Rose of Sharon - Cultural Presentation

Cultural Presentation

• The first record of the Rose of Sharon (mugunghwa) grown in Korea is mentioned in an article produced 1,400 years ago. A mythological fiction, Xuanzhongji (Hanja:玄中記), written in the Eastern Jin Dynasty (Hanja:東晉) of China mentions, "The Land of Wisemen is spread for 1,000 li where mugungwha flowers bloom plentifully."(君子之國，地方千里，多木槿之華) The name "mugungwha" was first used by the poet Lee Gyu-bo (이규보,1168 – 1241) of Goryeo Dynasty.

• In the USA, the Rose of Sharon is the official flower of Phi Beta Chi, a national Lutheran-based Greek social letter sorority.

• In Canada, Rose of Sharon is a charity that focuses on helping pregnant and parenting young women under the age of 25

• In The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck, Rose of Sharon (often called "Rosasharn") is a major character, the eldest daughter of the Joad family and the sister of the protagonist Tom Joad. Throughout much of the novel, she is depicted as fragile because of her pregnancy.

• Leonard Bernstein's Kaddish Symphony takes the form of a monologue by a narrator self-identified as Chavatzelet HaSharon, "the lily that man has picked and thrown away."

• The song "King's Ransom" from the 1986 Petra album Back to the Street contains a lyric in which the Rose of Sharon symbolizes Jesus Christ.

• The song "Rose of Sharon" is on the 1991 Camel album Dust and Dreams

• The Rose of Sharon is also referenced in the Kate Bush recording "The Song of Solomon" from her 1993 album The Red Shoes.

• The Rose of Sharon is referenced in the Killswitch Engage song "Rose of Sharyn" from their 2004 album The End of Heartache.

• There is a song entitled "Rose of Sharon" on Xiu Xiu's 2005 album La Forêt. The lyrics seem to allude to both the Song of Solomon and to Steinbeck's novel.

• The Ragnarok Online background music set includes a track called "Rose of Sharon".

• The village of Rosharon, Texas is named after the "Rose Of Sharon" from the Cherokee Roses that grew nearby.

• The Rose of Sharon is referenced in the Bob Dylan song "Caribbean Wind." The song appeared on the compilation album Biograph but was originally recorded during the sessions for Shot of Love.

• Leonard Cohen in his original poem "The Traitor" (on which the song "The Traitor" is based) also refers to the Rose of Sharon.

• Rose of Sharon is a homeless character in Sherman Alexie's short story "What You Pawn I Will Redeem," published April 21, 2003 in The New Yorker.

• In Brazil, Rosa de Saron (Portuguese for Rose of Sharon) is the name of a well-known white rock group, that has include recorded some songs in English.

• Sephardic Hebrew poetry from the 10th-15th century demonstrates prolific use of the חבצלת (ḥăḇaṣṣeleṯ) translated into English consistently as "Rose of Sharon"; there are a few renderings as "lily" (see Gate 47 of the Tahkemoni) . The term and trope are found throughout the Sefer Tahkemoni by Yehuda Alharizi (1165–1225) and much of the poetic corpus of the Golden Age of Iberian Jewish belles lettres, which includes the works of such poets as Shmu'el HaNagid (993-1056), Moses Ibn Ezra (c.1055-after 1138), Yehuda Halevi (c.1075-1141), and Abraham Ibn Ezra (c.1093-c.1167) among others.

• Judah Robertson has an album entitled "Rose of Sharon".

• "Rose of Sharon" is a song by Robert Hunter (Grateful Dead) released on his solo album Tiger Rose.

• "Rose of Sharon" is a song sung by Joan Baez on the album Day After Tomorrow.

• "Rose of Sharon Cassidy" is a NPC in the video game Fallout: New Vegas. She implies she is named after the Steinbeck character.