Banners

A banner can be a flag or other piece of cloth bearing a symbol, logo, slogan or other message. A flag whose design is the same as the shield in a coat of arms (but usually in a square or rectangular shape) is called a banner of arms. Also, a bar shape piece of non-cloth advertising material sporting a name, slogan, or other marketing message.

Banner-making is an ancient craft. Church banners commonly portray the saint to whom the church is dedicated.

The word derives from French word "bannière" and late Latin bandum, a cloth out of which a flag is made (Latin: banderia, Italian: bandiera, Portuguese: bandeira, Spanish: bandera). The German language developed the word to mean an official edict or proclamation and since such written orders often prohibited some form of human activity, bandum assumed the meaning of a ban, control, interdict or excommunication. Banns has the same origin meaning an official proclamation, and abandon means to change loyalty or disobey orders, semantically "to leave the cloth or flag".

The vexillum was a flag-like object used as a military standard by units in the Ancient Roman army. The word vexillum is a diminutive of the Latin word, velum, meaning a sail, which confirms the historical evidence (from coins and sculpture) that vexilla were literally "little sails" i.e. flag-like standards. In the vexillum the cloth was draped from a horizontal crossbar suspended from the staff; this is unlike most modern flags in which the 'hoist' of the cloth is attached directly to the vertical staff.

A heraldic banner, also called banner of arms, displays the basic coat of arms only: i.e. it contains the design usually displayed on the shield and omits the crest, helmet or coronet, mantling, supporters, motto or any other elements associated with the coat of arms (for further details of these elements, see heraldry).

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