# Symbolism of the five-pointed red star to modern-day Russians **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [January 13, 2011, 10:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbolism-of-the-five-pointed-red-star-to-modern-day-russians/567439 "2011-01-13T10:11:44Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![MostlyClueless](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba9def/32.png) [@MostlyClueless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MostlyClueless)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 10:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbolism-of-the-five-pointed-red-star-to-modern-day-russians/567439/1 "2011-01-13T10:11:44Z")
Bit of a backstory; I’m a Lego enthusiast, and a lot of what I build are motorized offroad vehicles. Just for fun, I’ve made up a fictional company that supposedly builds these things in real life: [Stilzkin or Стилзкин](http://www.flickr.com/search/?q=stilzkin&w=28134808%40N02&s=int) in Cyrillic. As it’s a fictional company, it needs a logo. So I made one: [![](https://brickshelf.com/gallery/mahjqa/random/newrandom/stilzkin.gif) ](https://brickshelf.com/gallery/mahjqa/random/newrandom/stilzkin.gif) As a basis I used a red, five-pointed star because, you know, it looks really Russian and stuff. Of course, only later on I realised that the red star symbolises communism and may very well remind people of the horrors of the previous regime. So, how acceptable is the symbol in Russia these days? I fear I might be driving around with the equivalent of a swastika on the hood. ---
**Author:** ![groman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/73ab20/32.png) [@groman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/groman)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 3:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbolism-of-the-five-pointed-red-star-to-modern-day-russians/567439/2 "2011-01-13T15:37:34Z")
It wouldn’t be offensive to me, simply because your fictional company might be communist, and that, in itself, is not offensive. A five-pointed red star is not, in itself, a symbol of communism either. However, you would have trouble making something use a five-pointed red star AND having any sort of affiliation with Russia without implying something about communism. On the other hand, Heineken sells fairly well in Russia. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 4:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbolism-of-the-five-pointed-red-star-to-modern-day-russians/567439/3 "2011-01-13T16:28:40Z")
A Russian company using a five-pointed red star nowadays, with its name in Cyrillic beneath it, is going to send the strong signal that it is either communist, or was established in the Soviet era and retained the symbol even after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Although there are Russian conservatives now who are rather wistful for the glory days of the Soviet empire (and some of them still work in the Kremlin), I think you might needlessly alienate some of your fictional company’s potential customers who remember the USSR for genocide, invading its neighbors, censorship, gulags, the KGB, etc. As it happens, my Congresswoman a few years ago used a very Soviet-looking, slightly oblique red star on her reelection campaign’s lawn signs. Didn’t seem to hurt her at all politically - she was easily reelected. Context is all. ---
**Author:** ![robert\_columbia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e79b87/32.png) [@robert\_columbia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/robert_columbia)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 5:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbolism-of-the-five-pointed-red-star-to-modern-day-russians/567439/4 "2011-01-13T17:08:43Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > A Russian company using a five-pointed red star nowadays, with its name in Cyrillic beneath it, is going to send the strong signal that it is either communist, or was established in the Soviet era and retained the symbol even after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Although there are Russian conservatives now who are rather wistful for the glory days of the Soviet empire (and some of them still work in the Kremlin), I think you might needlessly alienate some of your fictional company’s potential customers who remember the USSR for genocide, invading its neighbors, censorship, gulags, the KGB, etc. > > As it happens, my Congresswoman a few years ago used a very Soviet-looking, slightly oblique red star on her reelection campaign’s lawn signs. Didn’t seem to hurt her at all politically - she was easily reelected. Context is all. Aeroflot, I believe, has retained their old hammer and sickle based logo due to recognition. ---
**Author:** ![Mops](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mops/32/16494_2.png) [@Mops](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mops)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 5:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbolism-of-the-five-pointed-red-star-to-modern-day-russians/567439/5 "2011-01-13T17:22:04Z")
> [@groman](#): > > … However, you would have trouble making something use a five-pointed red star AND having any sort of affiliation with Russia without implying something about communism. … I’d disagree - the Communist Party is in the opposition but the Kremlin towers still sport their red stars [http://tours.kremlin.ru](http://tours.kremlin.ru) , and the Russian Air Force roundel is the Soviet Air Force roundel modified with a narrow blue stripe around the red star. So the mental association might be with the Russian state, rather than with Communism. ---
