gonfalon

(redirected from gonfanon)

gon·fa·lon

 (gŏn′fə-lŏn′, -lən)
n.
A banner suspended from a crosspiece, especially as a standard in an ecclesiastical procession or as the ensign of a medieval Italian republic.

[Italian gonfalone, of Germanic origin; see gwhen- in Indo-European roots.]
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

gonfalon

(ˈɡɒnfələn) or

gonfanon

n
1. (Historical Terms) a banner hanging from a crossbar, used esp by certain medieval Italian republics or in ecclesiastical processions
2. (Heraldry) a battle flag suspended crosswise on a staff, usually having a serrated edge to give the appearance of streamers
[C16: from Old Italian gonfalone, from Old French gonfalon, of Germanic origin; compare Old English gūthfana war banner, Old Norse gunnfani]
Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

gon•fa•lon

(ˈgɒn fə lən)

n.
1. a banner suspended from a crossbar, often with several streamers or tails.
2. a standard, esp. one used by the medieval Italian republics.
[1585–95; < Italian gonfalone < Middle French gonfalon, gonfanon, Old French gunfanun < Frankish *gundfano; compare Old High German gund, Old English gūth battle, Old High German, Old Saxon fano cloth, flag (see vane)]
Random House Kernerman Webster's College Dictionary, © 2010 K Dictionaries Ltd. Copyright 2005, 1997, 1991 by Random House, Inc. All rights reserved.
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Jonathan joined the Royal Heraldry Society of Canada in 1990 and has contributed heraldic articles to Heraldry in Canada, was the Assistant Editor of Hogtown Heraldry, the newsletter of the Toronto Branch of the RHSC, and was the Editor of Gonfanon, the newsletter of the Royal Heraldry Society of Canada.
gonfanon, where, however, the underlying, hypothetical Germanic etymon given in SOED is no longer given.