One fine day you are handed a bouquet of roses, and you find yourself wondering whether the number of roses means something. You put them happily in a vase and ask yourself: why eighteen? In Vietnam, as in much of East Asia, the count is often chosen on purpose. Here Flosa explains what each number is taken to mean.
Where the meanings of rose numbers come from
Across cultures and down the centuries, roses have been given for particular purposes, with a particular colour and a particular number of stems for each. Almost every reading of the number of roses, wherever it comes from, is a message about love.
The rose as a symbol of love, combined with numbers as a kind of code, is said to go back to ancient Greece: when a young man or woman wanted to declare their feelings, they began with flowers.
As time went on, people attached more and more meanings to specific numbers of roses, and began to learn them in order to express a feeling precisely or to read the message a sender intended. Twelve roses, for example, are taken to mean lasting love, while in East Asia 105 roses are said to stand for trăm năm hạnh phúc (“a hundred years of happiness”, a traditional wish for a couple).
What the number of roses means in love
When you give roses to someone you love, choosing the right colour is only part of the message; the right number completes it. The readings below are the ones most often quoted in Vietnam. They are popular conventions rather than fixed rules, and a few numbers have more than one reading.
From 1 to 10 roses
1 rose: love at first sight
2 roses: my love for you runs very deep
3 roses: I love you
4 roses: nothing can stand in the way of our love
5 roses: admiration for her beauty
6 roses: I want to be your other half
7 roses: I love you more than anything in this world
8 roses: gratitude; a sincere thank-you to someone who has helped and supported you
9 roses: our love will never die
10 roses: you are perfect
From 11 to 29 roses
11 roses: you are the most precious thing I have
12 roses: will you be mine? / our love will last through the years
13 roses: friends for ever, or: there are secrets waiting for you to discover
14 roses: I am proud of you
15 roses: it was my fault; please forgive me
16 roses: Vạn sự khởi đầu nan (“every beginning is hard”) / good luck
17 roses: will you be my wife? / also given by a husband to his wife on special occasions
18 roses: may you stay young, beautiful and happy
19 roses: everlasting love / I will wait until you say yes
20 roses: my love is sincere / please trust me
21 roses: I promise to love you always, with all my heart
22 roses: whatever happens, we stay together / often given to a friend as encouragement and a wish for good luck
24 roses: you are always on my mind; I think of you every minute, every second
25 roses: I wish you happiness always
27 roses: to my wife, I love you
From 30 to 50 roses
30 roses: I have always trusted you
33 roses: I love you with all that is best in this world
36 roses: a reminder of the romantic moments the two of you have shared
37 roses: I love you with my whole heart
40 roses: my love for you is entirely sincere
44 roses: a faithful love; nothing can part us, not even death
47 roses: you are the only one, and you are mine alone
48 roses: whatever the years bring, my love will not change
50 roses: my love for you is unconditional; I have no regrets, now or later
From 51 to 100 roses
51 roses: you are still the only one on my mind
66 roses: nothing can change my love for you
77 roses: I have always believed our meeting was fate
88 roses: an apology from the bottom of my heart
99 roses: I will love you even beyond death
100 roses: a love that is complete
From 101 to 1001 roses
101 roses: you are the one I love
108 roses: will you marry me?
111 roses: undying love
144 roses: I love you day and night
365 roses: I love you every day of the year
999 roses: my love for you is eternal
1001 roses: a love without end or limit, one that lasts through time
Rose bouquets by number for someone you love
The early days of love are a joy: the other person is on your mind every minute, every second, and you imagine nothing but happiness. Then you realise you ought to tell them, and find you are too shy to say it, because this love has only just begun. A bouquet of 24 roses is a perfect choice at that moment.
A single-rose bouquet: love at first sight
Love at first sight, and a life together until the last. Every love begins with a first look, a first glimpse, a first word. Send the person you love one radiant rose to tell them: “Hey beautiful, you had me at hello!”
A bouquet of 9 roses: undying love
In East Asian culture the word for nine, cửu (九), sounds the same as the word for “long-lasting”, cửu (久), so the number nine is taken to mean something that endures for generations. Put that together with deep red roses and you are giving a bouquet of love that says it will never fade.
A bouquet of 20 roses: my love is sincere, please trust me
Loving her is not enough; she needs to be able to trust you. Show it not only in what you say and do, but with 20 roses as well.
A bouquet of 25 Blue Moon roses: I wish you happiness always
Love that is not returned hurts. Even so, for the sake of that love you can wish the other person happiness. Sometimes it need not be said aloud: 25 blue roses will say it for you.
A bouquet of 50 roses: unconditional love
“My love for you is everything I have. It is the most colourful, most deeply felt, most meaningful thing I know, and I only understood that when I met you. Above all, I ask for nothing in return.” If that is how strongly you feel about her, let 50 roses say so.
A bouquet of 99 roses: eternal love
Ninety-nine deep red roses stand for a love that never dies. When words alone do not seem enough to show how much you mean it, let 99 roses in full bloom carry your lasting love to the one you have chosen.
About Flosa, the florist
Flosa is a florist in Vietnam that has earned the affection of a growing number of customers.
We put heart and care first, and keep working to improve, so that every bouquet we send can do its job of carrying someone’s love. Our team is enthusiastic and knows flowers, and the craft of wrapping them, well.
Those are the meanings of the number of roses as they are understood in Vietnam. We hope they help you choose a bouquet that is beautiful and says exactly what you intend.
Flosa is an online florist that helps you choose and send flowers to friends, family and business partners. We prepare flowers for every occasion: grand-opening flowers, birthday flowers, wedding flowers, sympathy flowers, flowers for International Women’s Day on 8 March and more. Our florists check the quality of every stem and find out what the customer wants before they design and arrange. Each bouquet tells a story, and the story is yours.
Call Flosa on +84 90 252 6176 for advice.
