Leeuwendeel

After several years searching for a family arms, I had a lot of information about the family, but no family arms. At work I had the chance to make a family arms to register. I decided to design a escutcheon.

How should our family arms looks like? I wanted to place a milk churn, because it matches with the proffession of Willebrordus Cornelis Anthonius Franciscus van Leeuwen (my grandfather). I was told that a milk churn is dated. What a pity! Well, then I thought of two lions, to symbolise the family name. "Van Leeuwen", which means "From Lions". The family "Van Leeuwen" has lived in Delft and surroundings for centuries, so I had to do something with that aspect too. The arms of Delft is white, black, white, and the black part is corrugated. The waves are often left out. Thus a black bar on a white background remains. The black bar may not be placed upright on a white background, because that's the arms of Delft. Okay, so I turned the bar around and I placed a lion above and below. But now the colors .... Oh, just nice colors. Furthermore, a little extra decoration and finished.

Now that the family arms design is finished, it needs to be registered. Under whose name? Under my own name, or my father's, or my grandfather's name? Previous generations are meaningless for this, because I do not know descendants further back in time. I asked to my father and he said, what I also thought, that the rest of the family also might like to use it. Fortunately, this decision has been taken. Now I can make the rest of the family happy too. Now Let's chose a suitable date to publish ... eh ... Of course that should be on my grandmother's birthday, when usually all of the family are present there. So I asked the family to get together at the same time.

On the day of the ceremony this family arms is a success. And now there are stamps and business cards in circulation, with the family arms on it. According to the rules of heraldry all members of the same family, with the same surname may use this escutcheon.

Family members who would like to make use of the family arms: enjoy using it!