Coat of Arms & Family Crest Details
J. B. Rietstap, Armorial Général, Gouda: G. B. van Goor Zonen, 1884–87
Blazon (the actual original written record)“d'azur, ch. d'un coeur d'or, entre deux étoiles du même.”
A record of documented arms, meaning and origin, researched for the Chabrier family of France.
J. B. Rietstap, Armorial Général, Gouda: G. B. van Goor Zonen, 1884–87
Blazon (the actual original written record)“d'azur, ch. d'un coeur d'or, entre deux étoiles du même.”
The Chabrier arms were recorded in France, c. 1663.
Arms such as these were typically recorded in Bretagne.
More families held coats of arms in Bretagne than anywhere else in France. The land was divided into many small estates rather than a few large ones, so far more households counted as gentry, and each needed a shield of its own to be told apart.
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.
In France, a coat of arms was a mark of honor that passed down through the male line to all legitimate descendants. Families often used the same shield without changes to show their shared heritage. If a branch wanted to stand out, they could add a small mark to their shield to show their specific place in the family tree.
The family name Chabrier finds its roots in the linguistic landscape of southern France, originating from the Occitan word "chabrier," which refers to a goatherd. While the name is historically associated with the regions of Auvergne and Languedoc, records confirm that members of the family were established in the province of Bretagne by 1663. During this period, families often moved across provincial borders due to shifts in trade, military service, or the search for new agricultural opportunities. As the Chabrier family settled into the social fabric of Bretagne, they transitioned from their traditional roots into the local community life of the seventeenth century. This migration highlights the mobility of families in early modern France, showing how names traveled alongside the people who carried them across diverse cultural regions.
Latin term for a goat.
