House Lannister is an ancient house and is one of the Great houses of the Seven Kingdoms. Through their matrilineal heritage House Lannister boasts relation to Lann the Clever.
Two branches are known to exist. One at the ancestral home of House Lannister itself at Casterly Rock, and the other at nearby Lannisport. The Sigil is a golden lion on a field of crimson. The official motto is "Hear Me Roar!" However, their unofficial motto, equally well known, is "A Lannister always pays his debts." As per tradition, the Warden of the West is nominally a Lannister.
House Lannister's influence over the Westerlands has earned the entirety of westerlanders to be referred to as Lions and Lannisters colloquially.
Fair-haired, tall, and handsome, the Lannisters are the blood of Andaladventurers who carved out a mighty kingdom in the western hills and valleys.