The German surname of KUHN was a baptismal name 'the descendant of Kuhn' a pet form of Kunrat, the German form of Conrad. Conrad I (died 918) was the king of Germany, son of the Count of Franconia and nephew of the Emperor Arnulf. He was elected king on the extinction of the direct Carolingian line in 911, and gradually re-established the imperial authority over most of the German princes. He carried on an unsuccessful war with France, and at last fell mortally wounded at Quedlinburg in a battle with the Hungarians. CONDRAD of Montferrat (died 1192) was the Italian crusader, who distinguished himself during the defence of Tyre against Saladin in 1187. In 1192 he was elected king of Jerusalem as consort of the heiress Isabella, daughter of Almalric I, but was murdered by the Assassins before he could be crowned. The first hereditary surnames on German soil are found in the second half of the 12th century, slightly later than in England and France. However, it was not until the 16th century that they became stabilized. The practice of adopting hereditary surnames began in the southern areas of Germany, and gradually spread northwards during the Middle Ages. The word Heraldry is derived from the German HEER, (a host, an army) and HELD, (champion): the term BLASON, by which the science is denoted in French, English, Italian and German, has most probably its origin in the German word 'BLAZEN' (to blow the horn). Whenever a new knight appeared at a Tournament, the herald sounded the trumpet, and as competitors attended with closed vizors, it was his duty to explain the bearing of the shield or coat-armour belonging to each. Thus, the knowledge of the various devices and symbols was called 'Heraldry'. The Germans transmitted the word to the French, and it reached England after the Norman Conquest of 1066. The lion depicted in the arms is the noblest of all wild beasts which is made to be the emblem of strength and valour, and is on that account the most frequently borne in Coat-Armour
Mom and her boys
Taken in Shaker Hts. Ohio at Mom Kuhn's Birthday Party
Mom and Dad Kuhn
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