Coat of Arms & Family Crests Store
 Balz Coat of Arms / Balz Family CrestThis German and French surname of BALZ was from the Babylonian personal names Balthazar and Belshazzar, which were originally distinct but by medieval times had come to be regarded as variants of a single name. Balthazar is from the Aramaic Balshatzar, meaning 'may Baal preserve his life'. Belshazzar was borne by the Chaldean king for whom Daniel interpreted the writing on the wall (Daniel. 5). The main reason for the popularity of the first name in medieval Italy and Germany was that, according to legend, it was the name of one of the three Magi from the East who attended Christ's birth. His supposed relics were venerated at first in Milan, but after 1164 in Cologne, where they had been taken by Rainald of Dassel. A notable member of this name was Hans Urs von BALTHASAR (l905-l988) the Swiss catholic theologian born in Lucerne. He was the author of some 60 books on theology, philosophy and spirituality. His chief work translated as 'The Glory of the Lord' (l938) is a 20th century statement of a theology of the beautiful, the good and the true. During the 17th century surnames were brought to Britain, North America and southern Africa by French Huguenot exiles. The Huguenots were French Protestants, and in 1572 large numbers of them were massacred in Paris on the orders of Queen Catherine de'Medici. Many of the survivors sought refuge in England and elsewhere. Although the Edict of Nantes (1598) officially guaranteed religious toleration, persecution continued, and the Edict was revoked by Louis XIV in 1685. It was then the trickle of emigration became a flood. Many migrated to England, while others joined groups of Dutch Protestants settling around the Cape of Good Hope. Others sailed across the Atlantic to establish themselves in North America. The lion depicted in the arms is the noblest of all wild beasts which is made to be the emblem of strength and valour, and is on that account the most frequently borne in Coat-Armour. |
