State Flag

The state flag was adopted on May 11, 2024.

The Minnesota State Flag represents many of the state’s best-known traits including its many lakes and rivers and the North Star.

On its left side, the flag contains a dark blue background with a white, 8-point star. One of the points of the star points north, representing the state’s motto “L’étoile du Nord.” The 8-point star mirrors the one on floor of the Rotunda of the Minnesota State Capitol, which features inlaid African marble with a brass outline of the 8-point star as designed by Cass Gilbert. From an angle the 8-point star also creates the illusion of four-letter Ms.

The dark background is a stylized shape of the outline of the State of Minnesota, representing the land of Minnesota.

The remainder of the flag is a solid, bright blue, representing water. Minnesota is the land of 10,000 lakes, the home of the Headwaters of the Mississippi River, Lake Superior, and the start of the Great Lakes Basin.

In 2023, the Minnesota Legislature created a State Emblem Redesign Commission to reimagine the state’s seal and flag. The commission received 2,128 flag design submissions from Minnesotans. From these submissions, the commission chose one finalist for a flag concept created by Andrew Prekker. The concept design was altered to replace a stylized north star with the Minnesota star featuring eight points and removing three bars on the right side. The historic flag was retired, and the new flag was adopted on May 11, 2024.

View a copy of the State Emblem Redesign Commission’s final report to the Office of the Governor and the Minnesota Legislature.

The Minnesota Secretary of State is the keeper of the official photo the state flag. (Minnesota Statutes 2023 section 1.141) The official photo has not yet been selected.

Available for download:

State Symbols