![]() Later, the English began using it on their coat of arms to stress their claim to the French throne. In the 20th century, King Louis VII was the first to use the fleur-de-lis symbol on his shield. Another story says that Clovis was guided through the river by waterlilies or irises and went on to be victorious in battle. After his conversion to Christianity, legend says that an angel presented him with a golden lily (or iris) to signify his purification. The story of how it became a symbol of French royalty starts with Clovis, the Merovingian king of the Franks. Fleur-de-lis translates to the lily flower, but historians argue that the symbol resembles a wild iris flower. The fleur-de-lis is an old French symbol used by the French monarchy to represent French royalty, perfection, light, and life. Besides that, they would also use the flower to make oils and perfumes. Egyptians were well aware of Greek mythology, but they used the flower mainly to symbolize royalty, victory, and power.Īncient Egyptians would use different depictions of the flower to decorate scepters used by pharaohs and other noble men. Irises were introduced to Egypt during the 16th century BC from Syria. So, they took the irises that grew on earth as a representation of heaven. The Greeks also believed the rainbow was part of the goddess’s colorful robe or veil. The flowers are to help summon the goddess Iris so she can give safe passage to lost souls to the afterlife. It is, therefore, a common practice for Greeks to plant iris flowers on women’s gravesites. Iris would travel on the rainbow’s arc to pass these messages hence the meaning of the word iris.īecause Iris was the bridge between heaven and earth, the Greeks associated the flower with communication and safe passage to the afterlife. Iris was a messenger of the Olympian gods who sent messages from the gods to the people. It is also the name used for the Greek goddess of the rainbow Iris. The word iris translates to a rainbow in the Greek language. Therefore, many stories mention the iris and help give a little perspective to the associated meanings of the flower today. The 300 species of iris flowers are found in the Northern Hemisphere, Asia, Europe, Africa, and North America.
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