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 à trois merlettes d'or.”
A record of documented arms, meaning and origin, researched for the Hehman family of France.
J. B. Rietstap, Armorial Général, Gouda: G. B. van Goor Zonen, 1884–87
Blazon (the actual original written record)“D'azur à trois merlettes d'or.”

The Hehman arms were recorded in Ile-de-France, c. 1663.
Ile-de-France is the country around Paris, and proximity to the court mattered. Families who served the crown were rewarded with land near it, and land near the capital carried arms almost as a matter of course.
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 Hehman finds its early roots in the historical landscape of the seventeenth century, with documented evidence placing members of the family in the Île-de-France region by 1663. During this period, the area surrounding Paris served as a central hub for social and economic life, where families often identified themselves through their specific trades or their ties to local parishes. The name likely evolved from regional dialects and linguistic shifts common in northern France, reflecting the way surnames were recorded by local officials and church clerks during that era. As these families settled into the rural and urban communities of the region, they became part of the intricate social fabric that defined the French countryside. By establishing a presence in Île-de-France, the early Hehman family participated in the daily traditions and administrative life of a kingdom undergoing significant cultural changes.
A Germanic word meaning hawthorn or hedge.
