Occitan cross

The Occitan cross (Occitan: crotz occitana [ˈkɾuts utsiˈtanɔ] ^ⓘ), also called cross of Occitania (crotz d'Occitània), cross of Languedoc (crotz de Lengadòc) or cross of Toulouse (crotz de Tolosa), heraldically "cross cleché, pommettée and voided", is a heraldic cross, today chiefly used as a symbol of Occitania. In the Chanson de la Croisade Albigeoise, it goes by the name of "Raymondine cross" (crotz ramondenca or ramondina).

The design was probably first used in the coat of arms of the counts of Forcalquier (in modern Provence), in the 12th century, and by the counts of Toulouse in their capacity as Marquises of Provence, on 13th century coins and seals. It later spread to the other provinces of Occitania, namely Provence, Guyenne, Gascony, Dauphiné, Auvergne and Limousin.

A yellow Occitan cross on a blood-red background with the seven-armed golden star of the Felibritge makes up the flag of modern-day Occitania. It can also be found in the emblems of Midi-Pyrénées, Languedoc-Roussillon (now both part of the administrative region of Occitania, which also features the cross in its symbols) and Hautes-Alpes, among many others, as well as in cemeteries and at country crossroads.

The blazon of the modern emblem is "gules, a cross cleché/pattée pommettée voided" or "in a red field, a gold cross with keys/paws/spheres/apples, in outline" (Occitan: de golas a la crotz voidada, clechada/patèa e pometada d'aur), also described as "cross pattée botonnée", "cross pommettée", "cross toulouse", or "cross fleury voided/in skeleton".