A **canton** is a rectangular area placed in the upper hoist corner of a flag, occupying roughly a quarter of the field. It is the most honourable position in a flag’s design and is most often used to bear a distinguishing emblem on an otherwise plain or striped field. Cantons are characteristic of ensigns, where the national flag is placed in the canton of a coloured field to denote the vessel’s affiliation.
**Example**: The fifty stars on a blue canton in the flag of the United States identify the union of states and have inspired numerous derivative designs such as the flags of Liberia and Malaysia.
**See also**: [hoist](/glossary/hoist/), [ensign](/glossary/ensign/), [field](/glossary/field/), [canton-and-field](/glossary/canton-and-field/)