The Historical Background Behind The Tradition Of Giving Flowers
Gifting flowers or bouquets is possibly the best way to communicate one’s emotions. Flowers and bouquets are made use of for varied purposes, from wishing well to someone on the occasion of his or her birthday or anniversary to conveying an apology, or even to just cheer up someone.
It is believed that this tradition has origins in prehistoric traditions whose evidence has been dug up by excavators at excavation sites. Flowers have always assumed an important place in ancient Rome and Egypt and in the glorious civilizations of ancient Greece and China whose myths and tales clearly reflect this custom. These ancient cultures considered gifting flowers to be a great way of conveying one’s thoughts and emotions. The ancient Greeks even considered some flowers to be associated with divinity.
The Middle Ages saw a continuation of this custom, and France and England were mainly responsible for carrying this tradition down the ages. The modern custom of giving a meaning to each flower is thought to have been brought to Europe after the French and the British witnessed it in Turkey.
The Victorian period popularized this custom of flower giving even further. As overt expression of feelings was considered objectionable during the Victorian era, the refined Victorians cultivated great restraint in language and they balanced this control over language by their gesture of presenting flowers to communicate feelings.
The present rules of giving flowers or bouquets were laid down during this era. For instance, if you bought an elegant bouquet of red roses from the florist and gave it to your beloved upside down, she will surely be cross with you. Red roses, that otherwise depict love, can symbolize anger if gifted upside down. These ideas were so in fashion that in the 19th century, many books about the language of flowers were published and widely read.
Time has not been able to diminish this tradition, and people in the present era still find flowers to be the best means to show their feelings. In the modern age, the tradition of gifting flowers or bouquets is rich in different meanings, and rules and regulations concerning the propriety of the act have gained paramount importance. Gifting a bouquet of red roses is considered to be an expression of love, whereas lilies are considered as representing attractiveness and purity. On the other hand, a yellow rose depicts friendship while a single marigold depicts grief.
Science today has enabled us to grow all kinds of flowers anywhere across the globe. Any good Singapore flower shop will offer a multitude of flower varieties that are both regional and exotic in nature, and are appropriate for expressing your deepest emotions in the most elegant manner.