Coat of Arms

[Sir Didymous]

One more thing to add to this post: don't forget that the best way to identify a possible link to a clan is a geographic location; ancestors who were from the traditional area associated with a particular clan. A Williamson from Fife, for example, would most likely not be a part of Clan Gunn, while a Williamson from Wick or Thurso would most likely have that necessary connection.

T.

The region thing is indeed a bit confusing to sort out, but worth it in the end. It's why even though I'm of the clan Ferguson, I wear a sprig of pine instead of the little sunflower. According to a few sources, my strain of the clan is from Strachur, and uses pine. Though from what I can tell, this seems to be a little followed custom. Most people (at least in my neck of the woods) are content in the knowledge of having a name that pairs up with a country and just go with that.

[MacGumerait]

Steve Ashton

Yes, my family came from Scotland. I do not know if they were big of a clan to have a family crest. I am
also part of the Montgomery line also since my great grandmother was a Montgomery. I was also told
that the Thomas did not have a coat of arms because they were a small group and they were a sept to
the Montgomery.

boats

Greetings boats ,

Always good to see someone with some Montgomery lineage ( your great grandmother ) on board this ship .

The Montgomery Clan has no septs , however , there are various spellings of the surname . The good folks here are pointing you in the right direction .

If you can determine the area of Scotland your Thomas family is from , it should help you in figuring out which clan that " your " Thomas surname has possible connections .

Best of luck to you .

Cheers , Mike

[cessna152towser]

Only the recognised Chief of a Scottish Clan, or Head of Family in the case of a lowland Scottish family has the right to bear the undifferenced personal Arms of the family name.
What you can achieve is a grant from the Lord Lyon to be recognised as an Armiger when you can have your personal Arms which are generally similar to the family Arms but will be differenced in some way. To be recognised as an Armiger you need to have been born in Scotland, be of good character and to prove your Scottish paternal lineage through at least four generations.
As an example my Grant of Arms from the Lord Lyon includes the Cunningham shakefork but is differenced with a small propeller and cogwheel, suggested by the Lord Lyon as I am descended from a line of engineers, my late father having specialised in aircraft engines.
There is of course nothing to stop you wearing a clan badge on your cap or in the form of a kilt pin.

[boats]

The link I offer is one of many that will lead you to fill your quest.
https://www.houseofnames.com/

I stand by Mr. Ashton's comment. My link was to lead you to a family crest (not to a particular coat of arms). I wasn't being as specific as see your question was. Please forgive my oversight.

Thank you very much. That is what I was looking for. I am in the process of making a family crest.

boats

[Mike_Oettle]

Boats, when you refer to a family crest, I hope you mean that you are creating an image of the crest of the chief of Clan MacThomas, inside a strap and buckle, which is the accepted badge of a clansman.
This is illustrated on the MacThomas website and shows a cat holding a snake (the actual crest) and, on the strap and buckle, the motto Deo juvante invidiam superabo.
Any clansman may display this badge in his home, or wear a metal reproduction of it on his bonnet.

The crest is the part of the heraldic achievement that sits on top of the helmet.
Together with the helmet, mantling (decorative flourishes), shield and motto it forms the full achievement, also called a coat of arms.
You probably saw the picture of the chief’s banner on the website as well. This shows the contents of his shield of arms in the form of a flag, technically called a banner of arms.
You may display an image the chief’s full achievement, or of his banner in your home, provided the display makes it clear that it is not your coat of arms, but that of the chief of your clan.

You have been advised to apply to the Lord Lyon for matriculation of the arms to yourself. This is one possibility, and (provided money is no object) the best possible way of doing it.
You will be granted a shield that shows at least part of the quarterings on the chief’s shield or banner, with suitable differences to indicate that you belong to a branch of the clan.
You might be granted the same crest, but more likely it will be a similar one or, if you so choose, an entirely different one. The motto you use can be one of your own choosing, but traditionally clansmen’s mottoes “respond” to the chief’s motto.
Such a matriculation will be quite pricy (the Lyon Court website will indicate the cost), but it will provide you with a beautifully illustrated painting of the arms, together with calligraphy that explains who you are and why you are being registered with the arms, as well as the blazon, or technical description, of the arms.

