In most cases, when naturalized, they vow their allegiance to their adopted country and cease being legal citizens of their homeland. A symbol is something which stands for or suggests something else. It can be a visible sign of something which is intangible. The Statue of Liberty, for example, is a symbol of freedom. A patriotic symbol is something which stands for or suggests a love for and defense of country.
Patriotic symbols are visible signs of the intangible feelings of national pride.
For instance, Uncle Sam, the U.S. flag, and the Statue of Liberty are examples of patriotic symbols. Prior to 1777 the patriots fought under the Grand Union flag. In 1777 the congress of the confederation of states approved a new flag with 13 stripes and 13 stars representing the 13 colonies. Each time a state entered the union one star and one stripe were added. In 1818, the U.S. Congress set the number of stripes at 13 but agreed to continue to add a star for each new state.