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GOL (< Mid. Pers. gul), rose (Rosa L. spp.) and, by extension, flower, bloom, blossom.

ROSES

I. Etymology. Mid. Pers. gul (< *wráda-) "rose, flower," non-Persian *ward (<*warda-) in Sogd. wr’ (Qarib, p. 411) and Arm. loanword vard (the meaning of Av. var™’a- in Nirangistan 97 is uncertain; see Bartholomae, col. 1369; Bailey, Dictionary, p. 378, s.v. vala), perhaps also Man. Parth. w÷r (Mir. Man. III, p. 18 [863]; Boyce, 1954, pp. 156-57). The Persian form is widely used in dialects (e.g., Ma@z. gel and [Haza@rjarib dialect] ga@l), but one also frequently finds vel and similar forms (e.g., Khot. vala, Semna@ni val[a] and vel, and Shirazi vel "rose, beloved"; see Bailey, p. 378; Christensen, II, p. 182; Sotuda, s.v. vel; Borha@n-e qa@tÂe¿, ed. Mo¿in, p. 2290, n. 2; McCarus, p. 130). The Iranian words are commonly assumed to be related to Gk. rhodon "rose" and Lat. rosa and to be of non-Indo-European origin (see, e.g., Watkins, s.v. wrod-). Similar forms are found in Semitic languages (Akk. wurtinnu, Heb. ward, Aram. warda@, Ar. ward, and Mid. Pers. heterogram for gul: WLTA for *WRTA; see Maækur, II, p. 977, s.v. ward[a]; Farhang ^ Pahlav^k, ed. Nyberg, p. 66, no. 14). Alfred Ernout and Antoine Meillet (s.v. rosa) suggest "a borrowing from Mediterranean civilization, perhaps Semitic, where the plant [i.e., rose] would have been cultivated."

II. Modern inventory of rose species. The genus type Rosa L. (fam. Rosaceae) is represented by twenty species and twenty hybrids (not to mention eight "imperfectly known or doubtful recorded species") as described by Jerzy Zielin‚ski in the vast geo-botanical area covered by Karl Rechinger's Flora Iranica (q.v.). The general distribution of particular species in some adjacent regions will be noted, but most of the numerous specific synonyms will not be mentioned. In the case of Persia, the information in H®abib-Alla@h T¨a@beti (pp. 628-51; partly outdated) and in M. K¨a@tamsa@z has been used in this article. Persian or local names, where recorded, are from T¨a@beti and Karim Java@næir.

Based on Zielin‚ski, K¨a@tamsa@z has described the following first fourteen species (plus 8 hybrids; pp. 35-69).

1. Rosa persica (T¨a@beti: Hulthemia persica; Pers. varak), a low shrub (50-60 cm high), with a reddish brown macula at the base of the yellow petals of its simple flowers; habitat: the steppes of Azerbaijan, Hamada@n, Qazvin, Tehran, Semna@n and Da@mg@a@n, Gorga@n, Khorasan, etc.; also found in Afghanistan (Herat) and Turkmenistan (Zielin‚ski, p. 6; K¨a@tamsa@z, pp. 38-39).

2. R. hemisphaerica (gol-e zard, lit. "yellow rose"), an erect bush 1-1.5 m high, "a beautiful and characteristic species, related to R. foetida" (Zielin‚ski, p. 8), with solitary yellow flowers (40-50 mm in diameter); habitat: Azerbaijan, Loresta@n, Ma@zan dara@n, Semna@n, Khorasan; also reported from Armenia, the republic of Azerbaijan, and Anatolia (geo-botanical details in Zielin‚ski, p. 8). According to T¨a@beti (p. 647), "this [species] has a por-par ["double"] variety that has been cultivated in gardens and houses [in Persia] since times long past." Johann Schlimmer reports (p. 492) that the gol-e zard, R. sulphurea (i.e., R. hemisphaerica), was introduced from Persia into Europe by the French scientist and traveler Guillaume-Antoine Olivier (1807) under the name R. berberifolia (according to modern nomenclature, however, the latter is a synonym of Rosa persica, mentioned above).

3. R. foetida, Austrian briar, also called gol-e zard (cf. the synonym R. lutea), an erect (3-4 m high) or effuse shrub with yellow and sometimes bicolored (yellow and red) flowers. The specimens with two-color flowers are reported by T¨a@beti (p. 643) as a distinct variety, i.e., R. foetida var. bicolor, called gol-e do-ru(ya), lit. "double-faced rose." Jav@@a@næir (p. 156) records also gol-e do-rang "bicolored rose" and zola for R. lutea; habitat: Azerbaijan, Zanja@n, Qazvin, southern slopes of the Alborz (including Tehran province), Kurdistan, Loresta@n, Hamada@n, Isfahan, Fa@rs; it is also reported from Afghanistan (Kabul province), Iraqi Kurdistan, etc. (Zielin‚ski, pp. 8-9; K¨a@tamsa@z, p. 43).

