Plants in the National Symbolism of European Countries: A Link among Countries, Cultures, and Religions
Published: 2023-06-07
Page: 158-171
Issue: 2023 - Volume 6 [Issue 2]
Silviya Stefanova Radanova
*
Faculty of Agriculture, Trakia University, Student Campus-6000, Stara Zagora, Bulgaria.
*Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Abstract
The article analyzes the plant species included in the national symbols of European countries - national coats of arms, emblems and officially accepted symbolic elements. The study is based entirely on literary sources, thematically divided into four areas: botany and phytogeography, world and European heraldry; national symbols and emblems and the Web of Science and Research Gate information platforms. The study establishes the vectors of spread of plant species as a symbolic elements in the countries of Europe as a result of cultural, commercial, religious and scientific connections. Moreover, the continuity of the abiotic factors of the environment (terrestrial biomes) allows plant species to cross the borders of Europe and pass into Asia. The discovered similarities, continuity and duplication of a number of plant-based symbolic elements in countries of both continents are proof of a common past, a shared culture and are an ideal basis for achieving understanding between peoples speaking different languages and professing different religions.
Keywords: Higher plants, national symbols, European Countries
How to Cite
Downloads
References
Bhgagwat SA, Willis KJ. Species Persistence in Northerly Glacial Refugia of Europe: A Matter of Chance or Biogeographical Traits? Journal Biogeography. 2008;35(3):464 - 482.
Rémy JP, Brewer S, Bordács S, Burge K, Cheddadi R, Coart , Cottrell J, Csaikl UM, van Dam B, Deans JD, Espinel S, Fineschi S, Finkeldeyl R, Glaza I, Goicoechea PG, Jensen JS, OKönig A, Lowe AJ, Madsen SF, Mátyás G, Munro RC, Popescua F, Sladea D, Tabbener HS, de Vries GM, Ziegenhagen B, Beaulieu JL, Kremer A. Identification of refugia and post-glacial colonisation routes of European white oaks based on chloroplast DNA and fossil pollen evidence. Forest Ecology Management. 2002;156,1-3(1):49-74.
Svenning JC, Skop F. Ice age legacies in the geographical distribution of tree species richness in Europe. Global Ecology and Biogeography. 2007;16: 234-245.
Morgan LH. Ancient Society: Or Researches in the Lines of Human Progress From Savagery, Through Barbarism to Civilization (Classic Reprint). Forgotten Books; 2017.
Tutin TG, Burges NA, Chater AO, Edmonson JR, Heywood VH, Moore DM, Valentine DH, Walters SM, Webb DA (eds). Flora Europaea. Cambridge Univ. Press, Cambridge. 1993;1-2.
Tutin TG, Heywood VH, Burges NA, Moore DM, Valentine DH, Walters SM, Webb DA (eds). Flora Europaea. Cambridge Univ. Press, Cambridge. 1968 - 1980; 2-5.
Gruev B. General biogeography. Science and Art, 1988. (in Bulgarian )
Cox CB, Moore PD, Ladle RJ. Biogeography. An Ecological and Evolutionary Approach. 9th Edition. Wiley Blackwell; 2016.
GBIF Secretariat. GBIF backbone taxonomy: Iris pseudacorus L. Global Biodiversity Information Facility, Copenhagen; 2018. Available: https://www.gbif.org/species/5298231.
GBIF - The World Checklist of Vascular Plants (WCVP); Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Available: https://www.gbif.org/dataset/
Fox-Davies A Ch. A complete guide to heraldry [ca. 1909]. Cornell Univ. Library; 1909.
Heraldry - Medieval Genealogy. Available:http://www.medievalgenealogy.org.uk
Encyclopedia Britannica: Coat of arms /Definition, History, Symbols, & Facts. Available: https://www.britannica.com.
The History of Coats of Arms and Heraldry - Historic UK. Available: https://www.historic-uk.com
Fleur-de-lis Designs: Parts of a Coat of Arms. Available: https://www.fleurdelis.com.
Symbolhunt: National Emblems: Coat of Arms of the World. Available: https://symbolhunt.com
List of National Flowers of all Countries - Fresherslive. Available: https://www.fresherslive.com
Gardenerdy - Complete List of National Flowers By Country. Available: https://gardenerdy.com.
Spencer-Jones R, Cuttle S. Wild Flowers of Britain and Ireland. London. Kyle Books. 2005.
Botschantzeva ZP. Tulips: taxonomy, morphology, cytology, phytogeography and physiology. Balkema, Rotterdam; 1962.
Beshko N, Tojibaev KSh, Batoshov AR. Tulips of the Nuratau Mountains and South-Eastern Kyzylkum (Uzbekistan). Stapfia. 2013; 99:198-204.
Eker İ, Babaç MT, Koyuncu M. Revision of the genus Tulipa L. (Liliaceae) in Turkey. Phytotaxa. 2014; 157 (1):001.
Available: doi:10.11646/phytotaxa.157.1.1.
