My family is german-american (not jewish). My Surname is Lenaburg. It was Originally Lüneburg, (or Lüneberg, perhaps) but got changed in oklahoma.
Anyhow, I want to get input from the entire family (The farthest it goes with our spelling is something like 4th(?)cousins of any other person with the same) and create a specifically american crest for our spelling.
A.) who knows what’s involved
B.) does anyone know a crest or blazon for the original (beyond the district or city, actual
family crests)
C.) I was thinking of an online vote site, who knows how?
D.) would combining the original with american symbolism be acceptable?
E.) if you are a german-american named Lenaburg, email me about helping, or if we have a crest
Hi Mike and welcome.
Fr. Guy has an excellent source of 10 questions that you should look over and have your family discuss. These questions guide one to some design ideas. I believe they are something like this, but get them from Fr. Guy first hand:
1. What is your favorite color?
2. Are there colors that are significant to you because of ethnicity, nationality, geographic location, symbolic value?
3. Do you want these arms for yourself or your entire family?
4. Is there a particular person, ideal or event, whether personal, or familial, or cultural, that you’d like to allude to in your arms?
5. Are you religious? If so, how may that come into play?
6. Are there significant saints or persons from the Bible with whom you have an affinity.
7. Are there any particular signs or symbols (i.e. a moon, a star, a cross, etc.) that you want to employ in your arms.
Obviously not complete and may not be exactly accurate. So, PM Fr. Guy here and get him to send you a set of them - or maybe they are here somewhere…check with Mike S on that…
edited by member for length
Mike, if your paternal ancestors were originally from Lüneberg (as would seem to be the case), then it might be an idea to allude to the ancient arms of the area: Or, semy of hearts gules, a lion rampant azure. You might also add some reference to Oklahoma or even your maternal family, as well as following some of Donnchadh’s suggestions. Just a few suggestions of my own there. Thanks.
You might also research the etymology of the name, for possible allusive or canting charges. However, once you get a passle of ideas, the hard part will be paring them down into something relatively simple and easily recognizable. Share your collectioin of ideas here, & we’ll be happy to toss in our 2 cents worth!
Michael Fryer wrote:
Mike, if your paternal ancestors were originally from Lüneberg (as would seem to be the case), then it might be an idea to allude to the ancient arms of the area: Or, semy of hearts gules, a lion rampant azure. You might also add some reference to Oklahoma or even your maternal family, as well as following some of Donnchadh’s suggestions. Just a few suggestions of my own there. Thanks.
I was thinking along the lines of using the old arms of the area, and adding american elements (red, white, and blue, stars and stripes/bars, and perhaps even a bald eagle in there. But, considering that It will be the family arms, I need to set up some site to vote on it and get my relatives involved, although the designing group will be small (the more artistic relatives). I’m more of a computer guy, so once I get a domain, I’ll set that up.
Edit: New info: original name change was more likely in minnesota.
The real Idea is that it would be narccissistic to assume the creation of said arms, for anyone other than myself and any future children I may someday have, and since its for the whole family, They have a right to say. And, what could be more american than a vote with limited choices?
EDIT:Ya, not the best Idea to create a bastard us Shield ...
Perhaps a Crescent broken in half ( to represent the etymological shift of the Lüne- Becoming lena-, (from the similarity to the latin root Luna-, which through french may have been the origin, broken to represent the drop of the u), a symbol representing that one particular ancestor that started our spelling (still unsure as to what) or maybe a symbol representing family unity?
Also, that broken moon looks like cow horns (TRUE AMERICAN CULTURE, NOT SOME Gov. Design) when rendered a broken crescent or (is that the right way to put it? I’m new at this stuff <img> )
as for designing personal arms, I’m thinking of taking my maternal family arms (german-american hoffman, I know they are already there, I just don’t know what ... anyone know how to search arms online?)and the new lenaburg design, when finished, and perhaps a personal element that speaks of me alone, and creating my personal arms from that combo.
Lastly, how do You go about foreign Registry? The fact is, though america has no registry, Germany and UK do, and since most of our family has ties/relatives to people in both, It would be nice to register them there. (for purpose of travel, etc.)