**Author:** ![mlees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@mlees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mlees)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbolism-of-the-five-pointed-red-star-to-modern-day-russians/567439/6 "2011-01-13T19:55:48Z")
For what it’s worth, the Russian Air Force still uses a red star for it’s roundel. > **[File:Roundel of Russia.svg](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Russian_Air_Force_roundel_-_2010.svg)** > > Original file ‎(SVG file, nominally 629 × 598 pixels, file size: 384 bytes) > Previous version had been created with Inkscape (4024 bytes)  r  now 9.44% of previous size > Imagery covered may include the hammer and sickleen, red star, emblems/insignias, flags or images of leaders. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbolism-of-the-five-pointed-red-star-to-modern-day-russians/567439/7 "2011-01-13T21:41:18Z")
Is there an echo in here? ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 9:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbolism-of-the-five-pointed-red-star-to-modern-day-russians/567439/8 "2011-01-13T21:51:15Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > As it happens, my Congresswoman a few years ago used a very Soviet-looking, slightly oblique red star on her reelection campaign’s lawn signs. Didn’t seem to hurt her at all politically - she was easily reelected. Context is all. It does amuse me that, in the U.S., over the past decade or so, Republicans have almost universally adopted red as their signature color (undoubtedly driven, in part, by the news networks all using red to identify Republican wins on their election maps). 50 or 60 years ago, Republicans would have run screaming away from that association. 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Saint\_Cad](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/saint_cad/32/18907_2.png) [@Saint\_Cad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Saint_Cad)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2011, 12:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbolism-of-the-five-pointed-red-star-to-modern-day-russians/567439/9 "2011-01-14T00:31:19Z")
California uses a red star in its flag and look at all the Commies there. Note: the red star in California’s is 70 years before the rise of Bolshevism ---
**Author:** ![code\_grey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f4b2a3/32.png) [@code\_grey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/code_grey)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2011, 12:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbolism-of-the-five-pointed-red-star-to-modern-day-russians/567439/10 "2011-01-14T00:36:13Z")
red star does not just represent the “horrors” to the Russians - it represents the Soviet era, full stop. Which era had its horrors as well as neutral or pleasant aspects. E.g. the last 30 years of Soviet history were a time of decent living standards, full employment and some national pride while horrors were few for the majority of law-abiding and non-boat-rocking citizens. If anything, I think that a major negative association would be with the current Communists (at least for people who don’t like them) as opposed to the historical Soviet Union. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2011, 3:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbolism-of-the-five-pointed-red-star-to-modern-day-russians/567439/11 "2011-01-14T03:09:04Z")
> [@kenobi\_65](#): > > It does amuse me that, in the U.S., over the past decade or so, Republicans have almost universally adopted red as their signature color (undoubtedly driven, in part, by the news networks all using red to identify Republican wins on their election maps). 50 or 60 years ago, Republicans would have run screaming away from that association. 😃 As it happens, she was a Democrat, but I take your meaning. ---
**Author:** ![Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ccd318/32.png) [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_in_Qatar)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2011, 6:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbolism-of-the-five-pointed-red-star-to-modern-day-russians/567439/12 "2011-01-14T06:28:08Z")
Niagara (?) Spray Starch Woolworth’s Department Stores Macy’s Heineken beer ---
**Author:** ![Nametag](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nametag/32/406_2.png) [@Nametag](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nametag)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2011, 10:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbolism-of-the-five-pointed-red-star-to-modern-day-russians/567439/13 "2011-01-14T10:33:15Z")
> [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](#): > > Niagara (?) Spray Starch > Woolworth’s Department Stores > Macy’s > Heineken beer I don’t know about the others, but R.H. Macy had a red star tattooed on his hand around 1840, when he worked on a whaling ship. ---
**Author:** ![Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ccd318/32.png) [@Paul\_in\_Qatar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Paul_in_Qatar)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2011, 4:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbolism-of-the-five-pointed-red-star-to-modern-day-russians/567439/14 "2011-01-14T16:25:54Z")
I think (upon reflection and prayer) it was Faultless Spray Starch. ---
**Author:** ![lazybratsche](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/ba8739/32.png) [@lazybratsche](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lazybratsche)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2011, 4:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbolism-of-the-five-pointed-red-star-to-modern-day-russians/567439/15 "2011-01-14T16:47:51Z")
Now that you have some GQ answers, let me say that I’ve seen some of your creations here and there on the internet and I’m seriously impressed by your lego engineering. Anybody who’s interested in that sort of thing should browse through the flickr gallery linked in the OP. ---
**Author:** ![mlees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ba8739/32.png) [@mlees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mlees)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2011, 6:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/symbolism-of-the-five-pointed-red-star-to-modern-day-russians/567439/16 "2011-01-14T18:38:01Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > Is there an echo in here? :smack: