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Black Roses Meaning & Symbolism

Vase with black roses in a darkly-lit room

Maybe you’ve grabbed a bouquet of red roses to express your love or received an arrangement of yellow roses as a token of friendship. But what about black roses? What do these mysterious and alluring flowers symbolize?

In short, black roses symbolism relates to endings and new beginnings, a sophisticated life, mourning, and mystery. Keep reading to learn more about the meaning of black roses and some appropriate occasions to give these flowers.

Black Rose Basics

Before we investigate the meaning of black roses, we’re going to help you get a little more familiar with these flowers. First off, natural black roses aren’t actually black. While they may appear to resemble the night sky from a distance, as you inspect them more closely, you’ll see they’re dark maroon or deep purple. Some common varieties of black roses that rose breeding efforts have produced include ‘Almost Black,’ ‘Black Baccara,’ and ‘Black Magic.’

However, you can find truly black roses. But this dark hue results from dye rather than natural growth.

What Is the Meaning of Black Roses?

Like many types of flowers, black rose meanings are numerous. They can symbolize the end of something meaningful, a sophisticated event, mourning, or mystery.

The End of Something Meaningful

While red roses are symbols of passionate love, black roses symbolism relates to the big changes that sometimes accompany romance. Breakups, divorce, and a fading relationship are all appropriate occasions for black roses, since these flowers represent the end of a relationship and the start of something new.

The band Escondido recognized this symbolism in their song titled Black Roses. The lyrics speak of a lost love and the black rose’s ability to bring back memories of the past relationship.

Black roses can also be used during other times of significant change such as the loss of a job, a retirement, or a move to a new city.

Sophistication

Take one look at these elegant flowers, and it’s easy to see why the black roses meaning also involves a sophisticated life. Whether you’re looking to add some elegance to your table for a dinner party or want to bring a touch of the high life to your home, the black rose can do the trick. So order some black rose bouquets if you’re looking to add a sophisticated touch to your life!

Mourning

Unfortunately, life isn’t always about celebration and joy. When a loved one dies or an opportunity passes you by, it’s natural to want to take a minute and mourn what you’ve lost. However, people shouldn’t have to go through these tough times alone.

If you’d like to let a friend, coworker, or family member know you’re there for them during tough times, go ahead and send them black roses. Since black roses meaning can relate to mourning, they’re an appropriate gift when someone is going through difficult times.

Mystery

You know that mysterious feeling you get when you look out at a dark night? Well, black roses capture that feeling. That means they’re great decorations for murder mystery parties and other occasions that can benefit from a touch of peculiarity.

Appropriate Occasions for Black Roses

As you’ve learned above, black roses symbolism is quite varied. Therefore, these flowers can make appropriate gifts for a variety of occasions and holidays.

Halloween

Move over pumpkins and mums, black roses are the hot new Halloween decoration! With a color that resembles an eerie night sky or the blood of vampires, black roses are some of the best flowers for Halloween. And since they have the refined petals that roses are known for, they can help add a creepy yet elegant feel.

Putting these spooky flowers on your dining room table can help add a touch of mystery, and placing them on the porch will bring a bit of a supernatural feel.

Death of a Loved One

While some people like sending bright flowers to cheer up the bereaved, colorful bouquets aren’t always the best choice. Since black roses symbolism marks the end of something and the start of something new, they can be a great way to let others know that you recognize they’re grieving. The flowers’ dark petals encourage people to think about what was lost while also reminding them that new times are ahead.

Retirement

The black roses meaning helps recognize big life transitions, which means these flowers are great gifts for retirement. They remind the newly retired to reflect on all they’ve accomplished during their career while also letting them know that they’ll find meaning during their retired life.

Flowers to Mark Every Occasion

The black roses meaning relates to mourning, mystery, loss, and elegance, which makes it a great gift for occasions ranging from Halloween to retirement. However, it’s maybe not the best choice if you’re looking to help a friend celebrate a birthday or let your partner know you love them. Fortunately, each flower holds unique symbolism, so you can find a flower that fits just about every occasion.

If you don’t know where to start, check out other flower symbolism to help you understand what flowers represent love, friendship, sympathy, and more. After that, you can move on to learning about specific flowers—lotus flower meaning is a great place to start.

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