Sorry, but please don’t "Americanize" the German arms with stars and stripes and such. Spend some more time and give it some more thought to make the arms truly representative of your family. Check reference sources on German family arms (our German members will, I’m sure, be glad to help) to see what patterns are typical of your family’s name and place of origin. Maybe design something that represents the common founder of your extended family. Tacking "national" symbols onto a shield is one of the worst approaches to heraldic design.
Regarding Lüneberg:
Joseph McMillan wrote:
Sorry, but please don’t "Americanize" the German arms with stars and stripes and such.
I agree 100%
A nice map of the region and a small emblazon can be found at http://www.vdiest.nl/Europa/luneberg.htm
http://www.vdiest.nl/images/luneburg.jpg
Though I cannot find the etymology of the name, could you not use French for a canting of the first part of the name? Perhaps a moon (for Lune) and a city or mountain (for burg / berg)??
Here is the city’s arms:
http://www.lueneburg.de/bilder/inhalt/mp_31216.jpg
Quote:
In Rot eine mit Zinnen versehene silberne Burg mit drei blaubedachten, in je einen goldenen Knauf auslaufenden Türmen; in der roten, mit Fallgitter versehenen Toröffnung ein aufrechter, rotgezungter und rotbewehrter blauer Löwe in goldenem Schilde, der mit roten Herzen bestreut ist.
Die Stadtmauer mit Türmen kommt in zahlreichen Stadtwappen vor und symbolisiert die Wehrhaftigkeit der Stadt und die Stadthoheit. Der Löwe mit den Herzen ist dem Wappen des Fürstentums Lüneburg entnommen und zeigt die Zugehörigkeit der Stadt zu diesem Fürstentum an.
[a red-tongued and red-armed blue lion on a golden shield, thereupon strewn with red hearts]—sorry for the literal translation of the shield portion of the blazon.
from: http://www.lueneburg.de/index.htm?baum_id=22
"Recent" historical perspective:
Quote:
May 4: On Luneburg Heath, between the cities of Hamburg, Hanover and Bremen, Montgomery took the surrender of the German forces he had agreed to accept. The fact that some of those forces were commanded by Donitz meant that, in effect, the European campaign was over. http://www.adolfhitler.ws/print.php?sid=192
And, Lüneberg Heath is where Heinrich Himmler was buried.
Cheers,
—Guy
I’ll agree with the idea of don’t "Americanize" German Arms, but I would like to through out this suggestion - In your conversations with family members get a sense of what they like and don’t like and develop your own American Arms.
Is there a brand used in the family? Or maybe you’d develop one. How about the "rocking L" And OK has the Canadian River so you may wish to symbolize that. OK. is Native America so why not display your arms on a drum
cover ?
Guy Power wrote:
ein aufrechter, rotgezungter und rotbewehrter blauer Löwe in goldenem Schilde, der mit roten Herzen bestreut ist
[a red-tongued and red-armed blue lion on a golden shield, thereupon strewn with red hearts]
As a Dane, I would be remiss if I did not mention that the arms of Lüneburg are of course a diminutive of the arms of Denmark, or three lions passant azure, crowned and armed or, langued gules, accompanied by nine "sea leaves". The shield being originally semé of the leaves, their number was fixed at nine 1819, and were formally blazoned in 1972 as "sea leaves" (a variant of water lily leaves). Before that, they have been described through history variously as such and as hearts.
There have been a number of diminutives, brisures, of the arms of Denmark through history. Of modern arms, you find the arms of the old Duchy of Slesvig or Schleswig (or two lions passant azure) - today part of the arms of the German state of Schleswig-Holstein, as well as the Royal Danish Arms, and also reflected in the arms of the Danish county of Southern Jutland. Also the Counts of Rosenborg (former princes of Denmark who have married without the consent of the King and therefore lost their right of succession to the Throne), carry among their quarterings or a lion passant azure in base three hearts (or "sea leaves") gules.
Any brisure of Lüneburg could therefore also be taken as a reference to Denmark ... well, at least by those Danes in the know. 
anybody… help? (read the edit before reply)
