, ornaments, and

logo A logo (abbreviation of logotype; ) is a graphic mark, emblem, or symbol used to aid and promote public identification and recognition. It may be of an abstract or figurative design or include the text of the name it represents as in a wo ...

s. One interpretation sees the five points as representing the five fingers of the worker's hand, as well as the five populated continents (counting

the Americas The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World. Along with th ...

as one). A lesser-known suggestion is that in

communist symbolism Communist symbolism represents a variety of themes, including revolution, the proletariat, peasantry, agriculture, or international solidarity. Communist states, parties and movements use these symbols to advance and create solidarity within ...

, the five points on the star were intended to represent the five

social group In the social sciences, a social group can be defined as two or more people who interact with one another, share similar characteristics, and collectively have a sense of unity. Regardless, social groups come in a myriad of sizes and varieties ...

s that would lead Russia to communism: the

youth Youth is the time of life when one is young. The word, youth, can also mean the time between childhood and adulthood ( maturity), but it can also refer to one's peak, in terms of health or the period of life known as being a young adult. Yo ...

, the military, the industrial labourers, the

agricultural Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled peopl ...

workers or

peasant A peasant is a pre-industrial agricultural laborer or a farmer with limited land-ownership, especially one living in the Middle Ages under feudalism and paying rent, tax, fees, or services to a landlord. In Europe, three classes of peasa ...

ry and the

intelligentsia The intelligentsia is a status class composed of the university-educated people of a society who engage in the complex mental labours by which they critique, shape, and lead in the politics, policies, and culture of their society; as such, the i ...

. In Soviet heraldry, the red star symbolized the

Red Army The Workers' and Peasants' Red Army (Russian language, Russian: Рабо́че-крестья́нская Кра́сная армия),) often shortened to the Red Army, was the army and air force of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist R ...

and military service, as opposed to the hammer and sickle, which symbolized peaceful labour. Different countries across

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

treat the symbol very differently. Some former

Warsaw Pact The Warsaw Pact (WP) or Treaty of Warsaw, formally the Treaty of Friendship, Cooperation and Mutual Assistance, was a collective defense treaty signed in Warsaw, Poland, between the Soviet Union and seven other Eastern Bloc socialist republi ...

nations have passed laws banning it, claiming that it represents "a

totalitarian Totalitarianism is a form of government and a political system that prohibits all opposition parties, outlaws individual and group opposition to the state and its claims, and exercises an extremely high if not complete degree of control and reg ...

ideology", but other Eastern European countries hold a very positive view of it as a symbol of

antifascism Anti-fascism is a political movement in opposition to fascist ideologies, groups and individuals. Beginning in European countries in the 1920s, it was at its most significant shortly before and during World War II, where the Axis powers were ...

and resistance against

Nazi Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in ...

occupation. Red Star has also been used in a non-communist context and before the emergence of this movement, in symbols of countries and states since the 19th Century. It appears for example on the flags of

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island coun ...

and the U.S. state of

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

. Red star has also been used as logo by private agencies and corporations, such as the oil giant

Texaco Texaco, Inc. ("The Texas Company") is an American oil brand owned and operated by Chevron Corporation. Its flagship product is its fuel "Texaco with Techron". It also owned the Havoline motor oil brand. Texaco was an independent company unt ...

and beer multinational Heineken. Volokolamsk (Moscow Oblast) 12

History

The star's origins as a symbol of communist mass movements dates from the time of the

Bolshevik Revolution The October Revolution,. officially known as the Great October Socialist Revolution. in the Soviet Union, also known as the Bolshevik Revolution, was a revolution in Russia led by the Bolshevik Party of Vladimir Lenin that was a key mom ...

and the

Russian Civil War {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Russian Civil War , partof = the Russian Revolution and the aftermath of World War I , image = , caption = Clockwise from top left: {{flatlist, *Soldiers ...

, but the precise first use remains unknown. The red star as a symbol of the

was proposed by the Military Collegium for the organization of the Red Army and the creator of the Red Star emblem was the

Bolshevik The Bolsheviks (russian: Большевики́, from большинство́ ''bol'shinstvó'', 'majority'),; derived from ''bol'shinstvó'' (большинство́), "majority", literally meaning "one of the majority". also known in English ...

commander of the Petrograd Military District, Konstantin Eremeev. On the other hand, one account of the symbol's origin traces its roots to the Moscow troop

garrison A garrison (from the French ''garnison'', itself from the verb ''garnir'', "to equip") is any body of troops stationed in a particular location, originally to guard it. The term now often applies to certain facilities that constitute a mili ...

toward the end of

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

. At this time, many troops were fleeing from the Austrian and German fronts, joining the local Moscow garrison upon their arrival in the city. To distinguish the Moscow troops from the influx of retreating front-liners, officers gave out tin stars to the Moscow garrison soldiers to wear on their hats. When those troops joined the

and the

s they painted their tin stars red, the color of socialism, thus creating the original red star. The red star was used in communist media as early as in 1908 with the publication of the novel Red Star by Bolshevik revolutionary

Alexander Bogdanov Alexander Aleksandrovich Bogdanov (russian: Алекса́ндр Алекса́ндрович Богда́нов; – 7 April 1928), born Alexander Malinovsky, was a Russian and later Soviet physician, philosopher, science fiction writer, and ...

, which describes a technologically advanced communist civilization on Mars. Another claimed origin for the red star relates to an alleged encounter between

Leon Trotsky Lev Davidovich Bronstein. ( – 21 August 1940), better known as Leon Trotsky; uk, link= no, Лев Давидович Троцький; also transliterated ''Lyev'', ''Trotski'', ''Trotskij'', ''Trockij'' and ''Trotzky''. (), was a Russian ...

and Nikolai Krylenko. Krylenko, an Esperantist, wore a green-star lapel badge; Trotsky inquired as to its meaning and received an explanation that each arm of the star represented one of the five traditional continents. On hearing that, Trotsky specified that soldiers of the Red Army should wear a similar red star. Regardless of the star's exact origin, it was incorporated into the

's uniforms and heraldry as early as 1918. Curtiss JN-3

Shortly before the founding of the Soviet Union, in mid-March 1916 the U.S. Army Signal Corps' aviation section used the red star for the national insignia for U.S. aircraft on the aircraft of the Signal Corps'

1st Aero Squadron First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1). First or 1st may also refer to: *World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement Arts and media Music * 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and reco ...

during the Pancho Villa Expedition to apprehend the Mexican revolutionary Pancho Villa.

Use in the USSR and its constituent republics

The symbol became one of the most prominent of the

Soviet Union The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, it was nominally a federal union of fifteen nationa ...

