What's in a Rose?
After April showers come the season that flowers bloom. Once flowers bloom, many enjoy picking them and sharing them with the people they love. The origins of giving flowers date back to Ancient Greece, Rome, Egypt, and China where verbally expressing emotion was taboo; however, expressing one's feelings by giving flowers was acceptable. Then in Europe during the Middle Ages, each flower was given a specific meaning. Today meanings can be broken down by type of flower, color, and how many were given. If you want to express yourself correctly, how would someone know which to use?
For the fun of this blog, we are going to specifically discuss the rose, as it is the most common flower people gift one another. Roses also have many different colors so the expressions can be endless. When you want to express an emotion, you can use this chart:
Picture | Rose Color | Meaning/Symbolizes |
![]() | Red (bright) | Commitment, Romance, Respect, Passion |
![]() | Burgundy (dark, deep) | Deep Passion, Unconscious Beauty, Loyalty |
![]() | White | Innocence, Elegance, Spirituality |
![]() | Cream/ Off-White | New Beginnings, Growth, Peace |
![]() | Pink (light) | Sweetness, Peace, Tenderness |
![]() | Pink (dark) | Excitement, Flirtation, Creativity |
![]() | Yellow | Friendship, Warmth, Joy, Youth, Energy |
![]() | Lavender | Majesty/Royalty, Uniqueness, Wisdom, Mystery |
![]() | Peach | Gratitude, Modesty, Sincerity |
![]() | Coral | Desire, Excitement |
![]() | Orange | Enthusiasm, Energy, Desire |
![]() | Salmon | Enthusiasm, Excitement, Admiration, Appreciation |
![]() | Blue | Tranquility, Resilience, Strength, Rarity |
![]() | Black | Mourning, New Beginning, End of Major Event, Tragic Love |
![]() | Green | Abundance, Peace, Stability, Mental Balance |
![]() | Red/White Together | Unity and Oneness |
![]() | Mixed bouquet | Connecting meaning from single colors into one thought/message |
![]() | Kaliedoscope / Rainbow | Modern creation bleeding meanings together on the same rose |
When expressing the correct meaning, it is especially important to have the right statement behind the emotion. Roses speak not only in color but in numbers as well! Click the pictures below to expand and see the statement behind the number of flowers that are received.
As you can see, it is important to know what you want to say to choose what flower(s) you gift. While these are fun to know the most important part is remembering the person who is to receive these. No matter how the original emotion is connected, a personalized touch always trumps a standard one!