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CULTURE READS
The History of Gifting Flowers
The Valentine rush may just have passed, with many people sending and receiving gifts like chocolates, stuffed animals, and of course, flowers. Yet flower-giving does not simply fade once February 14 ends. The gesture continues to carry meaning long after the occasion.
While everyone sees the intimate and thoughtful gesture in flower-giving, it’s more likely recognized as a generic act of affection rather than something with a much deeper meaning, a meaning that traces all the way back to the Ancient Greeks. With romance still lingering in the air, it would be great to revisit this history and maybe bring back the charming sense of flowers as gifts.
DATEFEBRUARY 15, 2026
AUTHORANGELA CLARE AGPAWA
READ10 Min
History of Giving Flowers
During the ancient Greek period, flowers were often brought to temples as floral offerings to honor their gods and goddesses. As time went by, the tradition extended to giving flowers to beautiful women or earthly goddesses. From there, flowers became a symbol of various meanings to express their feelings.
Like the Greeks, the Ancient Egyptians also perceived flowers as something holy, offering them to the pharaohs by placing them in their tombs to fend off evil spirits. They also used flowers in festivals like the Opet Festival, which celebrated the time the river Nile’s floodwaters replenished the land and restored Egypt’s fertility.
During the Victorian Era, people suppressed public emotion due to strict social codes that valued conservatism. This suppression was a reaction to perceived societal instability and religious beliefs, later creating tension between inner emotional lives and outward stoicism.
Because of this, the idea of using flowers as a way to express sentiments was especially helpful to the Victorians, eventually adopting it as a subtle coded communication, like the language of flowers (Floriography) for private feelings.
Floriography (The Language of Flowers)
It’s not an exaggeration to say “flowers have meanings” or “flowers are a whole new language.” You may come across online posts or read books that state those high-sounding one-word meanings for certain flowers, like innocence, amiability, or rigor, but really, you can also give someone a yellow carnation to politely say “I don’t like you,” while they look at it and think they received pretty flowers. That’s mean though, try not to do that!
The term Floriography is used to describe the cryptologic language of flowers in which flower species are given specific meanings. Specific flower arrangements hold secret messages or emotions that can be displayed to the recipient. Though flowers have been used as symbols since ancient times in all parts of the globe, the practice of floriography did not become widely popular until the Victorian Era (1837-1901) in England and the United States.
In 1819, the first-ever flower dictionary titled Le Langage des Fleurs by the French author Charlotte de la Tour was published, explaining the meanings behind hundreds of flower species. Many other floral dictionaries and almanacs were in circulation by the turn of the century that describe species of flowers, their meanings, and usage origins. During the era, these books became a standard piece of literature in homes, including two other influential books such as the Floral Emblems: or a guide to the language of flowers by Henry Phillips and Language of Flowers by Kate Greenaway, which are still in print today.
The meanings of flowers depended on a lot of things, such as religion, mythology, folklore, literature, and even medicinal use.
Flower Traditions in Different Cultures
Love white lilies? You might like receiving them, but you might want to think twice about giving them if you’re somewhere in the UK. In British culture, white lilies are strongly associated with funerals and sympathy. They often symbolize purity, peace, and remembrance, which is why they appear so often at memorial services. With that association, giving white lilies in a celebratory or romantic setting can feel misplaced to some people, even if no offense is intended. They aren’t inherently disrespectful, but the meaning they carry makes them a better fit for solemn environments rather than festive ones.
China follows the same principle except with chrysanthemums and white flowers in general. In Russia, this applies but with a different expression. Instead of focusing on flower type or color, the meaning depends on the number of stems. Even-numbered bouquets are reserved for funerals and graves, while odd numbers belong to celebrations.
In Brazil, flower-giving is something mostly done by women rather than by men. It’s not common for men to send flowers; if they do, it’s usually only to their wives.
In Mexico, yellow flowers symbolize death. They are only used for Day of the Dead celebrations. Let’s rummage through our Disney x Pixar knowledge and think of the movie Coco.
Many more floral traditions exist globally. We interpret everything differently, while that is confusing in essence, it’s also a large part of what makes culture beautiful. Just back it up with a quick research and your flowers are bound to be perceived as having good intentions.
Flower-Giving in the Modern Era
Being an ancient knowledge, not a lot of people know much about flower language anymore, so nobody really reads much into it when given flowers; if you send or receive one, they are automatically viewed as a sign of affection.
In the modern era, not only are the flowers’ meanings put aside, but even the color or type. Artistry and creativity have led us to the creation of flowers made of paper, clay, fuzzy wire, satin ribbon, and even plastic bottles, and what has made it to the top trends recently is handmade satin ribbon flowers!
The silk ribbon flowers are trendy because they look neat, elegant, and uniquely different from real flowers. They have a shine that doesn’t fade, they never wither, and because they are handmade, just looking at them makes you think of the effort put into making them.
MN FLOWER.PH is one of the best local makers of handcrafted ribbon bouquets in the digital market. If you’re looking to get a fully customized arrangement to celebrate future anniversaries, milestones, or other occasions, you can check out Iskaparate.
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