The Flowers of iris✿
Hanakotoba 花言葉
Hanakotoba refers to the ancient art of assigning meanings to flowers. The hidden meaning of the flower determines the message sent to the recipient. One can communicate feelings and emotions without words.
Flowers and their meanings weave into the Japanese way of life. The Japanese have always been spiritual, and they carefully interconnect and associate the intricacies of living things and nature. Flower arranging in Japan is famous. This practice is called Ikebana, which translates to “living flowers.” Ikebana comes from the word ikeru, a Japanese term that translates to “living,” “arrange flowers” or “keep alive.”
Flower in Japanese is hana. With the combination of these two terms, the translation could be “arranging flowers” or “giving life to flowers.” Others refer to it as kadō or “the way of flowers.” Ikebana is a beautiful art form that combines the beauty of nature, its natural elements, as well as the beauty of the mind and the disposition of the one doing the flower arranging. Hanakotoba provides the impetus to silently and colourfully convey whatever emotions someone is feeling and immediately and directly communicate with the recipient nonverbally.
Flowers are very important in the iris. Named after a flower itself, theflower iris is home to a meadow worth of assorted flowers. Highly present in the prints and motifs of the fabrics that are chosen for the clothing, if theflower iris was a magical meadow, here are the first to bloom in its fields.
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Iris
The genus takes its name from the Greek word ἶρις "rainbow."
These colorful flowers share their name with the Greek goddess Iris. Iris is said to travel on the rainbow while carrying messages from the gods to mortals. She is the personification of the rainbow, a servant to the Olympians and especially Queen Hera. Many of the symbolism associated with iris flowers ties back to this goddess.
The iris plant known in Japan as kakitsubata. It is supposed to represent strength and health and is said to ward off evil spirits so it was a often used motif in samurai accouterments like tsubas and armor.
Among traditional Japanese cultural activities, there is a play called "Noh". In the "Noh" play, the spirit of a flower falls in love with a human male. Women are always likened to flowers and in the plays, the spirit of the flower confesses her
love to the man in many unique ways, through costumes, music, dialogue and dances.
Symbolically, in Japan. the most common properties of the Iris are its ability to purify evil energies or protect oneself.
The white iris evokes a declaration of love while the yellow one shows a feeling of happiness. A purple iris can also be given to express deep feelings or an orange flower to evoke a fiery love.
Its long petals symbolize samurai swords as well as health and protection. This spring flower blossoms after the plum and cherry trees.
In China, the iris is a symbol of spring, vitality, and change. Due to the large, delicate petals that resemble butterfly wings, Chinese people sometimes refer to the iris as a butterfly.
In Ancient China, people believed that placing irises around a door or inside a home would keep negative energies away. To this day, people still view the iris as a protector and positive influence.
Th entire brand is named after the flower. Chosen for the way the it looks like the petals are bursting out of their stem. With a colour story stretching across the entire rainbow, it houses all the moods and personality of the brand.
Sunflower
Sunflowers love to move to face and bask in the sun. Their scientific name is helianthus. It comes from the Greek word for sun, helios, and flower, anthus.
In Greek mythology, there was a nymph named Clytie. Clytie was in love with Apollo, the God of Sun. In the beginning, he loved her too.
Soon, he fell in love with another nymph. In a fit of jealous rage, Clytie told the other nymphs' father. The nymphs father, as punishment, buried his daughter alive. This greatly angered Apollo. He was so angry he turned Clytie into a sunflower.
In the end, as her love for him was so strong, she watched him move across the sky every day. Just as how sunflowers follow the sun.
Thanks to the myth of Clytie and Apollo, sunflowers symbolize loyalty and adoration. With this association to the sun, sunflowers are well-known for being a happy flower.
In China, sunflowers symbolize long life, vitality and good luck. And to Native Americans, sunflowers symbolized harvest and provision.
Generally, across the board, sunflowers are the epitome of joy. and many see them as a spiritual flower. Due to their similar appearance to the sun, and the fact that they’re always trying to find the light, many view them as spiritual flowers.
I bring their lively appearance into the iris, the Pond skirt in sunflower is make with a monochromatic sunflower patterned fabric. Capturing more of their texture than their colours, their bursting petals become the main feature.
Anemone
The word anemone, in Greek, means 'daughter of the wind' or "windflower." Windlfower comes from the fact that the delicate flowers are blown open, and dead petals are blown away, by the wind.
Because of this, their delicateness, in the Victorian language of flowers, anemone flowers also signify fragility.
The Metamorphoses of Ovid says that the plant was created by the goddess Aphrodite when she sprinkled nectar on the blood of her dead lover Adonis, suggesting the frailty of the petals that can be easily blown away by the wind.
Another source tells the story as -
According to Greek mythology, anemones sprang out of the tears of Aphrodite while she was mourning the death of her lover, Adonis. Adonis was killed by the gods due to their jealousy over his love affair with the beautiful goddess of love.
The common name windflower is used for the entire genus.
The anemone flowers close up at night and open back up in the morning. As a result, their also symbolize anticipation.
Thought to bring luck and protect against evil, legend has it that when the anemone closes its petals, it's a signal that rain is approaching.
Other mythology connects the anemone to magical fairies, who were believed to sleep under the petals after they closed at sunset. Perhaps it's because of this magical and prophetic tales that today, in the language of flowers, anemones represent anticipation
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Chrysanthemum
Karl Linnaeus is the one who coined the Western name “chrysanthemum." The name derives from the ancient Greek word "chrysos" which means gold and "anthermon" meaning flower. Native to Asia and Northeastern Europe, China was the first to cultivate the chrysanthemums.
