fleur de lys

     

The fleur-e-lys (or fleur-de-lis, plural: fleurs-de-lis; pronounced 'fluhr-duh-lee', translated from French as "lily flower") is a stylized design of either an iris or a lily and is used both decoratively and symbolically. It may be purely ornamental or it may be "at one and the same time political, dynastic, artistic, emblematic and symbolic", especially in heraldry. While it has appeared on countless European coats of arms and flags over the centuries, the fleur-de-lis is particularly associated with the French monarchy on a historical context, and nowadays with the Spanish monarchy as the only remaining monarchs of the House of Bourbon (Anjou Bourbon). It is an enduring symbol of France, but, being regarded most notably as the emblem of the monarchy, was not adopted officially by any of the French republics. By contrast, as Spain is a constitutional monarchy, the fleur-de-lis symbol is associated with the Spanish King Juan Carlos I (of French dynasty origin) and the Kingdom of Spain. In North America, the fleur-de-lis is often associated with areas formerly settled by France, such as Quebec and Louisiana and with the Francophones in other Canadian provinces. It is also the emblem of the Swiss Municipality of Schlieren, Zurich.

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