The flag of Minnesota is the state flag of the U.S. state of Minnesota. Its design features a light blue field with a shape on the hoist representing the shape of Minnesota, with a star representing the North Star.
The original flag of Minnesota which simply featured a stylized seal on a background (white one side, blue other side) was adopted in 1893, in advance of the state's mounting an exhibition at the 1893 Chicago World's Fair. It was significantly revised in 1957 (removing the white side and modifying the style of the seal) and received a minor update in 1983 (the seal was redrawn, and the color field was lightened from a royal blue to a medium blue).
Historical Flags[]
Flag of Minnesota, 1893ā1957 (obverse).
Flag of Minnesota, 1893ā1957 (reverse).
Flag of Minnesota, 1957ā1983.
Flag of Minesota, 1983-2024
Flag of Minnesota, 2024-present.
Criticism and calls for redesign[]
The previous Minnesota flag has been widely criticised for decades. Flag experts have detracted the flag's design for being unmemorable, indistinguishable from afar, and similar to many state flags. On numerous occasions over a span of several decades, bills have been introduced in the Minnesota Legislature to establish a legislative task force for studying changes to the flag.
A design eschewing the state seal was considered in 1957.
The "North Star Flag" (1989)
The North Star Flag[]
The North Star Flag design was created in 1989 by Lee Herold and Reverend William Becker. Herold presented the proposal to state legislators in 1989, supported by Republican representative Gil Gutknecht.
2023 redesign commission[]
On March 22, 2022, two Democratic members of the Minnesota House of Representatives, Mike Freiberg and Peter Fischer, introduced a bill to redesign the state's flag and seal. Fischer began supporting a flag redesign in 2017 after a group of high school students raised the issue to him. The law outlines specific guidelines for the redesign, stipulating that the new designs "must accurately and respectfully reflect Minnesota's shared history, resources, and diverse cultural communities," and that symbols representing only a single community or person are prohibited.
Finalists selected by the commission[]
Flag chosen on December 19, created by modifying F1953.
F1953 ā Designed by Andrew Prekker, selected as the basis of the final design on December 15.
F2100 ā Designed by John Muller, eliminated on December 15.
F944 ā The "Mirror of the Sky Flag", designed by Todd and Peter Pitman, eliminated on December 15.
F29 ā The "L'Ćtoile du Nord Flag", designed by Brandon Hundt, eliminated on December 13.
F1154 ā Designed by Ross Bruggink, eliminated on December 13.
F1435 ā Designed by Sarah Agaton Howes, eliminated on December 13.
Proposals for a New Flag of Minnesota[]
MN Flag Proposal "Becker and Herold North Star Flag" [1]
MN Flag Proposal "Jack Expo"
The True North Star by Jon C. Good - AGoodProduction Oct 2016 Inspired by a snowflake, a quilt, a scandinavian sweater and our State Capitol Star on the Rotunda floor.
MN Flag Proposal: Blue=rivers/lakes (current flag shade of blue). Found in state name "water" & "sky-tinted". Center "snowflake" formed by 8 M's (like capitol rotunda). Green=trees, growth and prosperity. White=snow. Gold=the North Star (our nickname). Jon C. Good & Alan Hardy Sept 2022
Flag Proposal "Tibbetts #1"
Flag Proposal "Tibbetts #2"
MN Flag Proposal "rob64"
MN Flag Proposal "Deepseadivermann"
MN Flag Proposal "Marcel Stratton"
MN Flag Proposal "Steve Lovelace"
Minnesota flag proposal by Steve Lovelace, modified by HansLN. Sep 2015. (details)
Minnesota flag proposal by HansLN. Based on Steve Lovelace's flag. Aug 2016. (details)
665 designs in this contest and 290 votes taken in 2 days. Winner is by Jon Good as per the copy on this page.
Becker and Herold Flag with Jon C Good Real North Star, Scandinavian Snowflake
MN Flag Proposal "JD Makepeace"
MN Flag Proposal "RRJ"
MN Flag Proposal "jakeasy"
MN Flag Proposal "FederalRepublic"
Lāetoile du Nord-The North Star by Newresnow
MN Flag Proposal by Kermitdefrog
MN Flag Proposal "BigRed618"
Minnesota State Flag Symplistic Proposal. āMinneā means water, which flows throughout the state ā this is the blue. āStar of the Northā is the state motto, and twin cities sit on either side of the main star. By Ed Mitchell. 2013.
Updated Minnesota state flag proposal. Minnesota is nicknamed the āNorth Star Stateā and is also known as āLand of 10,000 Lakes.ā The North Star is sitting in the middle of a blue circle which represents the lakes. By Ed Mitchell. 2016.
MN flag proposal by 5thEye
"Thousand Lakes" flag - Minnesota proposal by James Dignan, October 2015
Design places the north Star high over the "seal" which displays a little like the North Star Flag - the lower wave in red stands for the removed MINNESOTA text. The purple in the fly is for the states surrigate color. Design Rotten Ali.
Updates to designs by Steve Lovelace and Hans. White cross is the Nordic cross reflecting the stateās Scandinavian heritage. The three light blue sections represent (in clockwise order) Lake Superior, the Mississippi River, and the St. Croix River. The gold star is the North Star. The purple canton represents the purple northern night sky as well as the cultural heritage of the state. Posted by Preston Knapp [2]
Proposal "simplified" for a flag for Minnesota, reusing the colors and overall design of the old flag, but leaving out all the details. By Qaz Dec 2019 (details)
The Minnesota North Star Cross is a Nordic Cross flag as a homage to the many Nordic people who settled the state. The background is a dark blue color to symbolize the night sky and is the same blue color as in the US flag. The green represents the fertile land while the white cross in the middle the Minnesota and Mississippi rivers. The Star of the North is placed prominently in the top left corner.