Posted by Maris on 17th Jun 2024
Why is the Thistle the Flower of Scotland?
The stunning thistle is the national flower of Scotland. This arrogant-looking flower, which is almost the national symbol of Scotland, can be seen everywhere—on hotel names, on football team badges, and even on signs throughout the country's Highlands. You should have no trouble finding images of thistles and real thistles everywhere you go in Scotland.
There are national flowers for many other nations as well. For example, England has the rose, France the iris, Holland the tulip, and Ireland the clover.
However, I believe that no national flower better captures the essence of the people and the country than the magnificent and untamed thistle of Scotland.
However, why is the thistle known as the Scottish flower?
Four Ways the Thistle Represents Scottish People
The Thistle is Friendly and Generous.
The hospitality and generosity of our people are reflected in the thistle flower. Thistle is a friendly, helpful, and welcoming person. John, you may be asking yourself, how can this flower be welcoming? However, the Thistle is just as hospitable to guests from other countries, faiths, and cultural backgrounds as the people of Scotland. It is home to some of Scotland's most exquisite butterflies, such as the Pearl Bordered Fritillary, which feeds on the nectar of thistles. And the thistle, ever the gracious host, opens its leaves to these lovely creatures.
This is a fantastic representation of Scotland and its people. We extend a warm welcome to guests and are appreciative of their desire to see Scotland's Highlands and Lowlands, castles, and isolated Lochs and Glens. The people of Scotland go above and beyond to make sure visitors have an incredible time while touring the country.
Thistle Hardiness and Resilience
The Thistle is as hardy and resilient as the people of Scotland. Both the English and the Vikings attempted to invade Scotland in the past, but the Scottish clans demonstrated their resilience in the face of these invasions, requiring the people of Scotland to be resilient. This is in contrast to the thistle, which must continually adjust to and overcome the unpredictable Scottish weather. Particularly in the isolated Highlands of Scotland, a thistle has nowhere to hide when it's blasted by wind, rain, and extreme cold at the summit of a mountain.
Proud Thistle, and Proud People
The thistle is a proud flower that stands tall and gracefully for everyone to see. It has a royal appearance because to its exquisite purple crown. It's well known that Scots are also extremely prideful. We are the country that will cheer on a football team anywhere in the world, even though we know we will probably lose on the field. Despite this, we will continue to hold our heads high, sing as loudly as we can, and be pleased that we can represent our nation and everything that it stands for.
Simply put, the Scots and Thistles are really attractive.
The most significant and evident parallel is that both the Scottish Thistle and the people of Scotland are incredibly attractive and very pleasing to the eye. The Scots have some really attractive people, from performers like Sam Heughan (Outlander) and Gerard Butler (300) who make the ladies go crazy to Karen Gillan (Jumanji) for the boys. The thistle is a stunning flower in and of itself, and because of this, you'll see people growing them in their gardens even outside of the breathtaking Scottish countryside.
The tale of how thistles came to be recognized as Scotland's national flower
In 1263, those annoying Vikings were encroaching on the Scots once more. They believed they could simply cross from Norway and take over our entire territory.King Haakon of Norway intended to use his vast fleet of longboats and savage Viking warriors to subjugate the entire country. According to legend, the Vikings intended to defeat the Scots before we knew they had arrived by striking us stealthily and swiftly while utilizing the element of surprise. The Norsemen removed their cumbersome, heavy boots in order to accomplish this, and they began tiptoeing around the breathtaking Scottish countryside. Suddenly, they were trampling through a region covered in tiny, scratchy thistles. "Ooooohhh!! Aaaarghhhhh! Eeeeehhhhh! These pitiful moans began to reverberate throughout the Scottish countryside. High-pitched screams, weak, from these weak Viking intruders. It was a cringeworthy sight to behold and an embarrassing thing to hear. The Scottish Thistle, our historic first line of defence, was too strong for these tough-looking Vikings.
The Scots who heard these terrible cries exclaimed, "Do you hear that pathetic noise lads?! " as soon as the cries stopped. Now that they knew the Vikings' location, the Scottish soldiers hiked over the Glen and vanquished them in combat. "They're just over the Glen, let's send them packing!" they exclaimed. By doing this, they made sure that you are in Scotland and not Norway when you come to visit our beautiful country. All of this is possible because of the valiant efforts of the gallant Scottish Thistle, Scotland's vibrant national flower.