If this is beyond your means, you (as a US citizen) are by no means obliged to take the Lyon Court route.
When you have done the appropriate research, you can apply to one of the private registries in the United States. Another possibility is applying to the Bureau of Heraldry in Pretoria.
Neither a private registry nor the Bureau will provide a coat of arms that will necessarily be accepted by the Lord Lyon, but the Bureau will do its best to provide you one that is differenced in accordance with Scottish tradition, using the Stodart system of differencing (widely, but not too strictly, applied by Lyon Court).

My coat of arms is registered in Pretoria. It is an adaptation of a device my family has used for centuries, but in fact belongs to a family from another part of Germany which spells its surname slightly differently.
Now that I have registered my arms, any other member of my family may apply to the Bureau to register a similar device.
This would be an option open to other members of your family too.
Regards,
Mike

[boats]

Greetings boats ,

Always good to see someone with some Montgomery lineage ( your great grandmother ) on board this ship .

The Montgomery Clan has no septs , however , there are various spellings of the surname . The good folks here are pointing you in the right direction .

If you can determine the area of Scotland your Thomas family is from , it should help you in figuring out which clan that " your " Thomas surname has possible connections .

Best of luck to you .

Cheers , Mike

That is how I joined the clan. I also got a kilt for the clan but it is 16 oz. wool and it is toooo hot
to wear it here in the Houston, Tx. area. I am planning to wear it on the cruise next year.


boats

[boats]

Um, yes. I just learned that not all those named Thomas belong to MacThomas, so some more research might be needed. "The Scottish Tartans," by Johnston and Bacon, lists Thomas as connected to Campbell or Mackintosh.

If that was the case, would the Thomas family wear either of the clan tartan or would they have their own
tartan to wear. From what my brother told me, that my Thomas line came from Wales and the earliest
he got them in Wales is sometime in the 1700's. None of the Thomas's went to Scotland. He got all
the paper work on that. I looked at House of Names and found Thomas of Wales tartan. It is read
in color. Do you know any clan or association that I can contact and found out? Would it be right for me
to wear that kilt at all? Since I am redheaded, I thought that color kilt will go good with my red hair.

boats

May calm seas and fair winds follow you.

[Dughlas mor]

Boats, you have managed to confuse me. [not a difficult thing to do] If your Thomas blood is Scottish, then you may belong to the MacThomas clan, or you may belong to one of the clans that claim Thomas as a sept, or you may belong to no clan at all. The only way to know is to trace your Thomas ancestors back to where they came from in Scotland. There is no Scottish tartan for Thomas. But now you seem to be saying that your Thomas blood is Welsh. If that is the case, the Thomas of Wales tartan would surely be the one to go with. I just had a look at that tartan and it is a nice one.

[boats]

Boats, you have managed to confuse me. [not a difficult thing to do] If your Thomas blood is Scottish, then you may belong to the MacThomas clan, or you may belong to one of the clans that claim Thomas as a sept, or you may belong to no clan at all. The only way to know is to trace your Thomas ancestors back to where they came from in Scotland. There is no Scottish tartan for Thomas. But now you seem to be saying that your Thomas blood is Welsh. If that is the case, the Thomas of Wales tartan would surely be the one to go with. I just had a look at that tartan and it is a nice one.

?

Yes, the Thomas tartan is a nice one. I found out from my brother that my ancestor came from Llanwenarth, Monmouthshire, Wales. Could that area be where Thomas of Wales or the clan came from?

[Dughlas mor]

I don`t think that there was ever a clan system in Wales comparable to the one in the Scottish Highlands, so there isn`t really a Welsh Thomas "clan." I know that Thomas is a very common surname in Wales. Until fairly recently, there was no such thing as a Welsh tartan, or a welsh kilt. (cilt) The Welsh name tartans were developed, I believe, in the 1970`s, and have slowly gained popularity. The Welsh Thomas tartan would certainly be appropriate for anyone named Thomas who is of Welsh descent.