, adorning nearly all official buildings, awards and insignia. Sometimes the

appeared inside or below the star. In 1930 the Soviet Union established the

Order of the Red Star The Order of the Red Star (russian: Орден Красной Звезды, Orden Krasnoy Zvezdy) was a military decoration of the Soviet Union. It was established by decree of the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the USSR of 6 April 193 ...

and awarded its insignia to

and Soviet Navy personnel for "exceptional service in the cause of the defense of the Soviet Union in both war and peace". The Soviet and

Russian Federation Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...

military newspaper bore and bears the name ''Red Star'' ( Russian: '' Krasnaya Zvezda''). File:Red star Red Army 05.gif, Red star, Red Army 1918 File:Вступайте в красную конницу, 1920.jpg, Red Cavalry poster with the

budenovka A budenovka ( rus, будёновка, r=budyonovka, p=bʊˈdʲɵnəfkə) is a distinctive type of hat, an archetypal part of the Communist military uniforms of the Russian Civil War following the Russian revolution (1917–1922) and later co ...

, 1920 File:Kremlin Star.jpg, Kremlin Star,

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

, (1937) File:Orden-Pobeda-Marshal Vasilevsky 09.jpg, Soviet Order of Victory, (1945), USSR File:Red Star Plate by Adamovich 1921.jpg, Plate by Adamovich, (1921), Russian SFSR

As a holiday ornament

During the 1930s, Soviet publications encouraged the practice of decorating a New Year's tree, known as a ''yolka'' (). These trees were often decorated with a red star, a practice that has continued in

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-ei ...

since the 1991 dissolution of the Soviet Union.

Gallery of the heraldry of Soviet republics

File:State Emblem of the Soviet Union.svg,

Coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in its ...

of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics File:Emblem of the Armenian SSR.svg,

of the Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic File:Emblem of the Azerbaijan SSR.svg,

of the

Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic Azerbaijan ( az, Азәрбајҹан, Azərbaycan, italics=no), officially the Azerbaijan Soviet Socialist Republic (Azerbaijan SSR; az, Азәрбајҹан Совет Сосиалист Республикасы, Azərbaycan Sovet Sosialist R ...

File:Emblem of the Byelorussian SSR (1981-1991).svg,

of the

Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic The Byelorussian Soviet Socialist Republic (BSSR, or Byelorussian SSR; be, Беларуская Савецкая Сацыялістычная Рэспубліка, Bielaruskaja Savieckaja Sacyjalistyčnaja Respublika; russian: Белор� ...

File:Emblem of the Estonian SSR.svg,

of the Estonian Soviet Socialist Republic File:Emblem of the Georgian SSR.svg,

of the Georgian Soviet Socialist Republic File:Emblem of Kazakh SSR.svg,

of the Kazakh Soviet Socialist Republic File:Emblem of the Kirghiz SSR.svg,

of the Kirghiz Soviet Socialist Republic File:Emblem of the Latvian SSR.svg,

of the

Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic The Latvian Soviet Socialist Republic (Latvian SSR), also known as Soviet Latvia or simply Latvia, was a federated republic within the Soviet Union, and formally one of its 16 (later 15) constituent republics. The Latvian Soviet Socialist Rep ...

File:Emblem of the Lithuanian SSR.svg,

of the

Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic The Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic (Lithuanian SSR; lt, Lietuvos Tarybų Socialistinė Respublika; russian: Литовская Советская Социалистическая Республика, Litovskaya Sovetskaya Sotsialistiche ...

File:Emblem of the Moldavian SSR (1981-1990).svg,

of the Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic File:Emblem of the Russian SFSR.svg,

of the

Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, Russian SFSR or RSFSR ( rus, Российская Советская Федеративная Социалистическая Республика, Rossíyskaya Sovétskaya Federatívnaya Soci ...

File:Emblem of the Tajik SSR.svg,

of the Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic File:Emblem of the Turkmen SSR.svg,

of the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic File:Emblem of the Ukrainian SSR.svg,

of the

Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic The Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic ( uk, Украї́нська Радя́нська Соціалісти́чна Респу́бліка, ; russian: Украи́нская Сове́тская Социалисти́ческая Респ ...

File:Emblem of the Uzbek SSR.svg,

of the Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic File:Emblem_of_the_Transcaucasian_SFSR_(1930-1936).svg,

Emblem of the Transcaucasian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic The Emblem of the Transcaucasian SFSR was adopted by the government of the Transcaucasian SFSR. The final version was adopted in 1930. The emblem is based loosely on the state emblem of the Soviet Union. It incorporates designs from each of th ...

(1923-1936) File:Emblem_of_the_Karelo-Finnish_SSR.svg,

Emblem of the Karelo-Finnish Soviet Socialist Republic The emblem of the Karelo-Finnish Soviet Socialist Republic was adopted on February 10, 1941 by the government of the Karelo-Finnish Soviet Socialist Republic and used until it was absorbed into the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic in ...

(1941-1956) File:Emblem of the Latvian SSR (1918-1920).svg, Coat of arms of the Latvian Socialist Soviet Republic (1919–1920)

Gallery of Soviet flags

File:Flag of the Soviet Union.svg, Flag of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics File:Flag of Armenian SSR.svg,

Flag of the Armenian Soviet Socialist Republic , Morenicks3 = , Use3 = 111000 , Symbol3 = , Proportion3 = 1:2 , Adoption3 = , Design3 = A horizontal tricolour of red, blue, and orange , Designer3 = Stepan Malkhasyants The flag of the Armenian SSR was adopted on 17 December 1952 by t ...

Flag of the Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic The flag of the Moldavian Soviet Socialist Republic was adopted on 31 January 1952. The flag has three horizontal bands of red, green (1/4) and red, with a hammer and sickle in the canton. As defined by the Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the ...

File:Flag of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic.svg,

Flag of the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic The last Soviet Union (USSR)-era flag was adopted by the Russian SFSR in 1954 and used until 1991. The flag of the Russian SFSR was a defacement of the flag of the Soviet Union. The constitution stipulated: Like the flag of the Soviet Unio ...

File:Flag of Tajik SSR.svg, Flag of the Tajik Soviet Socialist Republic File:Flag of the Turkmen SSR.svg, Flag of the Turkmen Soviet Socialist Republic File:Flag of Ukrainian SSR.svg, Flag of the Ukrainian Soviet Socialist Republic File:Flag of the Uzbek SSR.svg, Flag of the Uzbek Soviet Socialist Republic File:Flag of Oryol.svg, Flag of Oryol File:Flag of the Karelo-Finnish SSR.svg, Flag of the Karelo-Finnish Soviet Socialist Republic (1940–1956) File:Flag of Transcaucasian SFSR (1925-1936).svg, Flag of the Transcaucasian Socialist Federative Soviet Republic (1922–1936)

Use in other socialist countries

Following its adoption as an emblem of the Soviet Union, the red star became a symbol for communism around the world. Several

Communist state A communist state, also known as a Marxist–Leninist state, is a one-party state that is administered and governed by a communist party guided by Marxism–Leninism. Marxism–Leninism was the state ideology of the Soviet Union, the Comint ...

s subsequently adopted the red star symbol, often placing it on their respective flags and

coats of arms A coat of arms is a heraldic visual design on an escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central element of the full heraldic achievement, which in i ...

