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'or à la bande de sa., ch. d'un brochet d'arg., posé dans le sens de la bande.”
A record of documented arms, meaning and origin, researched for the de Luc family of France.
J. B. Rietstap, Armorial Général, Gouda: G. B. van Goor Zonen, 1884–87
Blazon (the actual original written record)“D'or à la bande de sa., ch. d'un brochet d'arg., posé dans le sens de la bande.”
The de Luc arms were recorded in Dauphine, c. 1663.
Dauphine lay in the mountains of south-eastern France, a country of small estates and scattered valleys. Its gentry were many and mostly modest, and even a small landholding was enough to justify arms.
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 de Luc traces its roots to the mountainous region of Dauphiné in southeastern France. By the year 1663, records confirm that members of the family were well established within this area, living among the rugged landscapes near the Alps. The name itself is locative, meaning it likely originated from a specific place or a geographical feature known as Luc, which is a common term in the region derived from the Latin word for a sacred grove or a clearing in the woods. Families during this period often adopted such names to identify their ancestral home or the specific village where they held land. As the family grew, they became part of the local social fabric, navigating the complex political and religious shifts that defined seventeenth-century France. Their presence in Dauphiné suggests a long history of agricultural or professional ties to the province, marking them as a family deeply connected to the traditions and geography of the French countryside.
Latin term referring to a sacred grove or a wooded area.
