FLORIOGRAPHY FROM THE VICTORIANS AND BEYOND

Floriography is a ‘language of flowers’, a coded communication using specific flowers with associated meanings to express feelings or wishes. While Floriography has been in use throughout history it was especially popular during the Victorian era, which is little wonder in a society that shunned flirtation and outward expression. Being able to safely send and receive deeper messages would have been essential to a person’s emotional survival.Today, Floriography continues to be ‘spoken’, though mostly in a simplistic and highly commercial way, being eagerly exploited by the celebration industry. Who could picture Valentine’s Day without a dozen red roses, bouquets of carnations and chrysanthemums for Mothers’ Day or wedding arrangements frothing with white roses and lily the valley? Before the Victorians constructed their botanical diction, much of the symbolism of flowers was highly regional, distinct to local folklore, with some fascinating concepts ascribed to anything that bloomed, from the plushest rose to the tiniest wildflower. Here are just a few examples of the complex language of flowers.

 

Bluebell
These vibrant heralds of spring have enjoyed representations ranging from loneliness and regret, to kindness,
humility, and constancy. Depending on where you live in Britain, bringing Bluebells into the house may be unlucky,
so check your local folklore as you could be inviting the sweet blessings of the fairy folk into your home, or dooming yourself to mishap.

Forget-Me-Nots
With their five delicate petals, these tiny flowers represented a loved-one’s faithfulness and were worn to show
fidelity when separated from a partner. There is one myth that tells of a man who was swept into a river while trying to pick them for his lover. His dying words of ‘forget me not’ is how the flower earned its name.

The flower was used as a personal emblem by Henry of Lancaster, while he was exiled in Europe in 1398. It was retained as the royal emblem when he was crowned King Henry IV of England.

Hawthorn
A constant companion of roadsides and hedges, hawthorn symbolised hope to the Victorians. Older lore suggests that the blossoms may aid love and fertility, as long as it is kept outside. As the plant is beloved of the fairy queen, the first of May is the only day a bouquet of Hawthorn flowers can be brought indoors. Its language is further evolving to encompass the vocabulary of global warming. Due to its temperature-sensitive blossoming, it is watched carefully by scientists for its response to climate change.

Primrose
Traditionally they have been a symbol of protection against fairy mischief and if you wish to ward off dark magic, gather them carefully, ensuring there are at least thirteen flowers in a bunch. The Victorians, however, saw some varieties as a symbol of how little trust you invested in the words of a fickle lover.

Poppy
Depending on the colour, they could symbolise remembrance, consolation and even wealth. As far back as Mesopotamia, this vibrant flower has been associated with sleep, dreams, healing, and various forms of divination. According to Welsh folklore, one must not bring yellow poppies into the house as they will cause headaches, storms, or lightning strikes. However, placing wild poppy seeds under your pillow will reveal a future lover’s face, or may help you to dream the answer to a question pondered while falling asleep.

Violet
Watchfulness, faithfulness, I’ll always be true, according to the Victorians. Wild violets are also associated with Persephone, as it was the flower she was gathering when abducted by Hades. They are a flower of our changeable nature, the cycle of death and rebirth or the uncertainty of new love. Caution is advised when picking wild violets, you may not be snatched away into the Underworld, rather something more banal; in some areas of Devon, it
is believed that bringing violets into the house will place a curse on the hens and they will refuse to lay.

As with any language, Floriography has evolved over the centuries, according to local culture and geography and is
held together by the grammar of its etiquette. The role of giver and receiver, whether the bloom is singular, or part of a bouquet is as important as that which it symbolises. Remember, unless you wish to betray yourself as the secret admirer, never give a bride thirteen red roses on her wedding day!