4. R. pimpinellifolia, Scotch/burnet rose, a low (50-100 cm high) or repent bush with white or cream flowers 40-50 mm in diameter; habitat: Azerbaijan (K¨a@tamsa@z, p. 44); it is also reported from Anatolia, the Caucasus, T®a@leæ (Lankara@n), and Central Asia (Zielin‚ski, pp. 11-12).

5. R. beggeriana (su/ara@y; Java@næir, p. 155), "a highly polymorphic species," which has induced "some authors to split it up [into varieties], usually on the basis of a single character" (Zielin‚ski, p. 14; cf. the 14 varieties thereof recorded by T¨a@beti for Persia, pp. 631-34). It is a shrub, 2-2.5 m high, with small white flowers in corymb or panicles; habitat: Gorga@n, Ma@zandara@n, Semna@n, Tehran, Isfahan, Kohgiluya and Boir Ahámad, Yazd, and Kerma@n (K¨a@tamsa@z, pp. 45, 47); also reported from Afghanistan, Turkmenistan, etc. (Zielin‚ski, pp. 13-14).

6. R. webbiana, a shrub, 2-3 m high, with pink or white flowers 30-60 mm in diameter; reported from Persia only by K¨a@tamsa@z (p. 48) as occurring in a few localities in northern Persia; widely distributed in Afghanistan (Zielin‚ski, p. 15).

7. R. Boissieri, an erect shrub, 3-4 m high, similar to the European R. montana, with white to dark pink flowers, 50-60 mm in diameter; habitat: Azerbaijan, Tehran province (Lava@sa@n), Khorasan (K¨a@tamsa@z, p. 50); also reported from Iraqi Kurdistan, Anatolia, etc. (Zielin‚ski, p. 17).

8. R. orientalis, a shrub 1-1.5 m high, with white or pale pink flowers, solitary or in clusters of 2-5 flowers, each 24-50 mm in diameter; habitat: Kerma@næa@ha@n, Kurdistan, Loresta@n, Bakòtia@ri, Hamada@n, Ara@k, Qazvin, Tehran; also reported from Iraqi Kurdistan, Armenia, Anatolia, etc. (Zielin‚ski, p. 18; K¨a@tamsa@z, pp. 52-54).

9. R. elymaitica, a bush up to 1 m high, with small pink (and rarely white) flowers, solitary or in clusters of 2-6 flowers; habitat: Hamada@n, Kerma@næa@ha@n, Loresta@n, Kohgiluya and Boir Ahámad, Bakòtia@ri, Isfahan, Fa@rs, Ara@k, Qazvin, Tehran; also reported from Iraqi Kurdistan and eastern Anatolia (Zielin‚ski, p. 19; K¨a@tamsa@z, pp. 54-56).

10. R. villosa, a dwarf species, 0.3-1.5 m high, with pink and sometimes white flowers, solitary or in corymbs; habitat: localities in Azerbaijan, Hamada@n, and Bakòtia@ri (K¨a@tamsa@z, p. 56). It is not recorded by Zielin‚ski.

11. R. pulverulenta, a low repent bush, usually 10-50 cm high, with pink (and rarely white) small flowers, each 10-20 mm in diameter, solitary or in clusters of 2-4 flowers; habitat: Azerbaijan, Gila@n, Ma@zandara@n, Loresta@n, Isfahan, Qazvin, Tehran, Semna@n, Gorga@n (K¨a@tamsa@z, p. 59); also reported from Turkmenistan (Zielin‚ski, p. 20).

12. R. iberica, an erect (1-2 m high) or effuse shrub, with pink (and rarely white) flowers, 20-25 mm in diameter, solitary or in clusters of 2-4 flowers; habitat: Azerbaijan, Zanja@n, Gila@n, Ma@zandara@n, the Alborz range, Tehran, Semna@n, Gorga@n (K¨a@tamsa@z, pp. 60, 62); general distribution: Anatolia, Iraq, the Caucasus, Turkmenistan (Zielin‚ski, p. 21).

13. R. canina (itburni, kelik; Java@næir, p. 155), dog rose; an erect (1-4 m high) or repent shrub with pink or white flowers, each 35-45 mm in diameter, solitary or corymbose, widely distributed in Persia; habitat: Azerbaijan, Gila@n, Ma@zandara@n, Gorga@n, Semna@n, Khorasan, Kurdistan, Loresta@n, Kohgiluya and Boir Ahámad, Hamada@n, Isfahan, Tehran, Fa@rs (K¨a@tamsa@z, pp. 63, 65); also reported from T®a@leæ (Lankara@n), Iraqi Kurdistan, Afghanistan, Turkmenistan (Zielin‚ski, pp. 22-24).

