Minnesota

The flag of Minnesota is a light blue background with a dark blue K-shaped figure on the hoist, bearing a white eight-pointed star.

Symbolism[]

The light blue represents the state's abundant waters, the dark blue represents the night sky, and the eight-pointed star represents the North Star, using a design prominently featured at the Minnesota State Capitol.

Former flag[]

The former flag of Minnesota consisted of a blue background with the former state seal in the center of the flag. It was adopted on August 2, 1983, designed by Amelia Hyde Center, and had proportions of 3:5.

Symbolism[]

The Minnesota state seal represents Minnesota. The blue background represents the many Minnesotan lakes.

The motto, L'Etoile du Nord, means "north star" in French. This resembles the fact that Minnesota was a part of the French Louisiana.

Flag redesign[]

In May 2023, the Minnesota Legislature authorized the creation of the Emblems Redesign Commission to redesign the state flag and seal. The authorization was done as part of the annual state budget. The new commission is charged with developing a new design for both the flag and seal, with the revised designs to be submitted to the Legislature for approval by January 1, 2024. The flag was officially adopted on May 11, 2024.

Under guidelines set out in the law, "the designs must accurately and respectfully reflect Minnesota's shared history, resources, and diverse cultural communities. Symbols, emblems, or likenesses that represent only a single community or person, regardless of whether real or stylized, may not be included in a design."

On November 8, 2023, the State Emblems Redesign Commission unveiled the full list of 2,123 flag submissions^[1] and 398 seal submissions^[2].

On November 21, 2023, it was narrowed down to six finalist state flag designs and five finalist state seal designs.^[3]

On December 12, 2023, it was narrowed down again to three finalist state flag designs, those being Designs F944, F1953, and F2100.^[4]

On December 15, 2023, Design F1953 was chosen as the finalist.^[5]

On December 19, 2023, the Commission finalized the design by removing the stripes and altering the shape of the star, making the finalized design a light blue background with a dark blue simplified shape of the state on the hoist and a white eight-pointed star in the center of the shape.^[6]

Below are the original six finalist designs that were selected by the State Emblems Redesign Commission.