The Star of David, known in Hebrew as the Shield of David or Magen David (Hebrew מָגֵן דָּוִד; Biblical Hebrew Māḡēn Dāwīḏ, Tiberian, Modern Hebrew, Ashkenazi Hebrew and Yiddish Mogein Dovid or Mogen Dovid) is a generally recognized symbol of Jewish identity and Judaism. Its shape is that of a hexagram, the compound of two equilateral triangles. The hexagram has been in use as a symbol of Judaism since the 17th century, with precedents in the 14th to 16th centuries in Central Europe, where the Shield of David was partly used in conjunction with the Seal of Solomon (the hexagram) on Jewish flags. Its use probably derives from medieval (11th to 13th century) Jewish protective amulets (segulot).
The term "Shield of David" is also used in the Siddur (Jewish prayer book) as a title of the God of Israel.
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“For rigorous teachers seized my youth,
And purged its faith, and trimm’d its fire,
Show’d me the high, white star of Truth,
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Even now their whispers pierce the gloom:
What dost thou in this living tomb?”
—Matthew Arnold (1822–1888)
“...indeed, star differs from star in glory.”
—Bible: New Testament, 1 Corinthians 15:41.
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—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)