14. Rosa moschata (syn.: m. var. R. nastarana), musk rose (Pers. nastaran), a climbing shrub, 10-12 m high, with white flowers growing in corymbs or cymes and rarely solitarily. This species is "at present only known in cultivation and [is] often naturalized in Southwest Asia, North Africa, and South Europe…. According to some authors, its country of origin is the Mediterranean [area], and according to others it is Iran" (Zielin‚ski, p. 26). As nastaran-e æira@z(i) "Shiraz musk rose," it is cultivated in many places in Persia, particularly in Fa@rs, where the fragrant ¿araq-e nastaran (musk rose distillate, see GOLAÚB) is extracted and commercialized.

15. R. gallica. Although "the occurrence[of it] in the Flora Iranica area has not yet been confirmed" (Zielin‚ski, p. 24), T¨a@beti (pp. 643-44) has reported it from Ara@k and Minudaæt (in Gorga@n province), giving R. centifolia (cabbage rose) as a synonym (sic) and two Persian names: sag-gol (lit. "dog rose") in Min@udaæt, and gol-e raæti "Raæt rose."

16. R. damascena (syn.: R. gallica, var. damascena, Damask rose (Pers. gol-e moháammadi). It is recorded only in T¨a@beti (p. 640), who, however, adds that "this shrub is probably a hybrid, namely R. gallica X R. centifolia" (sic). K¨a@tamsa@z (p. 68) mentions it only as the hybrid R. X R. damascena. According to T¨a@beti, this dubious taxon has semi-double fragrant corymbose pink flowers. In any case, the gol-e moháammadi is widely cultivated in some places (notably Qamsáar in Ka@æa@n province) to obtain the well-known distillate gola@b (rose water); hence it is also called gol-e gola@b (see also GOLAÚB).

III. Rose species in pre-Islamic lore. The Bundahiæn (q.v.), listing gul (rose) as one of the fragrant flowers (guls; tr. Anklesaria, 16.13, tr. Baha@r, p. 87), mentions particularly its species gul i sad-warg "the hundred-petaled rose" (cf. R. centifolia above) as belonging (or attributed) to the divinity De@n (q.v.; tr. Anklesaria, 16A.2, tr. Baha@r, pp. 88-89). Similarly, in the Pahlavi text Xusraw ^ Kawa@da@n ud re@dag (ed. and tr. Monchi-zadeh, sec. 72) the scent of gul is compared to that of the beloved/dear friends (cf. T¨a¿a@lebi, GÚorar, p. 708). Mention is also made in the Bundahiæn (tr. Anklesaria, 16.13) of a certain, probably rosaceous, flower whose name has been variously read and translated: ke@’^ "pandanus" (Anklesaria); k^da (Baha@r, pp. 87-88, 182 n. 15: "unidentified"); ke@dag "ka@di" (Pandanus odoratissimus L.) according to Behza@di (tr., pp. 58, 276 n. 10). The same word and flower is mentioned in the Xusraw ^ Kawa@da@n ud re@dag (sec. 71): "obscure name of a flower" in Unvala's transcription and translation; "ge@tik 'a fragrant rose'" (quoted from Steingass; cf. Borha@n-e qa@tÂe¿, ed. Mo¿in, pp. 1830, 1868) in Monchi-zadeh's reading and interpretation. Its scent is compared to that of hu-niya@g[a@n], i.e., people of noble ancestry. For a different identification of this flower, see below.

According to the Nowruz-na@ma (attributed to ¿Omar K¨ayya@m), the mythical Iranian sovereign Fere@du@n (q.v.), among other innovations, "originated the gol (rose), the violet, the water lily, and the like in the garden."

IV. In New Persian literature. The rose has had a predominant place in classical Persian poetry (e.g., see H®a@fezá, p. 140, addressing it as pa@dæa@h-e háosn "king of beauty"), where it is sometimes called gol-e sorkò or sorkò-gol "red flower," and gol-e suri (suri "red"; cf. Kurd. so@/ur, Pashto sur, Baluchi so/uhr, etc., cognates of Mid. Pers. suxr > Pers. sorkò, Av. suxra-, all meaning "red"), probably to avoid confusion with gol "flower" in general or to stress redness (because not all roses are red). It occurs mainly in four different poetical contexts:

1. First and foremost as an outstanding feature of the spring; e.g., Manu±ehri Da@mg@a@ni (p. 1): "Now-baha@r a@mad o a@vard gol o ya@samana@…" (The new spring came, and brought the rose and jasmine…); and Moháammad-Taqi Baha@r: "Now-baha@r a@mad o … sorkò-gol kòanda zad" (The new spring came and … the red rose laughed, i.e., opened out; Diva@n I, p. 500).

