What does a crescent moon with a star symbolize?

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Today, the crescent moon and star symbol is universally recognized as a symbol of Islam, and for that reason, it appears on the flag of many countries where Islam is a state religion or which has a largely Muslim population. Currently 8 countries have this symbol on their national flags, and all of them are Muslim-majority.

As you can see, the exact details of the moon and star can vary quite a bit. The moon on Mauritania’s flag has points facing upwards, while most of the others face right; Malaysia’s star has 14 points and Azerbaijan’s has 8, while the others have 5; and Tunisia and Algeria have the star placed inside the moon.
Four other Muslim-majority countries also have a flag that contains a crescent moon symbol, but a different number of stars. These are as below:

There are numerous other current and former entities with a large Muslim population that use the crescent and star in their flag to represent Islam (e.g. Western Sahara, Azad Kashmir, Aceh State, Khanate of Khiva, etc.)
However, the crescent and star symbol has not always been associated with Islam. Before the founding of that religion, the crescent symbol existed in ancient Greece, where it was associated with various moon goddesses. It was later adopted by the Byzantines, who used it to represent the goddess Artemis. When Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire became Christian in 330 CE, an 8-pointed star, which is a common symbol of the Virgin Mary, was added to the crescent to create the city flag.

In 1453, Constantinople fell to the Ottoman Turks. In 1844, the Ottoman Empire adopted the crescent and star flag, most likely inspired by the Byzantines. As the Ottoman Empire grew in strength and became the most powerful Muslim empire in the world, its symbols began to represent Islam itself. By the time the Empire fell in 1922, the star and crescent had become synonymous with the religion.
There are still, however, a few flags in the world that contain a star and crescent, that are not associated with Islam. Here are some examples:
• City of Portsmouth, UK

The city of Portsmouth was granted a Royal Charter in 1194 by King Richard I. He also gave it the coat of arms of the Byzantine governor of Cyprus, whom he had defeated in the Third Crusade. That coat of arms was based on the Byzantine flag, described above.
• City of Oelde, Germany

The symbol on this flag represents the Biblical quote from John 3:30 - “He must increase, but I must decrease,” spoken by John the Baptist about Jesus. Here, the waning crescent moon stands for John, and the bright star stands for Jesus.
• City of Mińsk Mazowiecki, Poland

Various Polish cities have flags that are based on the coats of arms of the Leliwa family - one of various noble families dating back to the Kingdom of Poland in the 14th Century. Other cities with similar coats of arms are Przeworsk, Tarnobrzeg, and Tarnow.

• City of Niederglatt, Switzerland

A number of cities that were historically part of the territory of the bailiwick of Neuamt within Zürich in the Old Swiss Confederacy, use modified versions of the coat of arms of Neuamt in their flags.

The downward facing crescent has been adopted as a moon with a human face by cities such as Neerach, Windlach, and Stadel. Some cities such as Niederglatt and Oberglatt added one or more stars to the flag.

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