Coat of Arms & Family Crests Store
  Harmsen Coat of Arms / Harmsen Family CrestThis surname HARMSEN is undoubtedly of very ancient origin and the Ist century leader of the Cherusci recorded by the Latin historian Tacitus as ARMINIUS has been claimed as the first known bearer. The surname is also borne by Ashkenazic Jews, probably as an adoption of the German surname. When traditional Jews were forced to take family names by the local bureaucracy, it was an obligation imposed from outside traditional society, and people often took the names playfully and let their imaginations run wild by choosing names which corresponded to nothing real in their world. No one alive today can remember the times when Jews took or were given family names (for most Ashkenazim this was the end of the 18th century or the beginning of the 19th) although many remember names being changed after emigration to other countries, such as the United States and Israel in recent years.The name was brought into England at an early date, and was found in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Hermannus. The name has numerous variant spellings which include HERMAN, HERMANN, HARMEN, ARMAND, HERMLE, HERRLE, HERLEIN and HERM, to name but a few. Early records of the name mention Nicholas HERMAN who was documented in County Sussex in the year of 1273. Thomas HERMAN of Yorkshire, was listed in the Yorkshire Poll Tax of 1379. Surnames as we know them today were first assumed in Europe from the 11th to the 15th Century. The employment in the use of a second name was a custom that was first introduced from the Normans. They themselves had not long before adopted them. It became, in course of time, a mark of gentler blood, and it was deemed a disgrace for gentlemen to have but one single name, as the meaner sort had. At first the coat of arms was a practical matter which served a function on the battlefield and in tournaments. With his helmet covering his face, and armour encasing the knight from head to foot, the only means of identification for his followers, was the insignia painted on his shield and embroidered on his surcoat, the flowing and draped garment worn over the armour. A later instance of the name includes HARMAN Clynke who registered at Oxford University in the year of 1549. |
Orders over $90 qualify for Free Shipping within the U.S. |
