1860[]
National Flag
Union Jack.
The flag of the United States of America consists of 13 equal horizontal stripes of red (top and bottom) alternating with white, with a blue rectangle in the canton bearing 19 small, silver, five-pointed stars arranged in a circular design by placing rows of three, four and five, and two more rows of four and three stars. The 19 stars on the flag represent the 19 U.S. states and the 13 stripes represent the original Thirteen Colonies that rebelled against the British crown and became the first states in the Union. States are represented collectively; there is no meaning to any particular star or stripe.
Because of its symbolism, the starred blue canton is called the "union." This part of the national flag can stand alone as a maritime flag called the Union Jack (no relation to the Union Flag of the United Kingdom to which this term more commonly refers) which serves as the nation's navy jack.