In the United States, cities, counties, states, military units, businesses, churches, scout organizations, labor groups, political parties, private yachtsmen, and many others have distinctive flags. The histories of the flags of Hawaii, Texas, and South Carolina would require entire books to recount.

Surprisingly, the origins of the national flag, the Stars and Stripes, are somewhat obscure. The flag was officially adopted on June 14, 1777, when the Continental Congress resolved that "the Flag of the united states be 13 stripes alternate red and white, that the Union be 13 stars white in a blue field representing a new constellation." Its immediate predecessor, the Continental Colors, had consisted of 13 horizontal red and white stripes for the 13 colonies represented in the Continental Congress, with the British Union Jack as a canton to indicate that the rebels were demanding the historic rights of British citizens. How and why stars were chosen to replace the Union Jack is not known. Stars were uncommon in flags in that era, although the American example has since made them popular.

The colors red, white, and blue were clearly derived from British sources; many English flags had red and white stripes. Americans at the time of the national centennial in 1876 warmed to the popular story about the young seamstress Betsy ROSS, who supposedly sewed the first flag for George Washington. Although according to historical records she did indeed make flags, no evidence indicates that she was involved in making or designing the first Stars and Stripes, and the validity of the traditional story is doubtful.

After Vermont and Kentucky joined the Union, 2 stars and 2 stripes were added (1795) to the flag. Such a 15-star, 15-stripe flag--now preserved in the Smithsonian Institution--inspired Francis Scott KEY to write "The Star- Spangled Banner." The design of the flag was changed again in 1818, when the decision was made to keep the 13 stripes permanently and add stars to indicate the current number of states in the Union.

Altogether the Stars and Stripes has been through 27 versions, the most recent introduced on July 4, 1960, when Hawaii was admitted to statehood. Until 1912 no official pattern existed for the arrangement of the stars. Flags of the 19th century varied greatly in their star patterns, in the number of points on the stars, in the shades of red and blue, in the width- to-length ratio of the flag, and in other details. Design and color were first standardized in the 20th century.

Traditionally flags have been respected, and rules have governed their display. During the 20th century, however, flag etiquette has received particular attention, especially in the United States and other countries where the flag is a primary focus of patriotism. In the United States the anniversary of the flag's adoption (June 14) has been celebrated as Flag Day since 1916; it is a legal holiday in Pennsylvania.

In 1942 the U.S. Congress adopted a Flag Code, subsequently amended, setting forth uniform procedures for displaying the flag in a respectful manner. The two most important guides are tradition and common sense. For example, the U.S. flag had traditionally been flown only during daytime, but since the activities of the nation go on 24 hours a day, and because raising and lowering the flag every day is expensive, in recent years it has become common to fly the flag at night. Courtesy and common sense suggest that a flag should be spotlighted at night, which the revised code recommends. Likewise, because of improved manufacturing techniques, flags can now withstand moisture and need not be lowered in harsh weather.

In the United States when the U.S. flag is hoisted with other flags, it should take precedence; the way in which this status is achieved depends on the circumstances. For example, international custom dictates that the flag of one nation should not be displayed above that of another nation; nor should the flag of one nation be larger than that of another when they are raised together. When the flag of the United States is displayed with other national flags within the United States, therefore, its precedence is established by its being placed at the head of the line of flags or to its own extreme right. It is also placed to the right when flown with flags of states, military officers, and companies, but then it may also be larger and flown higher. The Flag Code includes rules for displaying the flag at half staff to mourn the dead and for displaying the flag on special holidays, in parades, with the flag of the United Nations, in meeting halls, and in other similar circumstances. The following is the official salute to the flag: "I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one Nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."

A number of legal battles have been waged over the so-called desecration of the flag. For example, members of the Jehovah's Witness religious sect refuse on principle to salute the flag, and they have been prosecuted for it . Political protesters, such as those opposed to the Vietnam War in the 1960s, have tried to dramatize their cause by burning the flag or otherwise defacing it. In the late 1980s the issue found its way to the Supreme Court , which ruled that a protester, who had burned the flag at the 1988 Republic an National Convention, was merely expressing free speech. The Court later ruled that a congressional law protecting the flag from desecration was unconstitutional.

The symbolism of flags has caused emotions to run high in other countries. Canadians debated for several decades whether the nation should have a distinctive flag and, if so, what its design should be. The debate subsided only gradually after the present national flag was adopted in 1965. A similar discussion took place in South Africa in the 1920s. In South Vietnam in the early 1960s, the refusal of President Ngo Dinh Diem to allow the display of Buddhist flags was a political decision that contributed to his overthrow and assassination. Elsewhere flags have been potent emblems of revolutionary movements and of authoritarian political parties.

Their potential for expressing deep-felt emotions in a condensed but obvious form, and with great public visibility, has made flags an important medium of political communication in the 20th century.

Bibliography: Barraclough, E. M., Flags of the World, rev. ed. (1982); Flag Research Center, The Flag Bulletin (bimonthly); Furlong, William R., and McCandless, Byron, So Proudly We Hail: The History of the United States Flag (1981); Mastai, Boleslaw and Marie Louis d'Otrange, The Stars and Stripes (1973); Quaife, Milo M., The History of the United States Flag (1961); Shearer, B.F. and B.S., State Names, Seals, Flags, and Symbols (1987); Smith, Whitney, The Flag Book of the United States (1976) , Flags through the Ages and across the World (1975), and Guide to the Flags of the World (1982).