raldry along with genealogy has seen in the late 20th and now 21st centuries a huge groundswell of interest and enthusiasm. In an age of commercialism and corporate logos, having a unique and personal heraldic emblem can be both a satisfying and grounding experience. Pursuing the historic links which represent the lives of your immediate and distant ancestors places your life irrevocably in that same ebb and flow. Genealogy and family are the basis on which heraldry flourishes. Heraldry is "...a system both of decoration and of identification which appeals to the best and deepest sentiments of human nature, heraldry is a science not of the past but of the present and future." - Sir Thomas Innes of Learney, Lord Lyon King of Arms 1945-1969 While arms were originally used to identify and differentiate warriors and nobility, the heraldic authorities who grant arms today do so based on standards which open the possibility of personal arms to nearly everyone. Today heraldry is as in its origin, an expression of who you are, not what you are. Ireland, England, Scotland, Canada, Spain, and South Africa grant arms and Americans can obtain their own legal arms by successfully petitioning one of these heraldic bodies and meeting their genealogical requirements. Alternately, as the United States has no civilian heraldic authority, Americans can design and adopt their own arms as long as the arms are not the same as those already in use elsewhere. There are even heraldic bodies in the U.S.A. that will help with the process of designing arms and registering them. Just as one would pass on the family silver and photo album, arms are inheritable property and so can also be passed down to current and future generations. They provide a symbol of family continuity and strength. |
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