Christenhusz MJM, Govaerts R, David JC, Hall T, Borland K, Roberts PS, Tuomisto A, Buerki S, Chase MW, Fay MF. Tiptoe through the tulips - cultural history, molecular phylogenetics and classification of Tulipa (Liliaceae), Botanical Journal of the Linnean Society. 2013;172(3):280 -328. Available:https://doi.org/10.1111/boj.12061
Busbecq OG. The Life and Letters of Ogier Ghiselin de Busbecq. Seigneur of Bousbecque, Knight, Imperial Ambassador; 2012.
Clusius C. A Treatise on Tulips. (Transl. by van Dijk, W.). Haarlem: Associated Bulb Growers of Holland. (Transl. of a section from the Rariorum Plantarum Historia. 1951;1601.
Bermejo JEH, Sánchez EG. Tulips: An Ornamental Crop in the Andalusian Middle Ages. Economic Botany .2009;63(1): 60 - 66. Available: doi.org/10.1007/s12231-008-9070-3
Hall AD. The genus Tulipa. London: Royal Horticultural Society; 1940.
King M. Gardening with Tulips. Portland, OR; Timber Press; 2005.
Raymond O. Domestication et sélection dirigée chez le rosier: analyse historique via les phénotypes morphologique, chimique et biochimique. PhD Thesis, Université Claude Bernard-Lyon1, Lyon, France; 1999.
Goody J.The Culture of Flowers. Cambridge University Press; 1993.
Becker HF. The Fossil Record of the Genus Rosa. Bulletin of the Torrey Botanical Club. 1963;90(2):99 -110.
Available: https://doi.org/10.2307/2483008.
Nikbakht A, Kafi M. A study on the relationships between Iranian people and Damask rose (Rosa damascena) and its therapeutic and healing properties". Acta Horticulturae. 2004;790:251-254. DOI: 10.17660/ActaHortic.2008.790.36
Cucciniello L. Rose to Rosary: The Flower of Venus in Catholicism in Rose Lore: Essays in Semiotics and Cultural History. Hutton F. (ed.), Lexington Books; 2008.
Clark N. Aphrodite and Venus in Myth and Mimesis. Cambridge, England: Cambridge Scholars Publishing. 2015.
Kovatcheva N, Jeliazkov VD, Astatkie T. Productivity, Oil Content, Composition, and Bioactivity of Oil-bearing Rose. HortScience: a publication of the American Society for Horticultural Science. 2011;46 (5):710-714. DOI: 10.21273/HORTSCI.46.5.710
Keeley SC, Forsman ZH, Chan R. A phylogeny of the “evil tribe” (Vernonieae: Compositae) reveals Old/New World long distance dispersal: Support from separate and combined congruent datasets (trnL‐F, ndhF, ITS). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 2007;(44): 89 -103. Available:doi.org/10.1016/j.ympev.2006.12.024
Bergh NG, Linder PH. Cape diversification and repeated out‐of‐southern‐Africa dispersal in paper daisies (Asteraceae - Gnaphalieae). Molecular Phylogenetics and Evolution. 2009; 51:5 - 18. Available: https://doi. org/10.1016/j.ympev.2008.09.001.
Katinas L, Crisci JV, Hoch P, Tellería MC, Apodaca MJ. Trans‐oceanic dispersal and evolution of early composites (Asteraceae). Perspectives in Plant Ecology, Evolution and Systematics. 2013;(15):269 - 280.
Available:https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ppees.2013.07.003
Barres L, Sanmartín I, Anderson CL, Susanna A, Buerki S, Galbany CM, Vilatersana R. Reconstructing the evolution and biogeographic history of tribe Cardueae (Compositae). American Journal of Botany. 2013;100:867-882.
Available:https://doi.org/10.3732/ajb.1200058
Nie ZL, Funk VA, Meng Y, Deng T, Sun H, Wen J. Recent assembly of the global herbaceous flora: Evidence from the paper daisies (Asteraceae: Gnaphalieae). New Phytologist. 2016; 209: 1795 - 1806. doi.org/10.1111/nph.13740
Barreda, VD, Palazzesi L, Katinas L, Crisci JV, Tellería MC, Bremer K et al. An extinct Eocene taxon of the daisy family (Asteraceae): Evolutionary, ecological and biogeographical implications. Annals of Botany. 2012;109: 127-134.
Available: https://doi.org/10.1093/aob/mcr240.
Barreda VD., Palazzesi L, Tellería MC, Olivero EB, Raine JI, Forest F. Early evolution of the angiosperm clade Asteraceae in the Cretaceous of Antarctica. Procc Nat Acad Sci. 2015; 112:10989 - 10994. Available: https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas. 1423653112.
Antonie I. The importance of the Melliferous flora for the beekeeping in Gura Râului countryside area (Sibiu county), Romania. Scientific Papers Series Management, Economic Engineering in Agriculture and Rural Development . 2020; 20 (4):57-64.
