The canton on Malaysia’s national flag is blue.
A canton is the flag’s upper corner nearest the flagpole. Malaysia’s blue canton contains a yellow crescent and a 14-point star, known as the Bintang Persekutuan, or Federal Star. The blue field symbolizes the unity of the Malaysian people.
The flag is called Jalur Gemilang, meaning “Stripes of Glory.” Its 14 alternating red and white stripes represent the equal status of Malaysia’s 13 states and the federal government. The 14 points of the star express the unity of those entities. The crescent represents Islam, Malaysia’s official religion, while yellow is the royal color of the Malay rulers.
The design began as the flag of the Federation of Malaya. It was first raised on 26 May 1950, then became the national flag when Malaya gained independence on 31 August 1957. After Malaysia was formed in 1963, the number of stripes and star points was updated from 11 to 14. A common mistake is to call the canton dark blue or navy as a separate symbol; the key quiz answer is its blue field, which surrounds the yellow crescent and star.