– for example on the flag of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia.

Separatist Separatism is the advocacy of cultural, ethnic, tribal, religious, racial, governmental or gender separation from the larger group. As with secession, separatism conventionally refers to full political separation. Groups simply seeking greate ...

and socialist movements also sometimes adopted the red star, as on the Estelada flag in the

Catalan countries The Catalan Countries ( ca, països catalans, , ) refers to those territories where the Catalan language is spoken. They include the Spanish regions of Catalonia, the Balearic Islands, Valencia, and parts of Aragon (''La Franja'') and Murcia ( ...

In the Eastern Bloc

The red star became a common element of the flags and heraldry of socialist states in the

Eastern Bloc The Eastern Bloc, also known as the Communist Bloc and the Soviet Bloc, was the group of socialist states of Central and Eastern Europe, East Asia, Southeast Asia, Africa, and Latin America under the influence of the Soviet Union that existed du ...

, appearing in heraldry for virtually all of the countries, and on the flags of

Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedo ...

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Cr ...

Romania Romania ( ; ro, România ) is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern, and Southeast Europe, Southeastern Europe. It borders Bulgaria to the south, Ukraine to the north, Hungary to the west, S ...

, and

Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and share ...

. From 1991 to 1995,

Belarus Belarus,, , ; alternatively and formerly known as Byelorussia (from Russian ). officially the Republic of Belarus,; rus, Республика Беларусь, Respublika Belarus. is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by ...

dropped its Soviet-style emblem in favor of an emblem featuring the Pahonia; the Soviet-era heraldry was re-adopted in 1995, and continues to be used today with minor modifications in 2012 and 2020. File:Flag of Bulgaria (1971 – 1990).svg, Flag of the People's Republic of Bulgaria (1971–1990) File:Flag of Romania (1965-1989).svg, Flag of the Socialist Republic of Romania (1965–1989) File:Flag of Albania (1946-1992).svg, Flag of the People's Socialist Republic of Albania (1946–1992) File:Flag of Hungary (1949-1956; 1-2 aspect ratio).svg,

Flag of the Hungarian People's Republic A flag is a piece of fabric (most often rectangular or quadrilateral) with a distinctive design and colours. It is used as a symbol, a signalling device, or for decoration. The term ''flag'' is also used to refer to the graphic design employ ...

(1949–1956) File:Coat of arms of the Socialist Republic of Romania.svg, Coat of arms of the

Socialist Republic of Romania The Socialist Republic of Romania ( ro, Republica Socialistă România, RSR) was a Marxist–Leninist one-party socialist state that existed officially in Romania from 1947 to 1989. From 1947 to 1965, the state was known as the Romanian Peop ...

File:Coat of arms of Bulgaria (1971-1990).svg, Coat of arms of the

People's Republic of Bulgaria The People's Republic of Bulgaria (PRB; bg, Народна Република България (НРБ), ''Narodna Republika Balgariya, NRB'') was the official name of Bulgaria, when it was a socialist republic from 1946 to 1990, ruled by the ...

(1971–1990) File:Coat of arms of Hungary (1957-1990).svg, Coat of arms of the

Hungarian People's Republic The Hungarian People's Republic ( hu, Magyar Népköztársaság) was a one-party state, one-party socialist state from 20 August 1949 to 23 October 1989. It was governed by the Hungarian Socialist Workers' Party, which was under the influence ...

(1957–1990) File:Coat of arms of the People's Republic of Albania.svg, Coat of arms of the

People's Socialist Republic of Albania The People's Socialist Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika Popullore Socialiste e Shqipërisë, links=no) was the Marxist–Leninist one party state that existed in Albania from 1946 to 1992 (the official name of the country was the People's R ...

File:Coat of arms of Czechoslovakia (1961-1989).svg, Coat of arms of

Czechoslovak Socialist Republic The Czechoslovak Socialist Republic, ČSSR, formerly known from 1948 to 1960 as the Czechoslovak Republic or Fourth Czechoslovak Republic, was the official name of Czechoslovakia from 1960 to 29 March 1990, when it was renamed the Czechoslovak ...

(1961–1989) File:Coat of arms of Belarus.svg, Emblem of

(1995–2012) File:Coat of arms of Belarus (1995-2021).svg, Emblem of

(2012–2020) File:Coat of arms of Belarus (2020–present).svg, Emblem of

(since 2020)

In Yugoslavia

In former Yugoslavia the red star served not only a communist symbol, but also as a more generic symbol of resistance against

Fascism Fascism is a far-right, authoritarian, ultra-nationalist political ideology and movement,: "extreme militaristic nationalism, contempt for electoral democracy and political and cultural liberalism, a belief in natural social hierarchy and t ...

and the Nazi occupation of Yugoslavia, as well as of opposition to its associated ethnic policies. Tito's partisans wore the red star as an identification symbol during World War II. File:Flag of SFR Yugoslavia.svg , Flag of the Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia File:Flag of the Socialist Republic of Serbia.svg , Flag of the

Socialist Republic of Serbia , life_span = 1944–1992 , status = Constituent state of Yugoslavia , p1 = Territory of the Military Commander in Serbia , flag_p1 = Flag of German Reich (1935–1945).svg , p2 ...

and flag of the Socialist Republic of Montenegro File:Flag of Slovenia (1945-1991).svg , Flag of the Socialist Republic of Slovenia File:Flag of the Socialist Republic of Croatia.png , Flag of the

Socialist Republic of Croatia The Socialist Republic of Croatia ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Socijalistička Republika Hrvatska, Социјалистичка Република Хрватска), or SR Croatia, was a constituent republic and federated state of the Socia ...

File:Flag of SR Bosnia and Herzegovina.svg , Flag of the

Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina The Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Socijalistička Republika Bosna i Hercegovina, Социјалистичка Pепублика Босна и Херцеговина), commonly referred to as Socia ...

File:Flag of North Macedonia (1946–1992).svg , Flag of the

Socialist Republic of Macedonia The Socialist Republic of Macedonia ( mk, Социјалистичка Република Македонија, Socijalistička Republika Makedonija), or SR Macedonia, commonly referred to as Socialist Macedonia or Yugoslav Macedonia, was ...

File:Emblem of SFR Yugoslavia.svg , Coat of arms of the

Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia, commonly referred to as SFR Yugoslavia or simply as Yugoslavia, was a country in Central and Southeast Europe. It emerged in 1945, following World War II, and lasted until 1992, with the breakup of Yu ...

