A record of documented arms, meaning and origin, researched for the Aça family of Portugal.
Reg. 2981 · Portuguese, A–C
Coat of Arms & Family Crest Details
Symbols on this shield
cross symbolChristian faith and service
fessThe military belt, and readiness to serve
saltireResolution, and St Andrew's cross
cupFaith, office, and a trust discharged
saltire coupedResolution, and the cross of St Andrew
Colours
Gold (Or)Means: Generosity
Red (Gules)Means: Military strength
Silver (Argent)Means: Peace and sincerity
Black (Sable)Means: Constancy
Historical info
Source
J. B. Rietstap, Armorial Général, Gouda: G. B. van Goor Zonen, 1884–87
Blazon (the actual original written record)
“D'or à la croix florencée vidée de gu., cant. de quatre chaudières de sa., ch chacune de trois fasces d'or; à la bord. d'arg., ch. de vingt flanchis de gu.”
Portugalc. 1706
Where the Aça Arms Were Recorded
Lisboa
Map of Portugal showing where the Aça arms are recorded
The Aça arms were recorded in Portugal, c. 1706.
Arms such as these were typically recorded in Lisboa.
Lisbon was the seat of the Portuguese crown and the port its wealth came through. Families made rich by trade and by service to the king took arms, and the crown's heralds recorded them there.
This is where the arms were entered in the register. Families often moved to other parts of the country, so the same name can turn up in more than one region.
The body that granted and recorded arms in Portugal in this period.
Peter II of Portugal
Sovereign of the period
Peter II of Portugal
1683–1706
Reigning in Portugal when the Aça arms are first recorded.
How Arms Worked in Portugal
In Portugal, a coat of arms was a family possession that passed from a father to his children. Every legitimate descendant had the right to use the family shield without needing to change it. Younger branches of the family kept the original design, though they sometimes added small symbols to distinguish their specific line from the main branch.
Granting authority
The Cartório da Nobreza acted as the official body that managed and regulated noble titles and coats of arms in Portugal.
How they got arms
Families typically inherited their arms through bloodline, though they could also receive new grants from the crown for distinguished service.
Where arms were recorded
Coats of arms were officially recorded in the books of the Cartório da Nobreza starting in the year 1512.
The family's standing
Recorded among the armigerous families of Portugal.
Origin & History of the Aça Family in Portugal
The family name Aça carries a distinct history rooted in the vibrant urban landscape of eighteenth-century Portugal. Historical records confirm that members of the family were well-established residents of Lisboa by 1706, a time when the city served as a bustling center of trade and culture under the Portuguese Empire. During this era, families living in the capital often played active roles in the local parish communities, which served as the primary hubs for social, religious, and administrative life. Because the name is relatively rare, it likely emerged from a specific geographic location or a unique occupational tradition within the region. As the family navigated the social shifts of the early 1700s, they contributed to the diverse fabric of Lisboa, leaving behind traces in local baptismal and marriage registers that document their presence long before the city underwent its massive reconstruction later in the century.
Related Branches & Arms
Root word
Açor
A bird of prey, specifically a goshawk.
This name
AçaDerived from a topographic or habitational reference to a place associated with goshawks.
also spelled
Aka
Acca
Assa
Documented Sources
J. B. Rietstap, Armorial Général, Gouda: G. B. van Goor Zonen, 1884–87
Arquivo Nacional da Torre do Tombo, Registos Paroquiais de Lisboa (1706)
Freitas, Maria da Conceição, A População de Lisboa no Século XVIII (1998)
Oliveira, César, História de Lisboa (1994)
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