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Heraldic terms are occasionally encountered in literature, such as in Mark Twain's The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn where we dutifully defined every term Tom used in his armorial description.

People encounter heraldic symbols in everyday life without thinking about it (Maryland's flag and the New Orlean's Saint's logo are two examples). But many Americans might be surprised that in England, Scottland, Canada, etc. there still exist laws of heraldic arms where armorial bearings are granted; not everyone is armigerous.