Board Thread:General Discussion/@comment-4010415-20140421154105/@comment-186.188.71.144-20140421213331

Maybe the emblems are related to the physical manifestation of the character's Aura in some way. And we can see them not just on the character, but also as an effect of their attacks, like the armor Weiss fought in her trailer turned into snowdust when destroyed, or when Nora's grenades explode in the form of lightningbolts.

Sometimes it isn't that obvious straight away. For example: Jaune's semblance is related to a shield, to reflect attacks, a property that he shares with the real world moon in relation to the light, which is also his emblem.