Lögberg-Heimskringla - 19.10.1990, Blaðsíða 2

2 • Lögberg - Heimskringla • Föstudagur 19. október 1990
lcelandic Coats of Arms
by
Nelson
Gerrard
Have you ever received a letter from
a ‘heraldry’ fírm, offeringyou a special
plaque or certifícate bearing the
‘Johnson’ or ‘Sigurdson’ or ‘Bjomson’
coat of arms? Chances are better than
good that you have already seen or will
in the future be receiving such notifi-
cation. I remember a letter of this kind
being sent to ‘Amma’ several year s ago,
offering an original ‘Olafson coat of
arms’.
Is there any validity to such offers?
The answer is a simple ‘No’. Such coats
of arms offered by mail order have no
historical or genealogical authenticity
(as such companies are obliged to ac-
knowledge in the fíne print of their
ads). “Mail order heraldry’ is strictly a
money making ‘racket’. Even for people
with roots in the British Isles, coats of
arms bearing a given sumame have
very doubtful authenticity - partially
because of heraldic customs, and even
more so because of the uncertain his-
tory of many families and sumames
themselves.
In Iceland, as is well known, most
families do not and have never used
sumames, with the result that a dozen
families with the last name of Olafsson
(or Bjomsson or Gudmundsson) would
in all likelihood be totally unrelated -
or as unrelated as any Icelanders are!
The concept of an ‘Olafson coat of arms’
belonging to a family of Olafsons in
Canada or the United States is there-
fore totally fíctitious - even if some-
thing resembling this coat of arms was
granted to some Scandinavian with a
last name resembling Olafson fíve
hundred years ago.
Now, what to do about that ‘Olafson’
or ‘Johnson’ coat of arms plaque (which
cost $49.95) proudly displayed above
the mantlepiece all these years? Well,
there’s no need to disturb it. It still
makes a good conversation piece and
can be the topic of a good story (or
discussion on shrewd marketing). But
as far as its authenticity in relation to
your personal family lineage, it’s un-
deniably ‘bogus’.
Is there, then, any such a thing as
an authentic Icelandic coat of arms? It
is a relatively little known fact, but the
answer is “Yes’. Several Icelanders were
knighted centuries ago, by the ruling
Kings of Norway and Denmark, and
most were granted coats of arms which
according to royal decree were to be
inherited by their legitimate children
and descendants. Such coats of arms
were therefore not restricted to eldest
sons; they could be inherited by sons or
daughters and passed down through
both male or female lines. Nor was
there any statute of limitations with
regard to how many generations could
inherit this honour. This reveals even
more clearly how little bearing a last
name would have in Icelandic her-
aldry.
While in Iceland in August, I
conducted further research into
coats of arms granted to Icelanders
duringthe 15 th and 16th Centuries,
with good results. Although there
are not a great number to choose
from, these coats of arms are in
most cases well documented, as are
the lines of descent from Icelandic
knights, who were usually ap-
pointed to govern Iceland after a
sojourn abroad at the royal court,
where they won favour from the
King of the time. Several of these
coats of arms are preserved in the
form of official wax seals, which
were attached to important docu-
ments and letters, as is the case
with the accompanyingillustration,
which bears the coat of arms of Sir
Eggert Hannesson,
whose father was
granted these arms in
Norway in 1488.
There are also a
great many official
seals which are not
actual coats of arms.
These were adopted
by prominent Icelan-
dic officials, both
clergy and laymen, for
the same purpose,
and while some of
these seals bear symbols derived
from coats of arms, many are origi-
nal designs incorporating newly
adopted symbols or some form of
initials. Such seals were commonly
The coat
Sir Eggert
of arms of
Hannesson
Letters to the Editor
Dear Editor,
I am Ársæll Gestur Bardal, son
of Arni Baldwin Bardal and
Stephanie Stephansson, one of
twins born to Stephan G.
Stephansson.