File:Coat of Arms of the Socialist Republic of Serbia.svg , Coat of arms of the Yugoslav

File:Coat of Arms of the Socialist Republic of Slovenia.svg , Coat of arms of the Yugoslav Socialist Republic of Slovenia File:Coat of Arms of the Socialist Republic of Croatia.svg , Coat of arms of the Yugoslav

File:Coat of Arms of the Socialist Republic of Bosnia and Herzegovina.svg , Coat of arms of the Yugoslav

File:Coat of arms of Macedonia (1946-2009).svg , Coat of arms of the Yugoslav

File:Coat of Arms of the Socialist Republic of Montenegro.svg , Coat of arms of the Yugoslav Socialist Republic of Montenegro

In Asia

As communist movements spread across Asia, some entities used a red star, while others used a yellow star (often on a red field) with the same symbolism. The

Far Eastern Republic The Far Eastern Republic ( rus, Дальневосто́чная Респу́блика, ДВР, r=Dalnevostochnaya Respublika, DVR, p=dəlʲnʲɪvɐˈstotɕnəjə rʲɪsˈpublʲɪkə), sometimes called the Chita Republic, was a nominally indep ...

of 1920 to 1922 used a yellow star on its military uniforms, and the

flag of the People's Republic of China The National Flag of the People's Republic of China, also known as the Five-star Red Flag, is a Chinese red field with five golden stars charged at the canton. The design features one large star, with four smaller stars in an arc set off to ...

has five yellow stars on a red field. The flag of Vietnam also has a yellow star on a red field. Examples of communes and villages in China named after the red star include Hongxing Village in Huilong Township, Hubei, China and Kizilto in Xinjiang (named Hongxing Commune during the

Cultural Revolution The Cultural Revolution, formally known as the Great Proletarian Cultural Revolution, was a sociopolitical movement in the People's Republic of China (PRC) launched by Mao Zedong in 1966, and lasting until his death in 1976. Its stated goa ...

). File:Emblem of North Korea (1948–1993).svg , Emblem of

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korean Peninsula and shares borders with China and Russia to the north, at the Yalu (Amnok) and T ...

(1948–1993) File:Emblem of Laos 1975-1991.svg , Emblem of

Laos Laos (, ''Lāo'' )), officially the Lao People's Democratic Republic ( Lao: ສາທາລະນະລັດ ປະຊາທິປະໄຕ ປະຊາຊົນລາວ, French: République démocratique populaire lao), is a socialist s ...

(1975–1992) File:State emblem of the People's republic of Mongolia (1960–1992).svg , State emblem of the Mongolian People's Republic (1960–1992) File:Coat of arms of South Yemen (1970-1990).svg , Coat of arms of

South Yemen South Yemen ( ar, اليمن الجنوبي, al-Yaman al-Janubiyy), officially the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen (, ), also referred to as Democratic Yemen (, ) or Yemen (Aden) (, ), was a communist state that existed from 1967 to 19 ...

(1970–1990) File:Flag of North Vietnam.svg , Flag of Vietnam File:Flag of the People's Republic of China.svg ,

Flag of the People's Republic of China The National Flag of the People's Republic of China, also known as the Five-star Red Flag, is a Chinese red field with five golden stars charged at the canton. The design features one large star, with four smaller stars in an arc set off to ...

File:Flag of North Korea.svg , Flag of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea File:Flag of the People's Republic of Mongolia (1940-1992).svg , Flag of the Mongolian People's Republic File:Flag of South Yemen.svg ,

Flag of South Yemen The Flag of South Yemen consisted of a tricolour consisting of the three equal horizontal red, white, and black bands of the Arab Liberation flag with the sky-blue chevron and a red star on the left side of the hoist. The flag was adopted o ...

File:Flag of Afghanistan (1980–1987).svg , Flag of the

Democratic Republic of Afghanistan The Democratic Republic of Afghanistan (DRA),, renamed the Republic of Afghanistan, in 1987, was the Afghan state during the one-party rule of the People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan (PDPA) from 1978 to 1992. The PDPA came to power ...

(1980-1987) File:Scan of red star covid test.jpg, Red star seen on a stamp on the qualification certificate of an NHS

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by a virus, the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The first known case was identified in Wuhan, China, in December 2019. The disease quick ...

lateral flow test A lateral flow test (LFT), is an assay also known as a lateral flow device (LFD), lateral flow immunochromatographic assay, or rapid test. It is a simple device intended to detect the presence of a target substance in a liquid sample without the ...

, manufactured in

Xiamen Xiamen ( , ; ), also known as Amoy (, from Hokkien pronunciation ), is a sub-provincial city in southeastern Fujian, People's Republic of China, beside the Taiwan Strait. It is divided into six districts: Huli, Siming, Jimei, Tong' ...

Fujian Province Fujian (; alternately romanized as Fukien or Hokkien) is a province on the southeastern coast of China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...

In Africa

Socialist countries in Africa also incorporated the red or gold stars into their heraldry. This practice was also adopted by countries that formed following anti-colonial national liberation struggles, which often involved

Marxist Marxism is a left-wing to far-left method of socioeconomic analysis that uses a materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to understand class relations and social conflict and a dialecti ...

organizations. File:Emblem of Mozambique.svg , Emblem of Mozambique File:Flag of Mozambique (1983).svg , Flag of Mozambique File:Flag of Burkina Faso.svg ,

Flag of Burkina Faso The national flag of Burkina Faso (french: drapeau du Burkina Faso) is formed by two equal horizontal bands of red (top) and green, with a yellow five-pointed star resting in the center. The flag was adopted on 4 August 1984. The flag uses th ...

File:Emblem of the People's Republic of Benin.svg , Emblem of the

People's Republic of Benin The People's Republic of Benin (french: République populaire du Bénin; sometimes translated as Benin Popular Republic or Popular Republic of Benin) was a socialist state located in the Gulf of Guinea on the African continent, which would becom ...

File:Flag of Angola.svg , Flag of Angola File:Flag of Ethiopia (1987–1991).svg ,

Flag of Ethiopia The flag of Ethiopia ( am, የኢትዮጵያ ሰንደቅ ዐላማ, Ye-Ītyōṗṗyā sändäq ʿälama) is the national flag of Ethiopia. It consists of a green, yellow, and red tricolour with the National Emblem, a golden pentagram on a b ...

(1987–1991) File:Flag of Djibouti.svg , Flag of Djibouti File:Flag of Zimbabwe.svg ,

Flag of Zimbabwe The national flag of Zimbabwe consists of seven even horizontal stripes of green, gold, red and black with a white triangle containing a red five-pointed star with a Zimbabwe Bird. The present design was adopted on 18 April 1980. The soapston ...

