一到情人节，恋爱中的女孩们就会开始期待收到男朋友送的红玫瑰花。为什么情人节要送红玫瑰？红玫瑰是从什么时候起成为爱情的象征的？这要从古希腊的神话传说讲起。

 

For people in satisfying and committed relationships—or at least pretending to be—there's Valentine's Day, a holiday in which romance comes with a price tag attached and warm feelings are represented by a fresh bouquet¹ of red roses.

情人节是那些恋情甜蜜又稳定（或表面看来是如此）的情侣的节日。在情人节，浪漫被贴上了价格标签，新鲜的红玫瑰花束成了爱情的代言者。

 

But why roses? And why red? How did they come to be synonymous with Valentine's Day?

但为什么是玫瑰花而且一定要红玫瑰？红玫瑰是怎么成为情人节的代名词的？

 

According to Reader's Digest, red roses became entangled² with love in Greek lore³. “Some stories say that the first red rose was created when the Greek goddess Aphrodite was scratched by a white rose's thorn, causing that rose to turn red,” folklorist⁴ Sara Cleto, PhD, told the outlet⁵. “Others say that the first red rose grew on the ground where Adonis, Aphrodite's lover, died and the goddess's tears fell.”

据《读者文摘》介绍，红玫瑰和爱情的关联源于希腊传说。民俗学者萨拉·克莱托博士说道：“一些传说中讲到，希腊女神阿芙洛狄特被一株白玫瑰的刺划伤了，从而诞生出第一朵红玫瑰。还有一些版本的说法是，第一朵红玫瑰是在阿芙洛狄特的眼泪掉落在她的情人阿多尼斯死去的地方时长出来的。”

 

Properly dramatic, but the ascent⁶ of red roses as a romantic gift really grew in 19th-century England, when the idea of assigning meaning to different varieties of flowers grew. For those wishing to communicate their romantic interest in a potential mate, that meant sending floral bouquets⁷.

传说挺有戏剧性的，但是红玫瑰作为浪漫礼物的传统其实源于19世纪的英格兰，那个年代的人开始给不同种类的花赋予不同的意义。那时候人们借由送花束向心上人求爱。

 

Red roses in particular began to have connotations with love because, at the time, red dye was expensive and seen as a luxury. That a red rose provided similar visual appeal made it seem special.

在各种鲜花中，红玫瑰和爱情的联系尤为紧密，因为当时红色染料很昂贵，被视为奢侈品。一朵红玫瑰在视觉上给人带来同样的奢侈感觉，从而显得很特别。

 

Practically speaking, the idea has endured because unlike other flowers, red roses tolerate transportation pretty well. They're a good blend of aesthetics⁸ and hardiness⁹, two good traits for flowers that need to be portable as well as striking.

从务实的角度来说，红玫瑰和爱情之间的关联之所以如此持久，是因为红玫瑰在运输中可以保存得很好，与其他鲜花不同。送人的鲜花既要便携又要引人注目，而红玫瑰则美感和坚韧二者兼具。

 

Roses are, of course, expensive, and if you're more into the sentiment than the cash layout, you can find other ideas that can express your affection without contributing to the floral industry.

当然，玫瑰花价格不菲，如果你只想谈情说爱而不想砸钱，你也可以想想其他点子来表达你的爱，不用非买花不可。

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