2. In close association with, and in sharp contrast to, kòa@r "thorn" (as rose bushes are more or less prickly); cf., e.g., Sa¿di: "Gol-e bi-kòa@r moyassar naæavad dar bosta@n…" (Thornless roses cannot be had/found in the garden…; GÚazaliya@t, p. 492), and "Har ja@ ka gol ast kòa@r ast" (Wherever there is a rose, there are thorns; Golesta@n, p. 502), now a proverb. This contrast between the rose, symbolizing beauty and smoothness, and thorn as a symbol of harshness has often been utilized by poets to convey the general idea that success in attaining one's goal is usually concomitant with hardship, or that pleasures are often marred by annoyances such as thorns scratching the hand wishing to pluck a rose; cf. Sa¿di: "Ganj o ma@r o gol o kòa@r o g@am o æa@di ba ham-and" (Treasure [buried underground] and snake, rose and thorn, sorrow and mirth go together), and Fakòr-al-Din Gorga@ni's "Har a@n ga@h-i ka da@ri gol ±edan ka@r/rava@ ba@æad ka dast-at ra@ kòalad kòa@r" (Whenever thou art picking roses, it is acceptable that thy hand be pricked by the thorn; p. 297).

3. As the inamorata of the nightingale in an imaginary love story developed by Persian poets (see BOLBOL; GOL O BOLBOL); hence the jocular expression keævar-e gol o bolbol (the rose-and-nightingale country) used (sometimes disparagingly) to refer to modern Persia.

4) The delicate prettiness of someone's body (usually the poet's sweetheart) or his/her rosy complexion are often compared to rose petals (barg-e gol/gol-barg); cf. the literary compound adjectives gol-anda@m/-badan "rose-bodied" and gol-rokò/-±ehr(a)/-¿edòa@r "rose-faced." It should be also noted here that the word gol means (red) rose in most derived and compound adjectives and nouns (including toponyms), e.g., goli "pink," gol-gun/-fa@m/-rang "rose-colored, rosy," gol-bon "rose bush," golesta@n/golza@r/golæan "rose garden" or "a place where abound roses and possibly other flowers" (for the numerous toponyms with gol, see Dehkòoda@, s.vv.).

The flowers celebrated by classical Persian poets (particularly of the Ghaznavid period) in their description of the spring include the following rosaceous species or varieties, usually determined only as to their coloration and/or fragrance; hence it is almost impossible to identify most of them with any degree of certainty:

1. Rose in general. The rose is sometimes characterized only as gol-e sorkò/suri/a@taæi "red rose" (rarely, as gol-/ward-e mowarrad "rosy rose", e.g., in Manu±ehri Da@mg@a@ni, pp. 16, 208).

2. Gol-e ka@mg/ka@r; probably a scarlet variety of rose (Manu±ehri, p. 31: gol-e sorkò-e ka@mka@r; for citations from other poets see Rang±i, pp. 345-47; Gardizi, ed. H®abibi, p. 151 indicates that this rose, found in Marv, was named for a certain Ka@mga@r and is extremely red).

3. Gol-e sapid "white rose."

4. Gol-e zard "yellow rose," probably R. hemisphaerica or R. foetida (see above).

5. Gol-e do-ruy(a)/do-rang "two-faced/-colored rose."

6. Nastaran, already mentioned as a fragrant flower in the Bundahiæn (tr. Anklesaria, 16.13; tr. Baha@r, p. 88), where it is also said to be the emblem of the Ameæa@spand Raænu (tr. Ankelsaria, 16A.2; tr. Baha@r, p. 88). It is most probably a variety of the dog rose (see R. canina above) with fragrant corymbose white flowers; as to its color and its scent cf. nastaran-e moæk-buy … sim-aæ dar gardan-ast "the musk-scented nastaran … has silver in its collar," a@n nastaran ±o na@f-e bolurin-e delbar-i "that nastaran [is] like the crystal-clear navel of a sweetheart" (Manu±ehri, pp. 18, 114), and nastaran lo÷lo÷-e bayzµa@/la@la@ da@rad andar guæva@r "the nastaran has white/brilliant pearls in [its] earring" (Farrokòi Sista@ni, p. 175).

7. Nasrin. Some lexicographers (e.g., Da@¿i-al-Esla@m, s.v.) believe it to be the same as nastaran, but Manu±ehri has mentioned both as two different flowers in the same poem (ll. 1513 and 1524). His description "nasrin daha@n ze dorr-e monazµzµad konad hami" (the nasrin makes [its] mouth of strung pearls) would indicate a double white rose; de Fouche‚cour (p. 85) defines nasrin as "small white hundred-petaled rose," apparently translating nasrin's definition in the Borha@n-e qa@tÂe¿ (ed. Mo¿in, p. 2139), where it is vaguely described as being of two kinds, gol-e moækin "musky rose" (probably the above R. moschata, called nasrin also in Arabic; cf. Issa, p. 157, n. 10), and gol-e nasrin, which in Arabic is called ward sáini "Chinese rose" (Issa, p. 157, no.2, gives jolnasrin and al-ward al-sÂini as Arabic equivalents of the dog rose). Some modern lexicographers, however, present nasrin as (a kind of) narcissus, e.g., Solayma@n H®ayyem (Haïm), Moháammad Mo¿in, and, following them, Gilbert Lazard (cf. also Schlimmer, p. 395, who equates it with Narcissus jonquilla, giving gol-e moæki/¿anbari as its synonyms).

