Hi cousins :) As a long-time lurker on the heraldry newsgroup, I feel obliged to point out that the following arms are NOT associated with the surname Coker, but are associated with specific individuals and their direct descendants. In Scotland, you could (in theory) be prosecuted for displaying arms without having a pedigreed link back to the original grantee. In some European traditions (Polish, I believe), there are such things as coats of arms for specific surnames, but that's unlikely to affect Cokers. So, unless you've already traced your ancestry back to a Coker who was granted one of these coats of arms, don't get too excited about having it engraved on your silverware or carved over the mantlepiece. Also, one thing I've learned from the heraldry newsgroup is not to expect symbols to have a specific meaning. The Moor's head could possibly refer to a crusading Coker, but it could just as well be an allusion to one who had noticeably black hair, i.e., the armorial equivalent of a nickname of "Blackie". Unless you run across notes from the original grantee (or someone fairly close to him), you're unlikely to be able to pinpoint the meaning. Still, heraldry can be a very fascinating subject, and designing your own arms would make a good family project. There is an American College of Heraldry, which will assist you in registering your arms; keep in mind that, unlike the English College of Arms or the Scottish Lyons Court, this registration carries ABSOLUTELY NO LEGAL STANDING. The ACH site has links to other heraldry sites as well as a some explanations about coats of arms and their symbolism. http://www.americancollegeofheraldry.org/acheraldry.html Francois Velde is a regular contributor to rec.heraldry, and extremely knowledgeable about the subject, so his website is well worth a visit as well. http://www.heraldica.org/ If any Cokers do design our own arms, how about posting them here, either the blazon (description) or a link to a website where we can view them? Thanks, Keith Brown Dwight Stipes wrote: > Hi, > This was posted back in 1993 > After having looked up a crest for COKER in "Fairbairn's Crests of the > Families of Great Britain and Ireland" compiled by James Fairbairn, revised > by Laurence Butters, I became curious about how the symbols were chosen. For > example, the following descriptions: > > COKER, Dors., a moor's head, affronte'e, ppr., wreathed, ar. and gu. > > COKER, Dors., a moor's head, in profile, sa., wreathed, ar and gu. > > COKER, Lewis, Esq., of Bicester, Oxon., a moor's head, in profile, > sa., wreathed, ar and gu. > > The book has pictures. The picture for the first description is a full face > view of what appears to be an African. The next two descriptions are > associated with the same picture - a side-view of a light (white?) skinned, > dark-haired man. > > Dwight > -- ------------------------------------------------------------------------ Keith J. Brown Planning Division Email: [email protected] University of North Carolina [email protected] General Administration Phone: (919) 962-4547 P.O. Box 2688 Voice: (919) 962-4547 Chapel Hill, NC 27515-2688 Fax: (919) 962-4316 ------------------------------------------------------------------------
We Know that It's just fun to Pretend??? Everyone knows that the "Arms" are for direct Family members only. Who in America would want to be Royalty. I like being a Paschal, Maverek etc. America is about being an individual. Dwight Stipes ----- Original Message ----- From: "Keith Brown" <[email protected]> To: <[email protected]> Sent: Thursday, April 25, 2002 10:06 AM Subject: [Coker] Arms of Cokers, but not Coker Arms > Hi cousins :) > As a long-time lurker on the heraldry newsgroup, I feel obliged to point out > that the following arms are NOT associated with the surname Coker, but are > associated with specific individuals and their direct descendants. In Scotland, you > could (in theory) be prosecuted for displaying arms without having a pedigreed link > back to the original grantee. In some European traditions (Polish, I believe), > there are such things as coats of arms for specific surnames, but that's unlikely to > affect Cokers. So, unless you've already traced your ancestry back to a Coker who > was granted one of these coats of arms, don't get too excited about having it > engraved on your silverware or carved over the mantlepiece. Also, one thing I've > learned from the heraldry newsgroup is not to expect symbols to have a specific > meaning. The Moor's head could possibly refer to a crusading Coker, but it could > just as well be an allusion to one who had noticeably black hair, i.e., the armorial > equivalent of a nickname of "Blackie". Unless you run across notes from the > original grantee (or someone fairly close to him), you're unlikely to be able to > pinpoint the meaning. > > Still, heraldry can be a very fascinating subject, and designing your own arms > would make a good family project. There is an American College of Heraldry, which > will assist you in registering your arms; keep in mind that, unlike the English > College of Arms or the Scottish Lyons Court, this registration carries ABSOLUTELY NO > LEGAL STANDING. The ACH site has links to other heraldry sites as well as a some > explanations about coats of arms and their symbolism. > > http://www.americancollegeofheraldry.org/acheraldry.html > > Francois Velde is a regular contributor to rec.heraldry, and extremely knowledgeable > about the subject, so his website is well worth a visit as well. > > http://www.heraldica.org/ > > If any Cokers do design our own arms, how about posting them here, either the blazon > (description) or a link to a website where we can view them? > > Thanks, > Keith Brown > > > Dwight Stipes wrote: > > > Hi, > > This was posted back in 1993 > > After having looked up a crest for COKER in "Fairbairn's Crests of the > > Families of Great Britain and Ireland" compiled by James Fairbairn, revised > > by Laurence Butters, I became curious about how the symbols were chosen. For > > example, the following descriptions: > > > > COKER, Dors., a moor's head, affronte'e, ppr., wreathed, ar. and gu. > > > > COKER, Dors., a moor's head, in profile, sa., wreathed, ar and gu. > > > > COKER, Lewis, Esq., of Bicester, Oxon., a moor's head, in profile, > > sa., wreathed, ar and gu. > > > > The book has pictures. The picture for the first description is a full face > > view of what appears to be an African. The next two descriptions are > > associated with the same picture - a side-view of a light (white?) skinned, > > dark-haired man. > > > > Dwight > > > > -- > ------------------------------------------------------------------------ > Keith J. Brown > Planning Division Email: [email protected] > University of North Carolina [email protected] > General Administration Phone: (919) 962-4547 > P.O. Box 2688 Voice: (919) 962-4547 > Chapel Hill, NC 27515-2688 Fax: (919) 962-4316 > ------------------------------------------------------------------------ > > > > ==== COKER Mailing List ==== > Coker Querie Board > http://genconnect.rootsweb.com/gc/FamilyAssoc/Coker > > ============================== > To join Ancestry.com and access our 1.2 billion online genealogy records, go to: > http://www.ancestry.com/rd/redir.asp?targetid=571&sourceid=1237 >