I was born Jan. 1, 1919, in
Markerville, Alberta, and lived a
few miles west of Markerville. Dad
farmed there with his brother
Julius until 1939. We then moved
to Bearberry, Alberta, 36 miles west
of Olds, Alberta, where we
homesteaded. I went to school in
Bearberry until leaving to go to
work. I worked for various farmers
in and around the district, and then
had an opportunitý to go to work in
the oilfields. It was while working
in the oilfields that I met a girl
from James River, Alberta, later
getting married, May 13, 44. I was
26 years old at this time.
A few years later, I went to oper-
ating heavy-duty equipment and
welding. I continued with this type
of work until I retired at the age of
66.
We have our own home on an
acreage 6-1/2 miles N.W. of Fort
Nelson, B.C. This is where I spend
my days in a wheel-chair.
As a child I can remember trav-
elling back and forth from my
grand-dads (Stephan G.
Stephansson’s) place into
Markerville. I spent a lot of time at
grandfather’s place, which has been
restored and is a historical site, in
memory of the Icelandic poet,
Stephan G. Stephansson.
I have tried to keep up with the
different events at Markerville such
as the two days for the unveiling of
the Stephansson house, and the
unveiling of the Cairn at
Markerville for Stephansson. I also
visited the graveyard where
grandfather and grandmother rest.
This is where the first Cairn was
erected with a vault for his volumes
of poetry, but has been removed
due to moisture, getting into the
vault, and are put into safe keep-
ing for translation.
I have made one trip back to
Iceland which I enjoyed very much,
and I would like to return to visit
again. Also I would like to visit
Gimli, Saskatchewan and meet
some other Western Icelanders.
I hope this letter will be printed
and that I will receive letters from
distant relatives on the Bardal side.
Thank you.
Yours truly,
Ársæll Gestur Bardal
Box 531, Fort Nelson,
B.C. VOC 1R0
Dear Editor,
I want to thank you for your
conscientiousness in returning my
slides and sending clips of our ar-
ticles: A Modern Valnastakkur and
Völuspá - The Oracle of the Vala
Bone. I appreciate your follow-
used well into the 19th Century,
and ‘signet’ seals with initials are
fairly common heirlooms in many
families.
Research into the
intriguing topic of
Icelandic coats of
arms and seals is
continuing, and it is
anticipated that
those designs which
can be authenticated
will be made avail-
able some time in
the not too distant
future, along with
authenticated line-
ages tracing descent down to the
present time.
In the meantime, ‘Buyer beware!’
when it comes to ‘mail order
heraldry’.
through, and I know that Andres
Valberg is going to be delighted to
see himself in your fine newspaper.
You might be interested to know
that Kristín and I have coauthored
a second article for The World & I
on Mysticism in Iceland due out in
the February 1991 issue. As you
and I can both understand, people
are becoming very interested in
Iceland.
Take care, thanks for all your
help and bless.
Sincerely,
Sandra A. Thomson
Los Angeles
Heda island Recipe
SMJÖRKRINGLA
2 cups flour
2 tbsp lard
2 pkgs yeast
1 cup milk
1/2 lb butter
Prepare yeast as directed. Rub lard
into flour as in making pastry,
then add yeast and milk. Mix
thorougllly and chill. Turn onto a
lightly floured cloth and roll thin.
Spread one-quarter of the softened
butter over half the dough, cover
with the other half and roll and
pound with rolling pin. Chill and
repeat this four times until all but-
ter is used.
Roll out thin and cut into three
strips. Place a mixture of brown
sugar, chopped nuts and chopped
raisins down the centre of the strip
and fold the edges over to meet.
Chill for 12 hours or longer.
Wen ready to bake, brush the
strips with an egg beaten with a
little granulated sugar and bake in
a hot oven for 20 - 25 minutes.
Cut into individual servings.
Coutesy ofthe Leif Eiriksson Ice-
landic Club, Calgary
FAMILYI FUNERAL
COUNSELLORS
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