For a detailed description of the literary uses of various roses by the 11th-century poets, see de Fouche‚cour concerning gol, nastaran, and nasrin (pp. 68-73, 84-85).

V. In "non-literary" works (including lexicons). Our oldest treatment of roses in Persian is by the learned Il-khanid vizier Raæid-al-Din Fazµl-Alla@h (d. 718/1318), also an expert horticulturist, who, in a chapter on gol cultivation and grafting (pp. 63-65), distinguishes seven roses in terms of their coloration: red; full red; whitish red (also called gol-gun "pink," and gol-e p/fa@rsi "Fa@rs rose" in Iraq); "tulip-colored rose"; white; yellow, including a hundred-petaled yellow variety peculiar to Pa@rs and "seldom found elsewhere"; and do-ruy "two-faced" (i.e., the inner and outer sides of each petal being of a different color). He adds that each of these varieties (anwa@¿) differs according to climate and soil condition in every province. Strangely enough, he asserts (p. 65) that the gol "grafted on orange, apple, citron, lemon (limu), quince, and myrrh trees becomes more fragrant," and that "in Bukhara and Samarqand provinces they graft the gol on willows and poplars … for tafarroj" (pleasure from viewing something delightful or wonderful). Another horticulturist, Abunasári Heravi (q.v.), the author of Eræa@d al-zera@¿a, (q.v., comp. 921/1515-16), in a chapter on "gol-e sorkò and the like" (pp. 202-7), mentions sixteen kinds of gol: gol-e malla (?); gol-e panj-barg "five-petaled rose" (incidentally, all simple roses have five petals); gol-e sorkò-e rasmi "standard red rose," "from which gola@b [rose water] is obtained"; gol-e sorkò-e sáad-barg "hundred-petaled red rose"; gol-e a@taæi(n)-e panj-barg "fiery five-petaled rose"; gol-e a@taæi-e maæhadi "Maæhad fiery rose, having a hundred petals"; gol-e a@taæin-e abraæ "speckled fiery rose"; pink "speckled rose, with white speckles"; gol-e ra¿na@÷ "elegant/graceful rose," "with yellow and red petals" (probably the same as gol-e do-ruy); gol-e bag@da@di "Baghdad rose," "somewhat reddish"; gol-e qa@zqa@n (?), with kabud (dark blue, azure; probably meaning "pale") flowers, "widely cultivated in gardens"; gol-e zard-e sáad-barg "yellow hundred-petaled rose"; gol-e sáa@buni/rowg@ani "soapy/oily rose" (?); gol-e moækin "musk-scented rose," also called æaæ-ma@ha "lasting six months," "with a hundred petals"; nastaran, with white (its rasmi variety), red, or mala (?) flowers, "which used to be (found) in gardens [but] has disappeared now"; and nasrin. Abunasári, too, claims (p. 235) that "the gol may be grafted on the willow and poplar."

In the 19th century, Moháammad-H®asan Khan E¿tema@d-al-SaltÂana (Ma÷a@t¯er wa'l-a@t¯a@r, pp. 136-37), listing the novel flowers, fruits, and the like introduced or propagated in Persia during the reign of Na@sáer-al-Din Shah Qa@ja@r (1264-1313/1848-96), has mentioned "eight sorts of gol-e sorkò-e mo÷ayyedi" (?) and "the gol-e bag@da@di, which looks like the gol-e raæti" ("rose from Raæt," Gila@n; see below).

In modern times, a number of other rose species have been mentioned by some lexicographers, usually with vague definitions or equivalents:

1. Gol-e raæti: "a pale rose, whose petals are used" (Dehkòoda@, s.v.); Mo¿in (p. 3341) gives gol-e háa@ji-tÂarkòa@ni or haætarkòa@ni "Astrakhan rose" as its synonym.

2. Gol-e sorkò-e hamiæa-baha@r "ever-blooming red rose," (a kind of) double nastaran (identified by Schlimmer, p. 492, as R. semperflorens/sempervirens), and defined by Da@¿i-al-Esla@m (s.v. gol) as "the scentless variety of gol-e gola@b."

3. Gol-e ±a@y, tea rose (Dehkòoda, s.v.; synonyms in H®aïm: gol-e Bamba÷i/tokòm- e-morg@i "Bombay/ovoid rose"; H®aïm, s.v. gol). According to Mo¿in (p. 3341), it is "a beautiful hybrid orange double rose, so called for the resemblance of its coloration to that of tea-bush blossoms" (a doubtful justification, for this name refers to the usually tea-scented flowers).

4. Gol-e peyvandi "grafted rose" or gol-e sorkò-e farangi "European red rose", "popularly said of large double varieties of hybridized or grafted roses" (Mo¿in, p. 3340).

5. Gol-e giti (cf. ge@tik, above): "A comely rose, the good-quality variety of which used to be brought from Basára, and whose musk- and amber-scented petals are placed in clothes to perfume them" (Mo¿in, p. 3349).

