Variant of 'avellan'; a heraldic cross with cleft or forked terminals resembling hazelnuts.
French form of 'avellan,' also from the Spanish 'avellan' (hazelnut). Both 'avellan' and 'avellane' were used interchangeably in medieval English heraldic literature.
The slight variations in spelling (avellan vs. avellane) show how heraldic terms traveled through languages—medieval heralds borrowed from Spanish, French, and each other, creating different spellings of the same thing!
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