File:Flag of Benin (1975-1990).svg , Flag of Benin (1975–1990) File:Flag of the People's Republic of Congo.svg , Flag of the People's Republic of the Congo (1969–1992) File:Presidential Standard of Madagascar (1976-1993).svg , Presidential Standard of the DR

Madagascar Madagascar (; mg, Madagasikara, ), officially the Republic of Madagascar ( mg, Repoblikan'i Madagasikara, links=no, ; french: République de Madagascar), is an island country in the Indian Ocean, approximately off the coast of East Afric ...

File:Emblem of the Democratic Republic of Madagascar.svg , Emblem of the Democratic Republic of Madagascar

State military units

By March 2010, the

n government readopted the Soviet red star (but now with a blue outline reflecting the three colors – white, blue and red – of the Russian flag) as a military insignia. The

Russian Air Force "Air March" , mascot = , anniversaries = 12 August , equipment = , equipment_label = , battles = , decorations = , batt ...

used this star as a roundel up to 2013, when Russia re-instated the Soviet-era red star. the

Armed Forces of Belarus The Armed Forces of the Republic of Belarus (, ) consist of the Ground Forces and the Air Force and Air Defence Forces, all under the command of the Republic of Belarus Ministry of Defence. Being a landlocked country, Belarus has no navy. In 2 ...

still use the old

Soviet The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...

red star. The coat of arms of Armed Forces of the Republic of Kazakhstan includes a modified version of the Soviet red star. File:Badge of the Mongolian Revolutionary Youth League (1921-1924).svg, Early

swastika The swastika (卐 or 卍) is an ancient religious and cultural symbol, predominantly in various Eurasian, as well as some African and American cultures, now also widely recognized for its appropriation by the Nazi Party and by neo-Nazis. I ...

and red star emblem of the Mongolian Revolutionary Youth League, used from 1921 to 1924. File:Roundel of the Soviet Union (1945–1991).svg, Soviet Military Air Force (1943–1991), Russian Military Air Force (1992–2010) and Belarusian Military Air Force and Air Defence Forces roundel File:Roundel of Russia.svg, Russian Military Air Force roundel Emblem of the Armed Forces of Belarus.svg, Symbol of the Ministry of Defense of the Republic of

File:Coat of arms military-of-kazakhstan.svg, The coat of arms of the Armed Forces of the Republic of Kazakhstan File:China Emblem PLA.svg, Emblem of the Chinese

People's Liberation Army The People's Liberation Army (PLA) is the principal military force of the China, People's Republic of China and the armed wing of the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). The PLA consists of five Military branch, service branches: the People's ...

By states with limited recognition

Transnistria Transnistria, officially the Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic (PMR), is an unrecognised breakaway state that is internationally recognised as a part of Moldova. Transnistria controls most of the narrow strip of land between the Dniester riv ...

and the

Luhansk People's Republic The Luhansk or Lugansk People's Republic (russian: Луга́нская Наро́дная Респу́блика, Luganskaya Narodnaya Respublika, ; abbreviated as LPR or LNR, rus, ЛНР) is a disputed entity created by Russian-backed ...

are proto-states located in

Eastern Europe Eastern Europe is a subregion of the European continent. As a largely ambiguous term, it has a wide range of geopolitical, geographical, ethnic, cultural, and socio-economic connotations. The vast majority of the region is covered by Russia, whi ...

. Due to their historical association with the Soviet Union, they have adopted socialist imagery – including the red star – into their flags and heraldry. File:Flag of Transnistria (state).svg ,

Flag of Transnistria Transnistria is a region in Eastern Europe that is under the effective control of the self-declared Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic but is recognized by the international community as an administrative unit of Moldova, the Administrative-Terr ...

File:COA LPR oct 2014.svg , Coat of Arms of the

By sports teams

Several sporting clubs from countries ruled by communist parties used the red star as a symbol and named themselves after it, such as the Serbian club

Red Star Belgrade Fudbalski klub Crvena zvezda ( sr-Cyrl, Фудбалски клуб Црвена звезда, lit=Red Star Football Club, ), commonly known as Red Star Belgrade in English-language media, is a Serbian professional football club based in Be ...

( sr , Црвена звезда / ), the East German , the Angolan Estrela Vermelha do Huambo, the Estrela Vermelha from

Beira, Mozambique Beira is the capital and largest city of Sofala Province, where the Pungwe River meets the Indian Ocean, in the central region of Mozambique. It is the fourth-largest city by population in Mozambique, after Maputo, Matola and Nampula. Beira had ...

or the Czechoslovak Rudá Hvězda Brno. Some sports teams from non-communist countries used it, such as French Red Star from Paris, Swiss club FC Red Star Zürich, English Seaham Red Star F.C., and even an American women's soccer club ( Chicago Red Stars—though in that case the star is based on the

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, ...

and not on the communist logo). The American soccer clubs

Sacramento Republic FC Sacramento Republic FC is an American professional soccer team based in Sacramento, California, that plays in the Western Conference of the USL Championship, the second level in US soccer. Co-founded by Warren Smith and Joe Wagoner in 2012, th ...

and D.C. United also use red stars in their logos, referencing the flags of

and the

District of Columbia ) , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle (Washington, D.C.), Logan Circle, Jefferson Memoria ...

respectively. The German rowing club Pirnaer Ruderverein 1872 began (and continues) to use red star since the 19th century. File:Grb-fk-crvena-zvezda.svg,

File:Fahne Pirnaer Ruderverein 1872.svg, Pirnaer Ruderverein 1872

Use by socialist groups

Armed revolutionary organizations

In 1970, the Red Army Faction, a West German militant group, used a red star paired with a Heckler & Koch MP5 in their highly recognizable insignia. In 1994, the red star was included in the flag of the armed

revolutionary A revolutionary is a person who either participates in, or advocates a revolution. The term ''revolutionary'' can also be used as an adjective, to refer to something that has a major, sudden impact on society or on some aspect of human endeavor. ...

Zapatista Army of National Liberation (EZLN) in

Chiapas Chiapas (; Tzotzil and Tzeltal: ''Chyapas'' ), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Chiapas ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Chiapas), is one of the states that make up the 32 federal entities of Mexico. It comprises 124 municipalities ...

Mexico Mexico (Spanish language, Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a List of sovereign states, country in the southern portion of North America. It is borders of Mexico, bordered to the north by the United States; to the so ...