FLOWERS IN GENERAL

In pre-Islamic lore. The Bundahiæn (16.13, 16A.1-3, tr. Anklesaria, pp. 149-53, tr. Baha@r, pp. 87-88) mentions, in addition to rose species, eleven other "sweet-smelling" flowers, some of which are unrecognizable today. The identifiable ones are ya@sm^n "jasmine," ±ambag (probably the same as ya@s-e ±ampa@ in modern nomenclature), narges "narcissus," wanafæag "violet" (see BANAFˆA), he@r^g "wallflower," ala@lag "buttercup" ("anemone" according to MacKenzie, s.v.), and kurkum "saffron." Further, the following flowers figure in the list of fragrant flowers and herbs connected with the thirty-one Am™æa Sp™ntas (q.v.; the name of the related Am™æa Sp™nta is given in brackets; the flowers already mentioned are not repeated here): saman ^ spe@d "white saman" (i.e., ya@saman; Wahman, see BAHMAN), marzango@æ "marjoram" (Ardwahiæt, q.v.), so@san "lily" (Horda@d), a@durgo@n (New Pers. a@dòar-gun, lit., "fire-colored," unidentified), n^lo@pal "nenuphar, water lily, lotus" (AÚba@n, q.v., see also ANAÚHÈD), he@r^g-^ suxr "red wallflower" (Sro@æ), he@r^g-^ zard "yellow wallflower" (Ra@m), bo@yesta@n-abro@z (New Pers. bo/usta@nafruz "amaranth"; see BOSTAÚNAFRUÚZ), sunbul "hyacinth" (Wahra@m), and ham@a@g-waha@r, probably the same as the present gol-e hamiæa-baha@r "marigold" (Ard).

In classical literature. Apart from roses, the favorite flowers described or mentioned by classical poets in the description of spring include the following: the violet, la@la (tulip, etc.), narcissus, hyacinth, lily, nenuphar, jasmine, wallflower, arg@ava@n (q.v.; purplish blossoms of the Judas tree), and gol(-e)-na@r (blossoms of the pomegranate; for an account by the 5th/11th-century Persian poets of these and some flowers of lower frequency [e.g., corn poppy, æaqa@yeq], see de Fouche‚cour's circumstantial inventory and analysis, pp. 60-63, 73-84, 86-87, etc.). Many later poets have mentioned these "classic" flowers as floristic cliche‚s. The neo-classic poet Moháammad-Taqi Baha@r (Diva@n I, p. 500) has introduced a number of new ones: gol-e tÂa@wusi (probably the broom, Cystus scoparius), pi±ak (bindweed, convolvulus), gol-e maymun (snapdragon), (gol-e) atÂlasi (petunia), mikòak (carnation), (gol-e) mina@ (aster), (gol-e) æam¿da@ni (geranium, pelargonium), zanbaq (iris), and gol-e a@zarmi (cyclamen?).

Unique in its kind in Persian literature is Ramz al-raya@háin ("Secret of fragrant plants"), a mat¯nawi comp. in 1089/1678 by a minor poet of the Safavid era, Ramzi Ka@æa@ni (b. 1040/1630-31), a kind of tenson in which the favorite garden plants of those times participate. Twenty-three specific flower species or varieties are mentioned (the Persian names are given here only if somewhat different from those mentioned elsewhere in the article): narcissus, violet, (white) jasmine, blue/pale jasmine (ya@saman-e kabud), red blossoms of the Judas tree, simple French marigold (gol-e ja¿fari), larkspur, yellow wallflower, clove gilliflower (qaranfol), gol-e ¿a@æeq-o-ma¿æuq (lit. "the lover-and-sweetheart flower"; unidentified), zolf-e ¿arusa@n (lit. "brides' hanging curls"; love-lives-bleeding, Amaranthus caudatus), ra¿na@(-ziba@; uncertain), iris, yellow iris, white iris, gol-e moækja (musk rose?), lily, nastaran, hyacinth, (corn) poppy, yellow rose, red rose, [gol-e] bid-moæk (catkins of Salix aegyptiaca; see BIÚD), and two unspecified items: gol-e (sic) rayháa@n (sweet basil?), and æekufa (fruit-tree blossoms in general). Beginning with the narcissus, each of the flowers mentioned extols itself in various numbers of bayts, but is disparaged or scorned by a competitor, which, in turn, boasts about itself, only to be depreciated by the next disputant.

