The Flag of North Korea was adopted on September 8, 1948, as the national flag and ensign. The red star of Communism can be seen on this flag on a white disk. North Korea had originally adopted a "taegeugki" following independence from the Japanese Empire with a Taoist yin-yang symbol similar to that in the South Korean flag but later revised its flag to more closely reflect that of the USSR. The colour red represents revolutionary patriotism.