. A number of communist parties in

Turkey Turkey ( tr, Türkiye ), officially the Republic of Türkiye ( tr, Türkiye Cumhuriyeti, links=no ), is a transcontinental country located mainly on the Anatolian Peninsula in Western Asia, with a small portion on the Balkan Peninsula ...

utilize the red star. Likewise, a number of Kurdish revolutionary organizations connected to the

Kurdistan Communities Union The Kurdistan Communities Union ( ku, Koma Civakên Kurdistanê, italic=yes, KCK) is a Kurdish political organization committed to implementing Abdullah Öcalan's ideology of democratic confederalism. Öcalan, Abdullahbr>Declaration of Democratic ...

utilize the red star in their iconography. Those include the flags of the

Kurdistan Workers' Party The Kurdistan Workers' Party or PKK is a Kurdish militant political organization and armed guerrilla movement, which historically operated throughout Kurdistan, but is now primarily based in the mountainous Kurdish-majority regions of south ...

and the battle flag pennants of the

People's Defence Forces The People's Defence Forces ( ku, Hêzên Parastina Gel, HPG) is the military wing of the group Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). During the 7th Congress of the PKK in January 2000, the HPG replaced the former military wing of the PKK, the People ...

and

Free Women's Units The Free Women's Units ( Kurdish: Yekîneyên Jinên Azad ên Star), shortened from the Kurdish name as YJA STAR, is the women's military wing of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK). YJA STAR operates according to jineology, the feminist philosop ...

Turkish Kurdistan Turkish Kurdistan or Northern Kurdistan () refers to the southeastern part of Turkey, where Kurds form the predominant ethnic group. The Kurdish Institute of Paris estimates that there are 20 million Kurds living in Turkey, the majority of th ...

, the People's Protection Units and

Women's Protection Units (YPJ) ar, وحدات حماية المرأة , image = File:YPJ Flag.svg , caption = Flag of the YPJ , dates = April 2013–present , commander1 = Nesrin ...

Syrian Kurdistan Syrian Kurdistan is a Kurdish-inhabited area in northern Syria surrounding three noncontiguous enclaves along the Turkish and Iraqi borders: Afrin in the northwest, Kobani in the north, and Jazira in the northeast. Syrian Kurdistan is often ...

, and the Eastern Kurdistan Units and Women's Defense Forces in Iranian Kurdistan. The

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

ian Islamist-Socialist militant opposition group the Mojahedin-e-Khalq uses the red star with the rifle, sickle and the map of Iran in the background. File:RAF-Logo.svg, Red Army Faction (West German militant group) (RAF) File:Flag of the EZLN.svg, Zapatista Army of National Liberation (EZLN) File:MLKP_Badge.svg, Marxist Leninist Communist Party (MLKP) File:Birleşik_Özgürlük_Güçleri_(United_Freedom_Forces)_logo.svg, United Freedom Forces (BÖG) File:International_Freedom_Battalion's_Badge.svg, International Freedom Battalion (IFB) File:IRPGF_Flag.svg,

International Revolutionary People's Guerrilla Forces The International Revolutionary People's Guerrilla Forces (IRPGF) was a collective of anarchist fighters from around the world. Its formation was announced on 31 March 2017. According to the group, their goals were to defend the social revolutio ...

(IRPGF) File:Flag of Koma Civakên Kurdistanê.svg,

(KCK) File:Flag_of_Kurdistan_Workers'_Party.svg,

(PKK) File:Flag_of_Hêzên_Parastina_Gel.svg,

(HPG) File:Flag_of_YJA-Star.svg,

(YJA-STAR) File:Flag_of_the_YPS_-_Vertical.svg,

Civil Protection Units The Civil Protection Units ( ku, Yekîneyên Parastina Sivîl, ; YPS), also known as Civil Defense Units, is a primarily Kurdish rebel group and main armed force in Turkish Kurdistan. The YPS was formed by the Kurdistan Workers Party (PKK) to be ...

(YPS) File:People's_Protection_Units_Flag.svg, People's Protection Units (YPG) File:YPJ_Flag.svg,

Women's Protection Units (YPJ) ar, وحدات حماية المرأة , image = File:YPJ Flag.svg , caption = Flag of the YPJ , dates = April 2013–present , commander1 = Nesrin ...

(YPJ) File:Flag_of_Hêzên_Rojhilata_Kurdistan.svg, Eastern Kurdistan Units (HRK) File:The_Official_Logo_Of_Komala.png,

Komalah Komala may refer to: * Komala (Pokémon), a Gen VII Normal-type ''Pokémon'' species introduced in ''Pokémon Sun and Moon'' * Komala Party of Iranian Kurdistan, a Kurdish political party led by Abdullah Mohtadi * Komalah (CPI), a Kurdish political ...

File:Flag of the People's Mujahedin of Iran.svg, People's Mujahedin of Iran (MEK) File:Flag of the Combat Organization of Anarcho-Communists.svg,

Combat Organization of Anarcho-Communists The Combat Organization of Anarcho-Communists (russian: Боевая организация анархо-коммунистов, Boyevaya organizatsiya anarkho-kommunistov; BOAK) is a militant Anarchist communism, anarcho-communist organization in ...

(BOAK) File:Flag of the Communist (Maoist) Party of Afghanistan.svg, Flag of the

Communist (Maoist) Party of Afghanistan The Communist (Maoist) Party of Afghanistan ( fa, حزب كمونيست (مائوئيست) افغانستان, ''Hezb-e Komunist (Ma'uist) Afghanistan''), previously known as the Communist Party of Afghanistan, is an underground communist party ...

Political parties and movements

The Brazilian leftist Worker's Party uses a red star as its symbol with the party acronym ( pt, Partido dos Trabalhadores – PT) inside.

Hugo Chávez Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías (; 28 July 1954 – 5 March 2013) was a Venezuelan politician who was president of Venezuela from 1999 until his death in 2013, except for a brief period in 2002. Chávez was also leader of the Fifth Republ ...

and his supporters in Venezuela have used the red star in numerous symbols and logos, and have included it in the logo of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela (PSUV). It was also used throughout 2007 as a symbol of the "5 Engines of the Bolivarian Socialist Revolution". It is also used by the militant South African

shack A shack (or, in some areas, shanty) is a type of small shelter or dwelling, often primitive or rudimentary in design and construction. Unlike huts, shacks are constructed by hand using available materials; however, whereas huts are usually r ...

-dweller's movement

Abahlali baseMjondolo Abahlali baseMjondolo (AbM, , in English: "the residents of the shacks") is a socialist shack dwellers' movement in South Africa which organises land occupations, builds communes

. Like in

Latin America Latin America or * french: Amérique Latine, link=no * ht, Amerik Latin, link=no * pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived ...

and Africa, several European socialist parties continue to use a star as a part of their logos. The red star is also featured prominently in the independence flags of various separatist movements in

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = '' Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , ...

. File:PT (Brazil) logo 2021.svg, Symbol of Workers' Party (Brazil) File:Vereinigte Sozialistische Partei Venezuelas logo.svg, Symbol of the United Socialist Party of Venezuela File:DYFI-flag.svg, Symbol of the Democratic Youth Federation of India File:Logo – Parti communiste français (2018).svg, Symbol of the

French Communist Party The French Communist Party (french: Parti communiste français, ''PCF'' ; ) is a political party in France which advocates the principles of communism. The PCF is a member of the Party of the European Left, and its MEPs sit in the European ...