In technical works on agriculture. Raæid-al-Din Fazµl-Alla@h describes, in addition to ten of the above-mentioned "classical" or favorite flowers, the culture of the marzanguæ (sweet marjoram; myosotis), several kinds of kòatÂmi (marsh mallow, hollyhock, etc.), the zanbaq (Arabian jasmine; not to be confused with zanbaq "iris"), and some Chinese plants or flowers (with their awkwardly transcribed, unidentifiable native names; pp. 95-103, 205-7, etc.). Abunasári Heravi deals with about twenty-seven flowers (some of them with one or more species/varieties treated separately). The new ones, with identifiable names, include the following: æab-dust (p. 200; unknown; lit., "night-loving," so called because "it gives off its strong scent from sunset to sunrise"; not to be confused with æab-bu "wallflower"; most probably what is now known as mahábuba-ye æab, lit. "darling/sweetheart of the night"); Astara@ba@d hyacinth (pp. 201-2); a twining plant with "extremely delicate fragrant flowers" (unknown); gol-e ziba@ (p. 209; lit., "the pretty/graceful flower"); a bulbous yellow flower, with double or semidouble varieties, "blooming before any other flower" (unknown); [gol-e] kabud (p. 215; lit., "the blue flower"; unknown); [gol-e] sepehri (p. 215; lit., "the celestial flower"; unknown); hamiæa-baha@r (p. 216; marigold); [gol-e] kòaækòa@æ (poppy, with several varieties; pp. 216-17); qaranfol (p. 218; pink); [gol-e] na@farma@n (pp. 221-22; larkspur; now called [gol-e] zaba@n-dar-qafa@); gol-e nowruzi (pp. 223-24; lit., "Now-ruz flower"; "a yellow flower … smaller than the tulip"; unknown).

In European travelers' accounts. Some 17th-century and later Europeans (travelers, resident missionaries, etc.) have made remarks on the flowers of Persia. Perhaps the earliest are those of the Capuchin French missionary Raphaël du Mans (q.v.), who, in his report, mentions (p. 232) the following, not without his usual derisive tone about all things Persian: As for "flowers …, which are so much extolled in our countries, here they have but a few [varieties of] tulips [probably also meaning corn poppies], which are driven away from our flower-beds like [the weed] couch grass …, the amaranth, larkspur, stock, pink, French marigold, white and red lilies, iris, and small flowers such as daisies, narcissi, etc." By contrast, his contemporary fellow-countryman, the merchant and observer Jean Chardin (q.v.,) had a high opinion of Persian flowers (III, pp. 345-49): "In Persia there are all the flowers we have in France and in the most beautiful countries of Europe …. In India there are not so many kinds of flowers as in Persia … [which], by the vividness of [their] colors, are much more beautiful than those in Europe and India." Then, in addition to various roses, he extols the following with details about their colors, general habitats, etc.: simple and double jasmines, Spanish jasmine, tulips, anemones, simple buttercups, fritillary, jonquil, "seven to eight kinds of narcissus," lily of the valley, violets and lilies "of all colors," simple and double pinks, clove pink, French marigolds "with a dazzling color," marsh mallows "with a beautiful color," hyacinth, myrtle [blossoms], yellow and red stocks, and "all colors of musk mallows."

Two British amateur botanists, Alice Fullerton and Nancy Lindsay, visited Persia in 1934 in search of flowers. Their investigation, restricted chiefly to SoltÂa@na@ba@d (present-day Ara@k, q.v.) district (with casual trips to Qazvin, Tehran, and Isfahan), related by Fullerton, is condensed in an appendix (pp. 185-95). In addition to several indigenous species of rose (with a particular interest in Rosa berberifolia = R. persica, see above), the report includes the following "flowers" (only scientific and/or popular English names are used; Persian names have been provided if generally acceptable ones exist): Abundant Persian lilac (ya@s-e banafæ/æirva@ni), which, like the oleaster (senjed, q.v.) blooms, filled the air with their heady scent in spring; various poppies (æaqa@yeq); various grape hyacinths (kala@g@ak, za@g@ak, etc.); Convolvulus spp. (pi±ak, nilufar-e sáahára@÷i); thistles "in many shapes and colours"; Anthemis spp. (ba@buna, ga@v-±aæm, etc.); corn/ixia lily "growing everywhere"; two species of iris; several species of hollyhock (kòatÂmi); mallow (panirak); hyssop (zufa@); white and yellow salvias (maryam-e goli, salvi, etc.); wild gladioli (gela@yol); cranesbill (æam¿da@ni-e waháæi "wild geranium"); Bongardia chrysogonum, "[the earthnuts of] which the peasants eat, with flowers like a giant cowslip"; a strange ruddy orchid, Philipia [sic; i.e., Phelypaea = Anoplon]; blossoms of the salt tree (Halimodendron argenteum); white and pink oleanders (kòar-zahra); stocks; blossoms of the local variety of Judas tree; and Dianthus spp. (mikòak, qaranfol, etc.).

