Everything about Canting Arms totally explained
Canting arms is a technique used in European
heraldry whereby the name of the individual or community represented in a
coat of arms is "translated" into a
visual pun.
The term probably originally came from the same root as the term 'cant' (originally to sing) in the meaning of slang or argot. Other languages call it speaking arms, for example in Dutch
sprekend wapen.
An example of canting arms are those of the late
Queen Elizabeth, the Queen Mother, who was born Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon. Her arms, shown to the right, contain in sinister (for example on the wearer's left, viewer's right) the bows and blue lions that make up the arms of the Bowes and Lyon families.
Rebus coat-of-arms
When the visual representation isn't straightforward but as complex as a
rebus, this is sometimes called a
rebus coat of arms.
Examples of canting arms
Canting arms – some in the form of rebuses – are quite common in German civic heraldry. They have also been increasingly used in the 20th century among the British royal family.
Image:Wappen Eberbach Baden.png|Eberbach's arms: Eber = boar; Bach = brook (wavy blue fess)
Image:Wappen Waldbrunn MOS.png|Waldbrunn's arms: Wald = forest; Brunn = fountain
Image:Vogt Wappen.jpg|Vogt's arms: the title Vogt ≈ Reeve (the rider in these arms)
Image:Elizabeth_Bowes-Lyon_Arms.svg|Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon's arms: Bowes = bows; Lyon = blue lions
Image:Beatrice_of_York_Arms.svg|Princess Beatrice of York's arms: Beatrice = three bees
Image:Seinäjoki.vaakuna.svg|Arms of Seinäjoki: Seinä = wall, joki = river
Image:Kuru.vaakuna.svg|Arms of Kuru: Kuru = Rift
Image:Blason-CastilleLeon.svg|Arms of Castile and León: castile = castle; León = purple lion
Sources and references
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