Official status in Greece since February 1993, appears on the (unofficial)
flag of Greek Macedonia. The symbol was introduced in Greece as popular imagery from the mid-1980s, and after 1991, increasingly so in many new contexts in Greece. The Vergina Sun was widely adopted by
Greek Macedonians as a symbol of
Greek Macedonia. The Vergina Sun on a blue background became commonly used as an official emblem of the three administrative regions, the prefectures and the municipalities of Greek Macedonia. It was used in official contexts on the
reverse of the Greek 100
drachmas coin of 1990–2001, The symbol is placed on the bottom left corner of the Greek driving license, and on Greek
passports, it forms the
watermark image across pages 22 and 23. It is the emblem of the 3rd Greek Squadron of Control and Warning Station, of Greek
Units for the Reinstatement of Order, the Greek
First Army, the 193 Squadron of Multiple Missile Launchers and the 34th Mechanized Infantry Brigade. In February 1993 the Greek parliament passed a bill designating the Vergina Sun as an official Greek national symbol. In July 1995, Greece lodged a claim for trademark protection of the Vergina Sun as an official state emblem under
Article 6ter of the
Paris Convention for the Protection of Industrial Property with the
World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO).
North Macedonia between 1992 and 1995 In
North Macedonia, the symbol is known as
Sun of Kutleš (). In 1992,
Todor Petrov proposed the Vergina Sun as the national symbol of the Republic of Macedonia (now North Macedonia). The symbol was adopted by the newly independent country in the same year, displaying it on its new flag. This lasted until 1995, when the Republic of Macedonia was forced to modify its flag by Greece. The decision in the Republic of Macedonia caused controversy both within the republic and outside it in its relations with Greece. The republic's large
Albanian minority complained that it was an ethnic Macedonian symbol and was not suitable for a multi-ethnic state. The symbol was removed from the flag of the Republic of Macedonia as part of an agreement to establish diplomatic and economic relations between the two sides, In early August 2017, the Macedonian consul in Toronto, Canada, Jovica Palashevski, sparked a diplomatic incident between the Republic of Macedonia and Greece, when he delivered a speech against the backdrop of an
irredentist map of
Greater Macedonia and a red Vergina Sun flag. After strong Greek protests, the Foreign Ministry of the Republic of Macedonia condemned the incident and recalled its diplomat back to Skopje for consultations. Toni Deskoski, Macedonian professor of International Law and member of the legal team that represented the Republic of Macedonia in the
naming dispute with Greece before the
International Court of Justice in the Hague for violation of the Interim Accord, argues that the Vergina Sun is not a Macedonian symbol but it is a Greek symbol that is used by Macedonians in the nationalist context of
Macedonism and that the Macedonians need to get rid of it.
Private use Greece and Greek Macedonian diaspora , along with the
European flag and the
flag of Greece Outside of official usage, the symbol was also used in the logo of the Thessaloniki-based
Makedonia television station, and of the former Bank of Macedonia-Thrace. An eight-point sun is the logo of
Thessaloniki International Film Festival, the logo of the
Museum of the Royal Tombs of Aigai (Vergina) and part of the logo of Greek Parliament party
Greek Solution. A six-pointed Vergina sun is the logo of the Thessaloniki-based
Vergina television station. A sixteen-pointed sun appears on Municipality of
Chalkidona coat of arms in Thessaloniki region unit, on Municipalities of
Veria,
Kassandra in Chalkidiki and
Almopia coat of arms, on
Panserraikos F.C. logo which is a professional first division club from
Serres, on
Makedonikos FC () logo which is a Greek professional football club based in
Neapoli, on
ASF ALEXANDRIAS,
A.S MAKEDONAS and
G.A.S ALEXANDRIAS in
Imathia, on
Makedonikos Foufas F.C. in
Kozani, on
MAS VERGINA FC, on
Philippos Alexandreia F.C. in
Imathia, on
Megas Alexandros BC in
Leptokarya, on
VERGINA BC in
Kalamaria, on A.E
Evosmos F.C, Macedonia
Efkarpia F.C, on Megas Alexandros Eleonas F.C and on
Heidelberg United FC based in the northern Melbourne suburb of Heidelberg West, Victoria, Australia. A seven-pointed sun is the logo of Thessaloniki-based political party
EPOS. A sixteen-pointed sun was the logo of Athens-based political party
Patriotic Union (). It is also used by organisations of the
Greek Macedonian diaspora, such as the Pan-Macedonian Association, as well as by numerous commercial enterprises and in
Greek Macedonian demonstrations. In 2023, it was reported that the
Supreme Civil and Criminal Court of Greece ruled that a political party may not use the symbol as a party emblem.
North Macedonia and ethnic Macedonian diaspora In North Macedonia, the municipality of
Makedonska Kamenica still displays it on its municipal flag. A similar choice was made by the municipality of
Liqenas in neighbouring
Albania, which has a Macedonian population. The symbol is also used by other ethnic Macedonian minority groups in neighbouring countries and by diaspora organisations. In Canada, a Macedonian advocacy group called United Macedonians Organization uses a stylized version of the sun as part of its logo and makes extensive use of the red Vergina Sun flag. In 2018,
IP Australia, the agency of the
Australian Department of Industry, Innovation and Science responsible for administering the intellectual property rights in
Australia, denied the
World Macedonian Congress the right of registering and using the Vergina Sun on its trademark, citing the
Paris Convention which recognizes the emblem as a national symbol of Greece. In 2026, an ethnic Macedonian community group in Melbourne was not allowed to parade with the Vergina Sun flag at the 2026
Moomba Festival, as the
City of Melbourne had banned the display of cultural flags.
Aromanians An eight-pointed version of the Vergina Sun has been used by some members of the stateless Balkan ethnic group of the
Aromanians. According to
University of Warwick professor Tom Winnifrith, some houses in
Kruševo (), a town in North Macedonia with a substantial Aromanian population, use star patterns resembling the Vergina Sun. Some Aromanians claim heritage from the Ancient Macedonians. In a session held on early July 2019, the
government of North Macedonia announced the complete removal of the Vergina Sun from all public areas, institutions and monuments in the country, with the deadline for its removal being set to 12 August 2019, in line with the Prespa Agreement. ==See also==