Coats of arms are stylistic and symbolic graphic designs that either represent a specific individual or family name (and sometimes the individual's deeds or the family history) or a group or organization of some type.
There are various types of coats of arms. They include civic coats of arms (representing a town or city, or perhaps a province or region), ecclesiastical coats of arms (such as the coats of arms of various Roman Catholic Popes or the Anglican Church as a whole), family coats of arms (representing specific individuals or families), and fraternal coats of arms (representing fraternities, sororities and fraternal organizations).
There are even military coats of arms (representing a regiment, battalion or some other military unit),
national coats of arms (representing a country), organizational coats of arms (representing trade guilds or professional societies), and scholastic coats of arms (representing specific colleges and universities).
The use or display of a heraldic coat of arms is, in some countries, governed by law. In those countries which regulate their use, a coat of arms is legal property, and only certain individuals - the owners and sometimes their family members - are entitled to use or display a specific coat of arms.
Coats of arms originated in the early middle Ages and came into full use during the feudal period. Most people who lived during those times, even noblemen and monarchs, were not able to read. Medieval knights and nobles used their coats of arms as visual symbols to quickly and easily identify themselves to friends and foes during tournaments and in battle. This was the reason that a knight would wear a highly visible cloth surcoat or tunic, decorated with his coat of arms, over his armor. And for the same reason, his shield, helmet and pennant or banner were also painted with design elements of his coat of arms.
Specific symbolic devices, colors and patterns are typically combined to create a coat of arms, and each of these components tells part of the story of the person, family or organization that the coat of arms belongs to, Lions, eagle's wings, coronets, arms or hands bearing swords, and other symbols are frequently used. Each color used in a coat of arms also has a specific meaning.
Because of thorough and accurate record-keeping, the story behind a civic, national, military or organizational coat of arms is often fairly easy to ascertain. In contrast, sometimes it is very difficult to accurately interpret the symbolism that is used in a personal, family coat of arms. Many personal heraldic coats of arms were granted many hundreds of years ago, and the deeds and characteristics of the person are long lost in the murky past.
But even when the symbolism is a bit hazy, even when the specific meaning is long forgotten, the underlying significance of heraldic coats of arms remains clear. They are a source of pride in family heritage, of binding family members together, of binding the members of an organization together. They are beautiful, highly decorative connections to the past.
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