File:Pce 2014.svg, Symbol of the Communist Party of Spain File:Portuguese Communist Party logo.svg, Symbol of the

Portuguese Communist Party The Portuguese Communist Party ( pt, Partido Comunista Português, , PCP) is a communist, Marxist–Leninist political party in Portugal based upon democratic centralism. The party also considers itself patriotic and internationalist,Portu ...

File:Socialistische Partij (nl 2006) Logo.svg, Symbol of the Dutch

Socialist Party Socialist Party is the name of many different political parties around the world. All of these parties claim to uphold some form of socialism, though they may have very different interpretations of what "socialism" means. Statistically, most of ...

File:PVDAPTB-2022-icon-profile01.png, Symbol of the Workers' Party of Belgium File:Logo of The Left (Slovenia).svg, Symbol of the Slovenian party The Left File:Potere al Popolo! - Logo (Italy, 2017).svg, Symbol of the Italian party Power to the People File:Rødt_logo_(bokmål).svg, Symbol of the Norwegian Red Party File:Uplogo2transparente-sinnombre.png, Symbol of the Ecuadorian party Popular Unity File:Party of Socialists of the Republic of Moldova logo.png, Symbol of the Party of Socialists of the Republic of Moldova File:Abahlali_baseMjondolo_Logo.jpg, Symbol of the

File:Bandera Andalucía Libre.svg, Flag of the

Andalusian Nation Andalusian Nation (in Spanish: ''Nación Andaluza''; NA) is an Andalusian nationalist, independentist and socialist political party in Andalusia Andalusia (, ; es, Andalucía ) is the southernmost autonomous community in Peninsular Spain ...

party File:Flag_of_Castile_(with_star).svg, Castilian nationalist flag File:Bandeira galega nacionalista.svg,

Galician nationalist Galician nationalism is a form of nationalism found mostly in Galicia, which asserts that Galicians are a nation and that promotes the cultural unity of Galicians. The political movement referred to as modern Galician nationalism was born at ...

flag Estreleira File:Estelada roja.svg, Catalan pro-independence flag Estelada Vermella

Uses without socialist symbolism

Some red stars adopted in emblems and flags have a significance that does not originally relate to socialism. Among these, the most well-known include the current state flag of California (echoing the Californian red star flag of 1836) and the flag of

(designed in 1869, officially adopted in 1902). The flag of the District of Columbia (designed in 1921, adopted in 1938) recalls George Washington's coat of arms.

DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. ( doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with the ...

Wonder Woman Wonder Woman is a superhero created by the American psychologist and writer William Moulton Marston (pen name: Charles Moulton), and artist Harry G. Peter. Marston's wife, Elizabeth, and their life partner, Olive Byrne, are credited as bein ...

also wears a 5 point red star headband with gold or yellow background.

Crescent moon and star

The crescent moon and star was a symbol used by the

Ottoman Empire The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University ...

. Various states with Ottoman history have thus adopted this symbol into their present-day flags. File:Flag of Tunisia.svg, Flag of Tunisia File:Flag of Algeria.svg, Flag of Algeria File:Flag of the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus.svg, Flag of Northern Cyprus File:Emblem of Turkey.svg,

Emblem of Turkey Turkey has no official national emblem, but the crescent and star ( tr, ay-yıldız, ) design from the national flag is in use as the ''de facto'' national emblem on Turkish passports, Turkish identity cards and at the diplomatic missions of ...

Assorted Flags and Coats of Arms

File:Flag of New Zealand.svg, Flag of New Zealand. File:Flag of Panama.svg,

Flag of Panama The flag of Panama was made by María de la Ossa de Amador and was officially adopted by the "ley 48 de 1925". The Panamanian flag day is celebrated on November 4, one day after Panamanian separation from Colombia, and is one of a series of ...

. File:Flag of Syria 2011, observed.svg, Flag of Syria (opposition group during the

civil war A civil war or intrastate war is a war between organized groups within the same state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government polici ...

). Was the independence flag first used in 1932. File:Flag of California.svg, Flag of California. File:California Lone Star Flag 1836.svg, California Lone Star Flag – 1836. File:Flag of Washington, D.C..svg, Flag of Washington, D.C. File:Bandeira do Acre.svg, Flag of Acre State, Brazil. File:Flag of Nagasaki, Nagasaki.svg, Flag of

Nagasaki is the capital and the largest city of Nagasaki Prefecture on the island of Kyushu in Japan. It became the sole port used for trade with the Portuguese and Dutch during the 16th through 19th centuries. The Hidden Christian Sites in the ...

city. File:Flag of Birmingham, Alabama.svg, Flag of

Birmingham, Alabama Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of the U.S. state of Alabama. Birmingham is the seat of Jefferson County, Alabama's most populous county. As of the 2021 census estimates, Birmingham had a population of 197,575, down 1% f ...

. File:Gharghur coa.svg, Arms of

Għargħur Għargħur ( mt, Ħal Għargħur) is a village in the Northern Region of Malta. It is situated on a hilltop between two valleys, and it has a population of 2,768 as of March 2014. Għargħur Festa In Malta, each village celebrates a different ...

, Malta. File:Escudo de Moríñigo.svg, Moríñigo coat of arms. File:Coat of Arms of Canton of Valais 3D.svg,

Valais Valais ( , , ; frp, Valês; german: Wallis ), more formally the Canton of Valais,; german: Kanton Wallis; in other official Swiss languages outside Valais: it, (Canton) Vallese ; rm, (Chantun) Vallais. is one of the 26 cantons forming the S ...

coat of arms File:Blason Crain.svg,

Crain, Yonne Crain () is a commune in the Yonne department in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté in north-central France. See also *Communes of the Yonne department The following is a list of the 423 communes of the Yonne department of France. The communes cooper ...

coat of arms. File:Blason ville fr Chauriat (Puy-de-Dôme).svg, Chauriat coat of arms.

Symbol of animal relief

The red star was adopted as the symbol of the International Red Star Alliance, a Geneva international treaty signed in 1914 with the purpose of bringing about international cooperation on behalf of sick and wounded war animals, while securing the neutral status of the personnel engaged in such work. Besides the International Alliance, national Red Star societies were also established. Regarding animal relief, the International Red Star Alliance had an analogous role of that of the

International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement The International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement is a humanitarian movement with approximately 97 million volunteers, members and staff worldwide. It was founded to protect human life and health, to ensure respect for all human beings, and ...

. To identify their neutral status, white brassards with red stars were worn by military veterinary personnel in

in a similar way medical personal worn brassards with red crosses. Following the War, the American Red Star turned to focus on domestic issues, including care for animals during disasters. The organization waxed and waned over the decades, and exists as the American Humane Association's Red Star Animal Emergency Services.

