Is the olive tree or branch traditionally seen as good or bad?

Question

I thought it was a symbol of peace but i have seen videos of people frantically uprooting them with bull dozers. Do olive trees have a different meaning in different cultures?

Answer 1

Olive trees are still seen as a sign of peace. The bulldozers uprooting the land would have done so no matter what kind of trees were there.

Answer 2

They're frantically uprooting them simply because some property developer has offered them Millions for their olive groves so they can build Villas for British Pats to buy.

I don't know about olive trees meaning different things to different cultures, but around the World an olive branch is still considered a symbol of piece.

Answer 3

Olive branches do symbolize peace, as in 'extending an olive branch'. And a branch from the olive tree is what you are supposed to use to drive through a vampire's heart to make sure it doesn't rise up from the dead. There are all sorts of references to olive as beneficent. Uprooting them with bulldozers sounds like the developers are moving in. Do you suppose an olive branch through their hearts might work too?

Answer 4

some more info for you on Olive trees. They live for thousands of years so they also represent everlasting life by many faiths. The tree represents wisdom in some cultures too.

I have a theory that is everlasting life in the christian religion represents about 1 to 5 thousand years. This would give you plenty of time to work out life and after 1000 years living you would be ready for the next life.

The Olive (Olea europaea) is a species of small tree in the family Oleaceae, native to coastal areas of the eastern Mediterranean region, from Syria and the maritime parts of Asia Minor and northern Iran at the south end of the Caspian Sea. Its use as a major agricultural product in preclassical Greece led to its wider distribution throughout the western Mediterranean. Olive trees show a marked preference for calcareous soils, flourishing best on limestone slopes and crags, and coastal climate conditions.

The Wild Olive is a small, straggly tree or shrub to 8-15 m tall with thorny branches. The leaves are opposite, oblong pointed, 4-10 cm long and 1-3 cm broad, dark greyish-green above and pale with whitish scales below. The small white flowers, with four-cleft calyx and corolla, two stamens and bifid stigma, are borne generally on the last year's wood, in racemes springing from the axils of the leaves. The fruit is a small drupe 1-2.5 cm long, thinner-fleshed and smaller in wild plants than in orchard cultivars.

also

The olive tree (Olea Europea) is one of the few trees that can still produce fruits even in rocky and unproductive land. Olea’s main characteristic is its longevity and the preservation of its productivity.

The olive tree has been the symbol of wisdom and peace. The olive tree was the sacred tree of goddess Athena and Athens, the capital of Greece, took its name from the goddess. Zeus had decreed that the city should be given to the god who offered the most useful gift to the people. Poseidon gave them the horse. Athena struck the bare soil with her spear and caused an olive tree to spring up. The people were so delighted with the olive that Zeus gave the city to Athena and named it after her. Athena is often shown with an olive branch, a symbol of peace and plenty.

At the Ancient Olympic Games, winners were presented with a simple olive tree branch which was cut with a gold-handled knife from a wild olive tree. The Greeks believed that the vitality of the sacred tree was transmitted to the recipient through the branch.

The olive oil is still being used for medical purposes and religious purposes and it has been proved to be an essential ingredient of a healthy diet. As a monosaturated fatty acid, olive oil does not have the same cholesterol-raising effect of saturated fats. Olive oil is also a good source of antioxidants. Olive oil, unlike seed oils, remains stable in its chemical structure at relatively high temperatures because of its antioxidant and high oleic acid content

Answer 5

The Olive Branch is a globally recognised symbol of peace, that is why the United Nations flag depicts the world cradled in a pair of olive branches.

Answer 6

Good, usually. In ancient Greece, the olive tree meant peace and healing. Biblically, it means hope. I've never heard of a bad connotation on the olive branch.

Answer 7

Hello,

I have such a lovely little Olive tree in a pot. It has flowers on it and is just starting to fruit. I know the bible relates it to peace, and i can't see any other reason for it. Its a bit cold in England for olive trees really so i don't expect it will ever be massive errrrrrrrrrrrm SORRY I GOT CARRIED AWAY

Answer 8

THE OLIVE TREE was in the story of Noah and is seen as a symbol of peace, new beginning and hope.

Answer 9

I think the dove brought back an olive branch to Noah. Our eagle holds one in its claw as a symbol of peace.

Answer 10

Additionally, some ancient Mediterranean cultures (especially the Greeks) rightly saw the olive as one of their most important plants--a critical component of their food supply and economy, a gift from the Gods, in fact.