Aroundel is a circularcharge inheraldry.Roundels are among the oldest charges used incoats of arms, dating from the start of the age of heraldry in Europe,circa 1200–1215. Roundels are typically a solid colour but may becharged with an item or be any of thefurs used in heraldry. Roundels are similar to theannulet, which some heralds would refer to as afalse roundel.^[1]

In some languages, the heraldic roundel has a unique name specific to itstincture, based on the Old French tradition. This is still observed in English-language heraldry, which adopted terms from Old French for specific round items.^[2] Thus, while a gold roundel may beblazoned by its tincture, e.g.,a roundel or, it is more often described as abezant, from theOld French termbesant for a gold coin, which itself is named for theByzantine Empire.^[1]

The terms and their origin can be seen in the following table:

	Metals		Colours
Tincture	Or	Argent	Gules	Azure	Sable	Vert	Purpure	Tenné	Sanguine
Name	Bezant	Plate	Torteau	Hurt	Pellet	Pomme	Golpe	Orange	Guze
Depiction
Origin and meaning	Fr.besant, "gold coin"	Fr.plate, "flat metal disk"	Fr.torteau, "tart"	Eng. "hurtleberry" or Fr.heurt, "bruise"	Eng. "pellet"	Fr.pomme, "apple"	Sp.golpe, "wound"	Eng. "orange"	Eng. "eyeball",[3] origin uncertain[4]

Aroundel vert ("green roundel") is known as apomme, the French word for apple. It was frequently pluralised aspomeis – as in the Heathcote arms:Ermine, three pomeis, each charged with a cross or^[1] – butpommes is now more common. The term for a red roundel,torteau, is typically pluralised in the French manner astorteaux rather thantorteaus, althoughtorteaus is occasionally seen. Apellet may also be called anogress.^[5]

In modern French-language blazonry, a roundel of any metal (Or or Argent) is abesant^[6] (being specified as a "besant d'or" or a "besant d'argent"), and a roundel of any colour is atourteau^[7] (for instance, a blue roundel is a "tourteau d'azur"). However, an alternate naming system is occasionally used, with similar terms as English heraldry (plate forargent,^[8]heurte forazure (fr:azur),^[9]ogress forsable,pomme forvert (fr:sinople),guse forgules (fr:gueules),^[10] andgulpe forpurpure (fr:pourpre)). Archaic names for roundels based on the French tradition are sometimes found in other languages, such as Spanish (seeroel) and Portuguese (seearruela)

In German blazonry, the general word for a roundel isKugel ("ball"); a roundel of silver can also be calledBall, and a roundel of goldBille.

One special example of a named roundel is thefountain, depicted asa roundel barry wavy argent and azure, that is, containing alternating horizontal wavy bands of blue and silver (or white). Because the fountain consists equally of parts in a light and a dark tincture, its use is not limited by therule of tincture as are the other roundels. The traditional fountain in heraldry was abarry wavy of six, that is, with six alternating wavy rows of white and blue.^[1]

Another name for the fountain is thesyke (Northern English for "well").^[11][12] One of the most well-known and ancient uses of the fountain is in the arms of theStourton family. Three fountains appear on the arms ofCounty Leitrim, Ireland.

In their earliest uses, roundels were often strewn or sown as seeds (Latin:semen, -inis, a seed) upon the field of a coat of arms, blazoned assemée/semy, an arrangement with numerous varieties. For example, a fieldsemy of plates (i.e.roundels argent) could be blazonedplaty; a fieldsemy of pellets (i.e.roundels sable) could be blazonedpellety. The precise number and placement of the roundels in such cases were usually left to the discretion of the artist.

• Annulet (heraldry)

• Heraldic charges

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• Use dmy dates from December 2020