Red stars in labels and logos

File:SanPellegrinoBottle A.jpg, A San Pellegrino bottle File:Heineken Bottle.jpg, Label of a Heineken bottle File:AKO Crabmeat 003.jpg, Logo of AKO, product of the

File:Macy's logo.svg, Logo of

Macy's Macy's (originally R. H. Macy & Co.) is an American chain of high-end department stores founded in 1858 by Rowland Hussey Macy. It became a division of the Cincinnati-based Federated Department Stores in 1994, through which it is affiliated wi ...

department stores File:Texaco Logo.jpg,

logo, circa 1913 File:Caltex logo.png,

Caltex Caltex is a petroleum brand name of Chevron Corporation used in the Asia-Pacific region, the Middle East, and Southern Africa. It is also the brand name of non-Chevron petroleum companies in some countries (such as New Zealand, and previously A ...

logo, circa 1936 The red star was used by the

oil company in various forms from 1909 to 1981. Its overseas division

also used the red star until 1996. Red Star Yeast was produced for a century in Milwaukee, Baltimore, and Oakland before its subsumption as a brand by

Lesaffre Lesaffre is a French yeast manufacturer, and the world's largest producer. History The company was founded by Louis Lesaffre, the co-founder of Bonduelle, in the mid-19th century. One of its subsidiaries, Bio Springer, was founded by Baron Ma ...

. The brand of Erguotou in Beijing, a Chinese Baijiu, was named after "Red star" in 1949 to celebrate the founding of the

People's Republic of China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by population, most populous country, with a Population of China, population exceeding 1.4 billion, slig ...

's Red Star operating system takes its name from the communist red star.

Legal status

The red star and the

are regarded as occupation symbols as well as symbols of

totalitarianism Totalitarianism is a form of government and a political system that prohibits all opposition parties, outlaws individual and group opposition to the state and its claims, and exercises an extremely high if not complete degree of control and regu ...

and

state terror State terrorism refers to acts of terrorism which a state conducts against another state or against its own citizens.Martin, 2006: p. 111. Definition There is neither an academic nor an international legal consensus regarding the proper de ...

by several countries that were formerly either members of or occupied by the

. Accordingly,

Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...

Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...

and

Ukraine Ukraine ( uk, Україна, Ukraïna, ) is a country in Eastern Europe. It is the second-largest European country after Russia, which it borders to the east and northeast. Ukraine covers approximately . Prior to the ongoing Russian inva ...

have banned the symbol among others deemed to be symbols of totalitarian political ideologies and the Soviet Union or its republics. In

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

, the Parliament passed in 2009 a ban that referred generally to "fascist, communist or other totalitarian symbols", while not specifying any of them. Following a constitutional complaint, it has been abolished by the Constitutional Tribunal as contrary to articles in the Constitution of Poland guaranteeing the

freedom of speech Freedom of speech is a principle that supports the freedom of an individual or a community to articulate their opinions and ideas without fear of retaliation, censorship, or legal sanction. The right to freedom of expression has been recogni ...

. A similar law was considered in

Estonia Estonia, formally the Republic of Estonia, is a country by the Baltic Sea in Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by the Gulf of Finland across from Finland, to the west by the sea across from Sweden, to the south by Latvia, an ...

, but eventually failed in a parliamentary committee due to its conflict with freedoms guaranteed by the constitution of Estonia. The

European Court of Human Rights The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR or ECtHR), also known as the Strasbourg Court, is an international court of the Council of Europe which interprets the European Convention on Human Rights. The court hears applications alleging that ...

has ruled, in a similar manner, against the laws that ban political symbols, which were deemed to be in clear opposition with basic human rights, such as freedom of speech, confirmed again in 2011 in case ''Fratanolo v. Hungary''. The decision has been compared to the

legislation Legislation is the process or result of enrolling, enacting, or promulgating laws by a legislature, parliament, or analogous governing body. Before an item of legislation becomes law it may be known as a bill, and may be broadly referred to ...

concerning the symbols of

Nazism Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) i ...

, which continue to be banned in several

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are located primarily in Europe, Europe. The union has a total area of ...

member states, including

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwee ...

and

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. There have been calls for an EU-wide ban on both Soviet and Nazi symbols, notably by politicians from Lithuania, Estonia, the

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

, Hungary and

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the ...

. The European Commissioner for Justice, Franco Frattini, felt it "might not be appropriate" to include communist symbols in the context of discussions on xenophobia and anti-Semitism. In 2003, Hungarian politician Attila Vajnai was arrested, handcuffed and fined for wearing a red star on his lapel during a demonstration. He appealed his sentence to the

, which decided that the ban was a violation of the freedom of expression, calling the Hungarian ban "indiscriminate" and "too broad". In

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, and ...

, the red star was historically associated with the

resistance movement A resistance movement is an organized effort by some portion of the civil population of a country to withstand the legally established government or an occupying power and to disrupt civil order and stability. It may seek to achieve its objectives ...

that fought against fascist occupation in World War II, but was also later a state symbol of

Yugoslavia Yugoslavia (; sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Jugoslavija, Југославија ; sl, Jugoslavija ; mk, Југославија ;; rup, Iugoslavia; hu, Jugoszlávia; rue, label= Pannonian Rusyn, Югославия, translit=Juhoslavij ...

during the dictatorship of

Josip Broz Tito Josip Broz ( sh-Cyrl, Јосип Броз, ; 7 May 1892 – 4 May 1980), commonly known as Tito (; sh-Cyrl, Тито, links=no, ), was a Yugoslav communist revolutionary and statesman, serving in various positions from 1943 until his death ...

. On 21 March 2011, Slovenia issued a two-euro commemorative coin to mark the 100th anniversary of the birth of Franc Rozman, a partisan commander, featuring a large star that represented a red star. This led to criticism from the Slovenian democratic parties without a communist history.

Non five-pointed red stars

Emblems and flags where the red stars displayed are not five-pointed are much rarer. These include the following: File:Flag of the International Brigades.svg, Three-pointed red star in the flag of the

International Brigades The International Brigades ( es, Brigadas Internacionales) were military units set up by the Communist International to assist the Popular Front government of the Second Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil War. The organization existed ...

. File:Flag of Aruba.svg, Four-pointed red star in the

flag of Aruba Aruba's national flag was adopted on 18 March 1976. The design consists of a field of light blue (called " United Nations Blue"), two narrow parallel horizontal yellow ("Bunting Yellow") stripes in the bottom half, and a four-pointed white-fimbri ...

. File:Flag of Burundi.svg, Six-pointed red stars outlined in green in the flag of Burundi. File:Flag of Chicago, Illinois.svg, Six-pointed red stars in the

. File:Naval Ensign of Singapore.svg, Eight-pointed red star in the Naval Ensign of

Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...

. File:Magen David Adom.svg, Emblem of Magen David Adom, the Israeli national aid society.

References

External links