Prepping for multiple registrations
Hi everyone! I'm an American prepping to register my arms with multiple private registries. I’ve been told that different heraldic registries — including highly respected ones — may apply their own house styles or even idiosyncratic preferences when writing (blazoning) arms. For example, I was told that the old NEHGS/American Ancestors register has long used its own distinctive blazoning style, while other private registries often mirror the traditions of their home heraldic authorities (English, Scottish, Canadian, etc.).
That surprised me a bit, because I had assumed the blazon was almost “sacrosanct” — that once established, it would remain essentially identical everywhere, regardless of registry.
So now I’m wondering:
If someone registers the same arms with multiple registries, is it normal for the blazon wording to differ between them?
Are these usually just stylistic/grammatical differences, or can they become substantively different?
Is the blazon best understood somewhat like heraldic artwork — interpreted through the traditions and preferences of the particular herald or registry?
Or is there generally considered to be one “canonical” wording that ought to stay fixed everywhere?
How much variation is considered acceptable before people would say the arms themselves have actually changed?
Please help me to understand this, thanks everyone! I’d be especially interested in hearing from people who have registered arms in more than one place.