A record of documented arms, meaning and origin, researched for the Filippa family of Italy.
chequyConstancy, and the counting-boardJ. B. Rietstap, Armorial Général, Gouda: G. B. van Goor Zonen, 1884–87
Blazon (the actual original written record)“Echiq. de sa. et d'or.”
The Filippa arms were recorded in Piedmont, c. 1775.
Piedmont was Alpine and river country in north-western Italy, ruled from Turin. Its noble houses were listed formally by the state, and a name on that list carried arms as a matter of record.
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 Italy in this period.
Reigning in Italy when the Filippa arms are first recorded.
In the Italian states, coats of arms were often used by noble families to show their status and history. These symbols were passed down through the generations to all legitimate male descendants. Younger branches of a family usually kept the original design but sometimes added small changes to distinguish their specific line from the main branch.
The surname Filippa finds its roots in the Piedmont region of Italy, where it emerged as a patronymic name derived from the Greek name Philippos, meaning lover of horses. By the late eighteenth century, records confirm that families bearing this name were well-established within the local communities of the Piedmontese countryside. During this period, the region was part of the Kingdom of Sardinia, a time when families often centered their lives around agricultural work and village trade. The name likely evolved from a personal given name used by an ancestor, eventually becoming a fixed family identifier as local parish registries began to standardize surnames to track residents for tax and administrative purposes. These early generations lived through a transformative era in northern Italy, maintaining deep ties to the land and the distinct cultural traditions of the Alpine foothills.
Ancient Greek word meaning friend or lover of horses.
