How many stars does the American flag have?

The American flag has 50 stars, each representing one of the 50 states in the United States. The stars are arranged in nine rows of alternating five and six stars. This design was officially adopted on July 4, 1960, after Hawaii became the 50th state. The stars symbolize unity among the states and are an important part of the flag's representation of the nation.

While the other options reference numbers of stars that might have been relevant at different points in history—such as 13 stars representing the original colonies or 48 stars representing the states before Alaska and Hawaii joined the Union—they do not accurately reflect the current official count of states represented on the flag today. Understanding the significance of the 50 stars helps illustrate the current structure of the United States as a union of states.