Chrysanthemum made their way over to Japan by way of Buddhist monks around 400 AD during the Nara and Heian periods. They later gained popularity in the Edo period. The flower now comes in over 23,000 different variations and species. They bloom anywhere from late summer or early winter making them symbols for autumn/fall.
In Japan, chrysanthemums, kiku 菊, are the flowers of September and they are known as the "solar flower." They represent longevity and rejuvenation.
In China, the chrysanthemum, júhuā 菊花, is the flower of October and they signify intellectual accomplishments and longevity of life.
Buddhists use chrysanthemums as offerings on alters because they embody powerful yang energy. Along with the bamboo, plum blossom, and orchid, the chrysanthemum is considered one of the "Four Gentlemen," or the "Four Noble Ones," in Confucianism.
They begin make an appearance in Europe in the 17th century. They are the flowers of November and. despite their blooming in or near winter, have come to stand for joy and optimism.
Appearing in the Anri dress, Chrysanthemums adorn the cotton-linen blend fabric the first ever Anri dresses were made from. A monochromatic pattern, they are a subtle detail on the dresses.
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Plum Blossom
The plum blossom belongs to the family of Roses and it, too, has a strong fragrant scent. A short lived tree that blooms in early February, it reminds us of how fleeting life is.
The plum blossom, méi-huā 梅花, is a well-known totem in Chinese culture. It is the flower of the month of January and the flower Winter. The five petals are closely related to the five blessings - health, longevity, wealth, love of virtue and peaceful death in old age - and generally stand for luck.
Additionally, the plum blossom is also a symbol for renewal, life and willpower. Because they blossom in winter, along with the pine and the bamboo, the plum blossom is a member of the “Three Friends of Winter (歲寒三友)”, who all most vividly represent the value of endurance.
The plum blossom is a member of the “Four Gentlemen (四君子)” in Chinese art - the others being Orchid, Bamboo, and Chrysanthemum - and together they embody nobility. It is one of the "Flowers of the Four Seasons", which consist of the Orchid (spring), the Lotus (summer), the Chrysanthemum (autumn) and the Plum Blossom (winter).
In the 8th century, plum trees arrived in Japan from China. In Japan, the plum blossom, Ume, is the flower of February. There, though the cherry blossom overshadows it, it still holds great importance. It is a sign of spring and stands for protection and health. In Japanese culture, Ume trees are " protectors from demons and evils."
They are the national flower of Taiwan. Because they bloom in the cold, harsh and snowy-weather of winter, they remark resilience and diligence in the face of great adversity.
Generally, around the world, the plum blossom is the embodiment perseverance, hope, beauty, purity, and the transitiveness of life.
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Ginkgo
The ginkgo is old. It comes from the time of the dinosaurs and has unique features unlike any plant alive today. Botanists consider it a “living fossil.”
The tree's rounded fronds are found in fossils going back 270 million years, with the ancient version of the plant looking much the same as today's. At least 150 million years ago, ginkgo grew all across the Northern Hemisphere but was virtually wiped out in a major extinction event following the last ice age. Luckily, a few specimens survived in China. The ginkgo tree has no known living relatives.
The name Ginkgo comes from the Chinese name Yin Kuo, which means silver fruit. Ginkgo is the oldest surviving species of tree known to exist, with a botanical history spanning more than 200 million years. Specimens have reached over 3500 years old.
Ginkgo represents longevity, strength, resilience, and enlightenment. Its demonstration of resilience and antiquity has granted the tree much symbolic recognition throughout the world. It has become a symbol of strength, hope and peace for many.
For centuries, the ginkgo tree has served as a symbol of hope and peace in its native land of China, and that representation widely demonstrates in Chinese literature and art. When the United States dropped a nuclear bomb on Hiroshima, Japan, near the detonation site were several trees, 170 of which survived the blast. Six of these trees were damaged ginkgo trees, which are now known as hibaku in Japan. Hibaku is a Japanese word that means "something that has experienced a nuclear bomb." Even though scientists predicted that nothing would grow at the site for 75 years, the ginkgo trees and several others fully recovered, and now, ginkgo is a symbol of endurance and vitality.
Often seen as yin and yang, duality recognizes male and female sides of all living creatures. Duality also teaches that both light and darkness are of equal importance. Although ginkgo trees are dioecious, having either male or female reproductive organs, the leaves of the plant possess a two-lobed structure. The name biloba acknowledges this. The trees celebrate the importance of both yin and yang. It is a tree that can survive for 1,000 or more years.
Due to its age, ginkgo is an elder with high magical energy. It is useful in longevity and age spells. Some cultures plant ginkgo on the occasion of births to ensure long life, and in death to ensure tranquillity in the afterlife.
A true "Tree of Life."
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Daisy
Bellis may come from bellus, Latin for "pretty", and perennis is Latin for "everlasting".
The name "daisy", possibly originating with this plant, is considered a corruption of "day's eye", because the whole head closes at night and opens in the morning. It is sometimes called "eye of the day."
Daisies' soft white petals and clean structure symbolize purity and innocence, especially in Christian and Catholic traditions.
In Hanakotoba , the Japanese language of flowers, Daisies carry the meaning of “beauty,” “peace,” and “hope.” Daisies are favored by those who are innocent.
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References
Lehner, Ernst, and Johanna Lehner. Folklore and Symbolism of Flowers, Plants, and Tress with over 200 Rare and Unusual Floral Designs and Illustrations . Tudor Publishing Company, 1960.
https://www.flowersociety.org/japanese-iris.htm