Monday, December 21, 2009

Allow Flowers To Say What You Can't

By Fritz Jackson

Dating back to historical times, flowers have been a profession of kindness. We usually give them to those we love. We gift flowers to show them how important they are, to show admiration, to celebrate occasions, or even to sympathize. What we don't know is that sending certain types of flowers, and even their colors, actually have significances of their own.

Floriography: (Language Of Flowers)

During medieval & Renaissance times, flowers were often given moral meanings. This is evident in artwork where saints are often portrayed with flowers that symbolize the saints' 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," says Liana DeGirolami Cheney in an edition of Sixteenth Century Journal.

During the Victorian era, flowers were used initially to create or add emotion. The language of flowers, sometimes called floriography, began being used as a discreet form of communication. During the 18th century, sending coded messages using flowers became popular. Based on Persian Salaam, a Turkish secret language of flowers, a coded bouquet was sent to profess feelings of attraction, 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 made in Japan use the Hanakotoba code, and still apply the flower-language in popular culture such as in films and animation, like the anime show "Wei Kreuz."

Favorite Meanings Of Flowers

Buy or borrow a dictionary of flowers to see the several interpretations and meanings of flowers. Some of the most well-known flowers and their significances are written 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 noble thoughts Yellow tulip - hopeless love

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