Dictionary of Vexillology: A (Aqua – Argent)

Last modified: 2025-10-25 by martin karner
Keywords: vexillological terms |
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On this page:

• AQUA
• AQUILA
• AQUILIFER
• ARAB LIBERATION COLOURS (or COLORS)
• ARAB REVOLT FLAG
• ARCH-DUCAL CORONET (or HAT)
• ARCHED
• ARCHIEPISCOPAL CROSS
• ARCHIVEXILLIFER
• ARCHIVEXILLUM
• ARDENT
• ARGENT

AQUA

A heraldic term for the colour of water – see proper.

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AQUILA

See eagle 1).

Aquila/Eagle Standard of a Roman Legion (source)

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AQUILIFER

A bearer of the ancient Roman legionary eagle – see eagle 1) (also vexillary and vexilloid).

Aquilifer (tin figure, pinterest.com)

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ARAB LIBERATION COLOURS (or COLORS)

1) A term used for the predominantly red white and black colours introduced by Egypt in their flag of 1958 – the colours of Arab liberation – but see note below.

2) See pan-Arab colours.

National Flag of Egypt; National Flag of the Yemen; National Flag of Iraq

Please note that the red, white and black (with or without a touch of green) introduced by Egypt in their tricolour of 1958 (as illustrated below) are included by some sources with the pan Arab Colours as referenced above.

National Flag of Egypt 1958–1972

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ARAB REVOLT FLAG

That flag which inspired the pan-Arab colours, a sharifian flag – see pan-Arab colours and their following notes.

Arab Revolt Flag 1917–1920

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ARCH-DUCAL CORONET (or HAT)

See coronet 2).

Arms and Flag of Wallachia c1640; Arms of Salzburg, Austria

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ARCHED

The heraldic term sometimes used in place of embowed when describing an ordinary that is bowed or bent – enarched – see embowed (also ordinary).

Arms and Flag of Austrheim, Norway

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ARCHIEPISCOPAL CROSS

A heraldic term for the cross of Lorraine – see cross of Lorraine.

Flag of Sarreguemines, France; Flag of Małogoszcz, Poland

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ARCHIVEXILLIFER

An honorary title, now obsolete, for the chief standard or flag bearer to the emperors of the Holy Roman Empire (see also the note following archivexillum), and gonfaloniership).

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ARCHIVEXILLUM

See template flag.

UK Blue Ensign; Government Service Ensign, UK; Flag of the Department of Trade and Industry, UK

Please note that the word appears in a 19th century German etymological dictionary as the origin of the term erzbanner (that may be translated as chief or imperial banner) but – with the exception of a possible relationship to the term archivexillifer – this is otherwise unsupported by further sources – see archivexillifer.

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ARDENT

An alternative heraldic term to inflamed – see inflamed.

Flag and Arms of Velika Ludina, Croatia

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ARGENT

A heraldic term for the metal silver that is generally shown as white in flags – but see note below (also embroider, metals, or, and rule of tincture).

Please note that Argent is occasionally seen as grey, sometimes as silver leaf or metallic paint, or in an embroidered design, as silver thread

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