Irish and Scottish family crests: tradition and a design of your own
How heraldry works in Ireland and Scotland, what a clan crest badge is, and how to have a new decorative crest that honours an Irish or Scottish story.
Two living traditions
Ireland and Scotland both have heraldic authorities that still work today. In Scotland, the Court of the Lord Lyon regulates heraldry and grants arms. In Ireland, the Chief Herald of Ireland grants arms. Both treat arms as belonging to an individual, so the arms of a surname, sold on a plaque, are not yours by right.
The Scottish clan crest badge
Scottish clan members commonly wear a crest badge: the chief’s crest inside a strap and buckle with the chief’s motto. It shows allegiance to the chief, and it is the chief’s crest, not the wearer’s own arms. It is a lovely tradition, and it is a different thing from having arms of your own.
Irish septs and names
Irish families often trace their names to a sept, a group sharing a name and a territory. Historic arms are associated with many Irish names, but like everywhere else they belonged to particular people.
A new crest that honours the story
A design made with Fable Heraldry: a decorative emblem, not a grant of arms.
Fable draws a new decorative crest from the story you tell: a county, a coastline, a harp you heard as a child, a thistle, a stag on a hillside. The Hartley shield, with its oak and white stag, shows how a few honest symbols make a design feel rooted.
Where it goes
Illustrative scene made from a real Fable design; not a photograph of a delivered order.
On a bookplate in the family’s books, on the letterhead you write home on, on a deck of cards for the holidays or a signet ring that is handed down.
Start
The preview is free. A Fable crest is a decorative emblem, not a grant of arms, and it makes no claim of descent. For official arms, apply to the Court of the Lord Lyon or the Chief Herald of Ireland.