The Victorians used flowers as a discreet form of communication. During the 18th century sending flower messages based on a Turkish secret language of flowers became popular. This was known as sending a 'Persian Salaam' - a coded bouquet to reveal your feelings of love or attraction. The Victorians became very knowledgeable in flower language and chose and arranged their bouquets carefully.
Of course all flowers deal with love and appreciation in some way or another, but their color or arrangement can mean different things.
For example, back then red roses stood for love as they do today, but yellow roses stood for jealousy. If you sent yellow carnations to someone, it meant you were rejecting them.
The study of the meaning of flowers is an actual science known as floriography, and it reveals an extra underlying meaning to sending or receiving flowers - subtle and secret messages can be passed through the different blooms.
"How charmingly a young gentleman can speak to a young lady, and with what eloquent silence in this delightful language."
Many of these secret meanings behind flowers have been forgotten over the centuries, but if there's something you want to say to someone, nothing says it like flowers.
Here are some selected flowers and their particular symbolic meanings:
* Aloe meaning - Grief * Alstroemeria meaning - Devotion; friendship * Alyssum meaning - Worth beyond beauty * Ambrosia meaning - Love returned * Aster meaning - Love; daintiness * Azalea meaning - Take care of yourself for me; fragile passion; * Baby's Breath meaning - Everlasting love; happiness; * Begonia meaning - Beware * Bluebell - constancy and everlasting love * Calendula meaning - Joy * Carnation meaning (in general) - Bonds of affection; * Chysanthemum meaning (in general) - Cheerfulness; * Daisy meaning - Innocence; loyal love; purity; faith; cheer; * Iris meaning - Faith; hope; wisdom and valour; my compliments; * Larkspur meaning (pink) - Fickleness; levity * Lily meaning (general) - Purity * Orange Blossom meaning - Wisdom; purity; eternal love; * Orchid meaning - Love; beauty; refinement; you flatter me * Queen Anne's Lace meaning - Fantasy * Ranunculus meaning - You are radiant with charms * Tulip(general) meaning - Fame; charity; declaration of love
There's certainly more to the meaning of flowers than you might realize. Have fun exploring some of the multiple interpretations, ambiguous meanings and historical contexts behind flowers.
Lawlessflowers.com makes it easy for you to send flowers to Limerick or anywhere else in Ireland or the world...let them put a smile on the face of your friends and loved ones at: http://www.lawlessflowers.com
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