JAPANESE FLOWERS & THEIR MEANINGS

by Obata Sugizo

flowers of friendship
These are the site's flowers: yellow roses (kiiroibara in Japanese language). To the Japanese, they mean 'friendship'.

 

Flowers That Are Made Into Samurai Family Crests   Flowers Associated with or Named by Samurai

 

The following is info about the Japanese flower language which is called hana kotoba.

You might find it interesting, if you don't intend to follow the guideline in choosing motifs for your kimono (for men and women alike), or to avoid making a mistake in sending flowers to Japanese ladies (or men).

In Japan, flowers and flower-giving are not exclusively for women. As you might have known, the samurai is an aesthete. He treasures flowers and take them as a part of life as a warrior. This concept is different radically from what Western people think about flowers.

However, since after World War II, the Japanese way of thinking, lifestyle and habits have been influenced by Western thoughts, therefore today it is not uncommon to find young Japanese people unaware of their own traditions, including the one about flowers and their meanings. They usually refer to the flower language of European origins, instead of our own.

Flower language is used in many movies and animation in Japan, such as Weiss Kreuz. Also greeting cards made in Japan follow the codes in this flower language.

The following are our flowers for illustrations, which I assign to my friends according to my observation ^..^

 

daisy hydrangea lotus
my flower:
hinagiku (daisy)

faith
Nina Wilhelmina's flower:
ajisai (hydrangea)

pride
Arisugawa Takashi's flower:
suiren (lotus)

far from the one he loves
     
magnolia poppy lily
Hasegawa Tomoko's flower:
magnolia
natural
Mary B. Morton's flower:
poppy
fun-loving
Aso Fujiko's flower:
yuri (spider lily)
sweet
     
hibiscus daffodil zinnia
Rick Rock's flower:
hibiscus

gentle ^..^
Matt Emery's flower:
daffodil

respect
James Kwan's flower:
zinnia
loyalty

 

F L O W E R
M E A N I N G
   

Rose (red)

Rose (white)

Rose (yellow)

Rose (pink)

Tulip

Tulip

Carnation (white)

Carnation

Lily (white)

Lily (orange)

Lily of the valley (yuri)

Tiger lily

Poppy

Poppy (white)

Poppy

shiragiku (white chrysanthemum)

Mistletoe

love

innocence, silence, devotion

jealousy

trust, happiness

fame, charity, trust

one-sided love

engangement to be married

refusal, disdain, disappointment

purity, chastity

hatred, revenge

sweet

wealth

fun-lovingness

rejoice

success

truth

looking (as in "single and --")

 

amarilis bluebells anemone azalea ambrosia
amaryllis
shy
bluebell
grateful
anemone
sincere (white)
azalea
patient, modest
ambrosia
pious
         
cactus camelia/red camelia/yellow camelia/white carnation
cactus
lust, sex
red camelia
in love
yellow camelia
longing
white camelia
waiting
carnation
disappointed
         
kiku edelweiss dahlia forget-me-not clover
chrysant
imperial (yellow)
edelweiss
courage, power
dahlia
good taste
forget-me-not
true love
clover
lucky
         
freesia honeysuckle lavender jasmine mistletoe
freesia
childish, immature
honeysuckle
generous
lavender
faithful
jasmine
friendly, graceful
mistletoe
looking
         
narcissus pansy primrose rose/red sakura
narcissus
self-esteem
pansy
thoughtful, caring
primrose
desperate
red rose
in love
sakura
kind, gentle
         
verbena tulips violet sweetpea morning glory
verbena
cooperative
tulip
trusting (red)
violet
honesty
sweetpea
goodbye
morning glory
will fulfill promises

 

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Flowers That Are Made Into Samurai Family Crests   Flowers Associated with or Named by Samurai

 

kazenaga

 

'Japanese Flower Language' © 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006 Obata Sugizo

All rights reserved. Every borrowed image at this site is put for non-profit educational purposes only.

 

.HELP ME ....Answering people's questions about Japan, samurai & warlords.  CLICK HERE.

 

 

Nina Wilhelmina

 

Site & Rap © 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006 Nina Wilhemina

 

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Sources tapped for this page: Nihon Shakai no Kazoku teki Kosei (Tokyo: 1948); Kono Shozo, Kokumin Dotoku Yoron (Tokyo: 1935); Anesaki Masaharu, Nichiren, the Buddhist Prophet (Cambridge, Mass.: Harvard University Press, 1916); Robert Cornell Armstrong, Light from the East, Studies of Japanese Confucianism (University of Toronto, Canada, 1914); Sasama Yoshihiko, Nihon kassen zuten (Yuzankaku, 1997); William Aston, Shinto: The Way of the Gods (London: Longmans, Green, 1905); Ruth Benedict, The Chrysanthemum and the Sword (Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1946); Charles Eliot, Japanese Buddhism (London, 1935); Futaki Kenichi, Chuusei buke no saho (Yoshikawa Kobunkan, 1999); Kiyooka Eichii, The Autobiography of Fukuzawa Yukichi (Tokyo, Hokuseido Press, 1934); Konno Nobuo, Kamakura bushi monogatari (Kawade shobo shinsha, 1997); Nukariya Kaiten, The Religion of the Samurai (London: Luzac, 1913); A.L. Sadler, The Beginner's Book of Bushido by Daidoji Yuzan (Tokyo: Kokusai Bunka Shinkokai, 1941); A.L. Sadler, The Makers of Modern Japan (Tokyo: Tuttle, 1978); Satomi Kishio, Nichirenism and the Japanese National Principles (NY: Dutton, 1924); Suzuki D.T., Zen Buddhism and Its Influence on Japanese Culture (Kyoto: The Eastern Buddhist Society, 1938); Henri Van Straelen, Yoshida Shoin (Leiden: Brill, 1952); Robert Bellah, Tokugawa Religion; Sato Hiroaki, Legends of the Samurai (Overlook Press, 1995); Masaaki Takahashi, Bushi no seiritsu: Bushizo no soshutsu (Tokyo: Tokyo daigaku, 1999); Stephen Turnbull, Samurai Warlords (London: Blandford Publishing, 1992); Paul Akamatsu, Meiji 1868, Revolution and Counter-Revolution (Allen & Unwin, 1972); Nitobe Inazo, Bushido, The Soul of Japan (Tokyo: Tuttle, 1970); Paul Varley and Ivan Morris, The Samurai (Weidenfeld, 1970); Inoguchi and Nakajima, The Divine Wind: Japanese Kamikaze Force in World War II (Hutchinson, 1959), Seki Yukihiko, Bushi no tanjo (Tokyo: NHK, 2000); Amino Yoshihiko, ed. Edojidai no mikataga kawaruho (Tokyo: Yosensha, 1998).

 

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