Acclimated flowers. The modern inventory of acclimated plants in Persia comprises a sizable number of species introduced for their ornamental and/or fragrant flowers. The dates and agencies of the introduction of most of them is unknown, but many of them have been imported, propagated, and improved since the reign of Na@sáer-al-Din Shah Qa@ja@r, particularly in the second half of the 20th century. The only record of introduction (E¿tema@d-al-SaltÂana, Ma÷a@t¯er wa'l-a@t¯a@r, pp. 136-37) includes the following, most of them with two or more varieties or forms (for comparative botanonymical purposes the literal meanings of Persian appellations are also given): kòatámi-e derakòti ("treelike hollyhock"; rose of Sharon); gol-e yakò ("ice [season] flower"; Japan allspice); gol-e táa@wusi ("peacock [feather]-like flower"; some bicolor species of Coreopsis?); gol-e sáad-tuma@ni ("one hundred-tomans' worth flower"; peony); gol-e kowkab ("star flower"; dahlia); gol-e Maryam ("Mary's flower"; tuberose); kòar-zahra ("donkey's bane"; oleander); gol-e sa@¿at ("clock flower"; passionflower); ten varieties of simple and double gol-e æam¿da@ni ("candle-stick flower"; cranesbill), some with fragrant leaves; gol-e aærafi ("aærafi [?] flower"; a species of calendula?); gol-e æa@h-pasand ("king-pleasing flower"; vervain); gol-e a@viz ("pendant/pendulous flower"; fuchsia); gol-e na@z ("coquettish flower"?; the sun plant = Portulaca grandiflora); gol-e hamiæa-baha@r-e farangi ("European [hybridized] marigold"); banafæa-ye farangi ("European violet"; pansy); gol-e ma@r ("snake flower"; ?); gol-e kòanjari ("dagger-like flower"; Spanish bayonet?); gol-e la@dan ("labdanum flower"; nasturtium); gol-e da@wudi-e farangi (European David-flower", large double chrysanthemum); gol-e kòoræidi ("sun-like flower"; clivia?); sonbol-e hola@ndi ("Dutch hyacinth"); mikòak-e por-par ("double pink"; carnation); double gol-e zaba@n-ba-qafa@ ("tongue-in-the-nape flower"; larkspur); simple and double la@la-ye farangi ("European [fancy] tulip"); gol-e ¿aqrab ("scorpion flower"; ?); gol-e maymun ("monkey flower"; snapdragon); gol-e [atÂlasi-e] dahan-a‘dar ("dragon-mouthed [i.e. ringent] petunia"); gol-e esteka@ni ("tumbler-like flower"; bellflower); sinerer (cineraria); sa@lvia@ (salvia, sage); feloks (phlox); ta@j-ol-moluk ("kings' crown"; columbine); and a few other unidentifiable ones.

Among other commonly cultivated imported plants/flowers some have retained their foreign, usually altered, names, e.g.: gela@yol (< Fr. glaïeul; the florists' hybrid gladioli), gelisin/gilisin (< Fr. glycine; wisteria), begonia@ (begonia), sikla@ma/siklama (< Fr. cyclamen), a@za@la (< Fr. azale‚e; azalea), gol-e ka@ktus (< Fr. cactus; flowers of various cacti), orkida (< Fr. orchide‚e; orchid), rubeki (< Fr. rudbeckie; rudbeckia, black-eyed Susan), ma@gnolia@ (magnolia); but most of them have been given Persian names, e.g., gol-e æara@b(i) ("wine[-smelling] flower"; Carolina allspice), gol-e ka@g@azi ("papery flower"; bougainvillea), gol-e æeypuri ("trumpet-like flower"; calla lily, arum, etc.), gol-e a@ha@r ("starch flower"; zinnia), gol-e akòtar ("star flower"; canna, Indian shot), gol-e telgera@fi ("telegraph [line] flower"; creeping myrtle), gol-e morva@rid ("pearl flower"; snowberry tree), gol-e seta@ra÷i ("starlike flower"; cosmos, Mexican aster), gol-e háana@ ("henna flower"; balsam = Impatiens balsamina), gol-e dogma(÷i) ("button[-like] flower"; strawflower, globe amaranth), gol-e a@fta@b-garda@n ("turning-with-the-sun [flower]"; sunflower), narges-e derakòti ("treelike narcissus"; mock orange), la@la(-ye) ¿abba@si ("¿Abba@s tulip"; marvel of Peru), pi±-e Aminoddowla ("Amin-al-Dawla's climber"; honeysuckle), gol-e mo¿inottojja@ri ("Mo¿in-al-Tojjar flower"; rhododendron), beh-e ‘a@poni ("Japanese quince"; japonica), kòatÂmi-e ‘a@poni ("Japanese hollyhock"; China rose=Hibiscus rosa-sinensis), mina@(-ye) farangi ("European aster"; China aster), derakòt-e/gol-e panba/par ("cotton/feather tree/flower"; smoke tree), pi±-e ana@ri/æeypuri ("pomegranate-/trumpet-like climber"; tecoma, trumpet creeper), morg@-e beheæti ("paradisiacal bird"; bird-of-paradise flower), háosn-e Yusof ("Joseph's beauty"; flame nettle), bent-e qonsol ("the consul's daughter"; poinsettia; the last two items are not "flowers": the former is esteemed for its showy leaves, and the latter for its showy bracts).

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(Huæang A¿lam)