Friday, January 8, 2010

Say It With Flowers

By Forrest Jackson

Dating back to ancient times, flowers have been a profession of kindness. We usually give them to those we care for. We give flowers to let them find out how important they are, to show admiration, to celebrate an occasion, or even to sympathize. What we don't know is that giving certain kinds of flowers, and even their colors, actually have definitions of their own.

Floriography: (Language Of Flowers)

During medieval and Renaissance times, flowers were often given moral meanings. This can be widely seen in art where saints are often portrayed with flowers that represent or symbolize their virtues. "Some of the Christian symbols for Virginity or Chastity are the white rose, the myrtle, a vessel or vase, the lily, and the unicorn," according to Liana DeGirolami Cheney in an edition of Sixteenth Century Journal.

During the Victorian era, flowers began to create or add emotion. The language of flowers, sometimes referred to as floriography, began being used as a discreet form of communication. In the 18th century, sending messages in code using flowers became popular. Based on a Turkish secret language of flowers, known as Persian Salaam, a coded flower arrangement could be sent to express feelings of attraction or even love.

Back in 1819, a book entirely about interpretations of flowers called "Le Language des Fleurs," was written by Madame Charlotte de la Tour. A similar book, "Language of Flowers" by Kate Greenaway, was written in 1884 and is still being used nowadays.

Japan also has a language of flowers, which they call "Hanakotoba." Greeting cards in Japan use the Hanakotoba code, and still use the flower-language in popular culture such as in films and animation, like the anime show "Wei Kreuz."

Favorite Flower Meanings

Purchase or borrow a dictionary of flowers to see the various meanings and interpretations of flowers. Some of the most well-known flowers and their meanings are listed below:

Buttercup - riches Pink carnations - a woman's love Chrysanthemum - love in general Forget-me-not - true love Lavender - devotion, distrust Purple lilac - first emotion of love White lily - purity Peach blossom- long-life Red rose - true love Sunflower - pure and lofty thoughts Yellow tulip - hopeless love - 16890

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