The flag of the Cherokee Nation consists of an orange field with the Great Seal of the Cherokee Nation in the center. The seal is surrounded by seven yellow stars with seven points. Each of these stars points toward the star in the center of the seal. The seven pointed stars represent the seven clans of the Cherokee

Cherokee

The Cherokee are a Native American people historically settled in the Southeastern United States . Linguistically, they are part of the Iroquoian language family...

, as well as other symbolisms of the number seven in Cherokee tradition. In 1989 an additional star was added to the upper right hand corner of the flag. It is black, and represents the light that went out with the deaths of those who perished on the Trail of Tears

Trail of Tears

The Trail of Tears is a name given to the forced relocation and movement of Native American nations from southeastern parts of the United States following the Indian Removal Act of 1830...

. The flag has a green and black rope edging.

The Peace Flag

The earliest Cherokee flag is believed to be the Cherokee Peace Flag, which consists of a white field, with seven red stars, with seven points, arranged in the form of the Big Dipper

Big Dipper

The Plough, also known as the Big Dipper or the Saptarishi , is an asterism of seven stars that has been recognized as a distinct grouping in many cultures from time immemorial...

 asterism

Asterism (astronomy)

In astronomy, an asterism is a pattern of stars recognized on Earth's night sky. It may form part of an official constellation, or be composed of stars from more than one. Like constellations, asterisms are in most cases composed of stars which, while they are visible in the same general direction,...

. The Cherokee War Flag was the same as the Peace Flag, but with the colors inverted.

Confederate Flags

Cherokee Confederate troops, in the 1860s as part of the Indian cavalry

Indian cavalry

Indian cavalry is the name collectively given to the Midwest and Eastern American Indians who fought during the American Civil War, most of them on horseback and for the South.-Cherokee Nation:...

 carried battle flags adapted from the first Confederate Flag. The most famous of these is the Cherokee Braves Flag, which was captured at the Battle of Locust Grove

Locust Grove, Oklahoma

Locust Grove is a town in Mayes County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 1,423 at the 2010 census compared to 1,366 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Locust Grove is located at ....

. It consists of the original Stars and Bars

Stars and bars

Stars and bars may refer to* The first official flag of the Confederate States of America* A graphical method used to derive the formula for multiset coefficients and other combinatorial theorems* A 1988 film starring Daniel Day-Lewis...

, with five red stars in the center of the white stars. These red stars represented the Five Civilized Tribes

Five Civilized Tribes

The Five Civilized Tribes were the five Native American nations—the Cherokee, Chickasaw, Choctaw, Creek, and Seminole—that were considered civilized by Anglo-European settlers during the colonial and early federal period because they adopted many of the colonists' customs and had generally good...

, who were aligned with the Confederacy

Confederate States of America

The Confederate States of America was a government set up from 1861 to 1865 by 11 Southern slave states of the United States of America that had declared their secession from the U.S...

. The center red star represented the Cherokee Nation.