Fuller DQ. Contrasting Patterns in Crop Domestication and Domestication Rates: Recent Archaeobotanical Insights from the Old World. Annals Botany. 2007;100(5): 903 - 924. Available: doi:10.1093/aob/mcm048. PMC 2759199. PMID 17495986.
Shukurov A., Sarson GrR, Gangal K. The Near-Eastern Roots of the Neolithic in South Asia. PLOS ONE. 2014;9(5): e95714. doi:10.1371/journal.pone.0095714.
Normile D. Yangtze seen as earliest rice site. Science. 1997;275(5298):309 - 310.
Available:doi:10.1126/science.275.5298.309. S2CID 140691699.
Zhang J, Lu H, Gu W; Wu Na, Zhou K, Hu Y, Xin Y, Wang C, Kashkush K. Early Mixed Farming of Millet and Rice 7800 Years Ago in the Middle Yellow River Region,China. PLOS ONE. 2012;7(12):e52146 .Bibcode: 2012PLoSO...752146Z. DOI:10.1371/journal.pone.0052146
He K, Lu H, Zhang J, Wang C, Huan X. Prehistoric evolution of the dualistic structure mixed rice and millet farming in China. The Holocene. 2017;27(12):1885-1898. DOI:10.1177/0959683617708455.
Choi JY. The complex geography of domestication of the African rice Oryza glaberrima. PLOS Genetics. 2019;15(3): e1007414. DOI:10.1371/journal.pgen.1007414. PMC 6424484. PMID 30845217.
USDA. Rice Outlook. Economic. January 17, 2023; Research Service. 2023;1-19.
Köppen. Climate Classifications General Books; 2013.
Whittaker RH. Communities and Ecosystems. 2nd Ed., MacMillan Publishing Co., New York; 1975.
Theophrastus. Enquiry into Plants. Loeb Classical Library. (Transl. by Hort A). London and New York: William Heinemann and G.P. Putnam's Sons. Available at Internet Archive as Vol. I (Books I-V) and Vol. II (Books VI-IX); 1916.
Hyams E. Soil and civilization. London, Thames and Hudson; 1976.
Huntington SP. The Clash of Civilizations? Foreign Affairs. 1993;72(3):22 - 49. Available: doi.org/10.2307/20045621.
Brevik EC, Homburg JA, Sandor JA. Soils, Climate, and Ancient Civilizations - In: Horwath W. R, Kuzyakov Y. (Eds). Climate Change Impacts on Soil Processes and Ecosystem Properties. Developments in Soil Science. Elsevier. 2018;35:1-28. Available: https://doi.org/10.1016/B978-0-444-63865-6.00001-6.
Olson DM, Dinerstein E. The Global 200: A representation approach to conserving the Earth’s most biologically valuable ecoregions. Conservation Biology.1998; 12:502–515. [1]
Smelansky IE, Tishkov, AA. The Steppe Biome in Russia: EcosystemServices, Conservation Status,and Actual Challenges. Ch.2. - In: Werger MJA, van Staalduinen MA (eds.). Eurasian Steppes. Ecological Problems and Livelihoods in a Changing World, Plant and Vegetation. 2012;6.
DOI:10.1007/978-94-007-3886-7_2, © Springer Science+Business Media B.V. 2012
Chytrý K, Willner W, Chytrý M, Diviśek J, Dullinger S. Central European forest - steppe: An ecosystem shaped by climate, topography and disturbances. Journal of Biogeography. Wiley Online Library; 2022. Available: https://doi.org/10.1111/jbi.14364
Battisti DS, Naylor R L. Historical Warnings of Future Food Insecurity with Unprecedented Seasonal Heat. SCIENCE. 2009;323(5911): 240-244. DOI: 10.1126/science.1164363
Liu X, Jones MK, Zhao Z, Liu G, O'Connel TC. The earliest evidence of millet as a staple crop: New light on neolithic foodways in North China. Am. Journ. Biol Anthropology. 2009;149(2):283 - 290. Available:https://doi.org/10.1002/ajpa.22127
Chibilyov A. Steppe and forest-steppe. In M. Shahgedanova (Ed.): The physical geography of northern Eurasia. Oxford, UK: Oxford University Press. 248-266, 2002.
Bernard D. The Golden Flower: Chrysanthemum, Its history - culture. The main varieties. Gunten. 2008.
Bock H. New Kreuterbuch von Underscheidt, Würckung und Namen der Kreuter, so in teutschen Landen wachsen, Strasburg; 1546. Available:https://doi.org/10.5962/bhl.title.8043.
Brunfels O. Herbarium vivae eicones. Vols.1-2. 1530 -1540.
Dodoens R. Historia frumentorum, leguminum, palustrium et aquatilium herbarum acceorum, quae eo pertinent. Missouri Botanical Garden; 1566.
Gessner C. Catalogus plantarum Latinè, Graecè, Germanicè, & Gallicè. Zurich: Apud Christoph. Froschoverum; 1542.
Fuchs L. De Historia Stirpium comentarii insignes (or Notable Commentaries on the History of Plants); 1542.