Assumed arms

{{short description|Arms adopted rather than granted in heraldry}}

Assumed arms, in heraldry, are arms which have simply been adopted by the armiger rather than granted by an authority.{{cite book|last1=Friar|first1=Stephen|title=A New Dictionary of Heraldry|date=1987|publisher=Alphabooks|location=London|page=27}}

In England, the founding of the College of Arms was accompanied by a prohibition on the use of assumed arms.{{cite web|title=THE CORDER COLLECTION of heraldic and genealogical manuscripts: a users’ guide|url=http://www.suffolkarchives.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/31-CORDER-COLLECTION-2016-05-26.pdf|website=suffolkarchives.co.uk|publisher=Suffolk County Council|accessdate=December 27, 2017|archive-date=2017-12-27|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171227180356/http://www.suffolkarchives.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/31-CORDER-COLLECTION-2016-05-26.pdf|url-status=dead}} In other countries with an heraldic authority, such as Canada, the use of assumed arms is not illegal, however, "is considered improper and such arms have no legitimacy".{{cite web|title=Common Misconceptions about Heraldry|url=http://www.heraldry.ca/main.php?pg=misc|website=heraldry.ca|publisher=Royal Heraldry Society of Canada|accessdate=December 27, 2017}} As of 1998, five of the seven universities in New Zealand were reported to have been using "legitimate" arms, though many Australian universities were using assumed arms.{{cite book|last1=Boudreau|first1=Claire|title=Genealogica & Heraldica|date=1996|publisher=University of Ottawa Press|isbn=0776616005|page=294}}