Coat of Arms & Family Crests Store
Gloria Coat of Arms / Gloria Family CrestThis name GLORIA was from a medieval given name, originally derived from the Latin Hilarius, meaning cheerful and glad, happy and joyful. The Latin name was chosen by many early Christians to express their joy and hope of salvation, and was borne by several saints, including a 4th century bishop of Poitiers, noted for his vigorous resistance to the Arian heresy, and a 5th century bishop of Arles. Largely due to veneration of the first of these, the name became popular in France in the forms Hilari and Hilaire, and was brought to England by the Norman conquerors. The name has a second origin, from the Latin Eulalia, meaning eloquent and well-speaking, chosen by early Christians as a reference to the gift of tongues, likewise introduced into England by the Normans. A Saint Eulalia was crucified at Barcelona in the reign of the Emperor Diocletian, and became the patron of that city. The name has numerous variant spellings which include LARIUS, LAHR, GLARIS, GLARE, GLORIUS, GLOHR and KLOR, to name but a few. It was not until the 10th century that modern hereditary surnames first developed, and the use of fixed names spread, first to France, and then England, then to Germany and all of Europe. In these parts of Europe, the individual man was becoming more important, commerce was increasing and the exact identification of each man was becoming a necessity. Even today however, the Church does not recognise surnames. Baptisms and marriages are performed through use of the Christian name alone. Thus hereditary names as we know them today developed gradually during the 11th to the 15th century in the various European countries. In the Middle Ages the Herald (old French herault) was an officer whose duty it was to proclaim war or peace, carry challenges to battle and messages between sovereigns; nowadays war or peace is still proclaimed by the heralds, but their chief duty as court functionaries is to superintend state ceremonies, such as coronations, installations, and to grant arms. Edward III (1327-1377) appointed two heraldic kings-at-arms for south and north, England in 1340. The English College of Heralds was incorporated by Richard III in 1483-84. |
