The ''Carnet Mondain'' ( French for Social Notebook) of

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

is a directory featuring

high society High society, sometimes simply society, is the behavior and lifestyle of people with the highest levels of wealth and social status. It includes their related affiliations, social events and practices. Upscale social clubs were open to men based ...

(

nobility Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. The character ...

and upper bourgeoisie), Belgian or foreign, established in Belgium, as well as members of

Belgian Belgian may refer to: * Something of, or related to, Belgium * Belgians, people from Belgium or of Belgian descent * Languages of Belgium, languages spoken in Belgium, such as Dutch, French, and German *Ancient Belgian language, an extinct languag ...

families established abroad. It is equivalent to the ''

Social Register The ''Social Register'' is a semi-annual publication in the United States that indexes the members of American high society. First published in the 1880s by newspaper columnist Louis Keller, it was later acquired by Malcolm Forbes. Since 2014, ...

'' in the United States. Its

tagline In entertainment, a tagline (alternatively spelled tag line) is a short text which serves to clarify a thought for, or is designed with a form of, dramatic effect. Many tagline slogans are reiterated phrases associated with an individual, s ...

is "the Familial and Social Belgium" ( French: la Belgique Familiale et Mondaine). It also publishes the coats of arms of these families, when

armigerous In heraldry, an armiger is a person entitled to use a heraldic achievement (e.g., bear arms, an "armour-bearer") either by hereditary right, grant, matriculation, or assumption of arms. Such a person is said to be armigerous. A family or a cl ...

History

This work, which was an initiative of Prince Charles-Louis of Merode, has the advantage of clearly showing the ties of descent between people (up to two degrees). This directory coexists with the

High Life de Belgique The ''High Life de Belgique'' (French for High Life of Belgium) is a Belgian publishing house that was founded in 1880. History It publishes annually a directory containing the contact details of more than twelve thousand families of the high s ...

, which pursues similar objectives.

Admission

Persons wishing to be registered, must submit a written candidacy request supported by three unrelated persons included in previous editions. These new applications are then submitted to the Carnet Mondain admissions committee, which rules in full independence.

References

Social institutions Upper class culture in Europe Genealogy publications Family history Series of books Publishing companies of Belgium Directories {{ref-book-stub

History

Admission

See also

References