A record of documented arms, meaning and origin, researched for the Weinstein family of Germany.
J. B. Rietstap, Armorial Général, Gouda: G. B. van Goor Zonen, 1884–87
Blazon (the actual original written record)“De sa., chapé-ployé d'or. C.: un chapeau de tournoi de sa., retr. d'arg., sommé d'un vol d'or.”
The Weinstein arms were recorded in Swabia, c. 1765.
Swabia was broken into a great many small territories in southern Germany, and each had its own landowners and its own leading townsmen. That fragmentation produced an unusual number of families with 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.
The body that granted and recorded arms in Germany in this period.
Reigning in Germany when the Weinstein arms are first recorded.
In the Holy Roman Empire, coats of arms were often granted to individuals by the Emperor or his representatives. These arms were then passed down through the generations to all legitimate descendants of the original holder. Younger branches of a family usually kept the same shield design without needing to change it, as the arms belonged to the entire lineage.
The surname Weinstein is a classic example of a German-Jewish occupational or descriptive name. It is composed of the German words "Wein," meaning wine, and "Stein," meaning stone. In the eighteenth century, families living in the Swabia region of southwestern Germany often adopted these compound names to reflect their trade or their surroundings. By 1765, records show that members of the Weinstein family were established residents in this area. During this period, Jewish families in Swabia were frequently required by local authorities to adopt permanent surnames for tax and census purposes. The name likely points to ancestors who were involved in the wine trade or lived near a prominent stone landmark in a vineyard. This naming tradition helped maintain a clear identity for the family as they navigated the social and legal structures of the Holy Roman Empire.
German words for wine and stone.
