I have always loved the name Willow, plus I think willow trees are beautifully romantic, and so I wanted to write about the significance of this name.

Willows & Where they Thrive — Staying Near the Living Water

Willow trees grow in low-lying areas in North America, Europe, and Asia. They are often found near rivers, lakes, and other bodies of water. These trees love floodplains, streamsides, riverbanks, swamps, ditches, and so on.

Willow Roots

willow roots are long and intertwine with one another to reach as much water sources as they can. They spread widely and very aggressively in seeking out moisture. Anywhere where they can have a direct source of a flood of water, they will thrive. Because of this, their roots are rot-resistant to withstand the constant source of water.

A daughter named Willow can take this to heart and remember that the best place to plant her roots is near the “Living Water”. She can remember that when we stay close to Jesus Christ, our testimony and soul will become more and more rot-resistant and withstand the powers of the adversary.

Their roots are remarkable for their toughness, size, and even sprout from parts of the plant above ground. This makes them easy to cultivate and grow from cuttings and even from broken branches that lie on the ground. There is a legend that poet Alexander Pope planted a willow twig from a parcel tied with them from Spain and that all of England’s weeping willows are descended from this first one.

To relate this to a little Willow girl in your life, it is a great reminder that you can grow easily wherever you are planted. You will find a way to survive and will bless lives because of it!

Willow Branches & Leaves

Willows have an abundant watery bark sap that makes them soft, usually pliant, with slender branches.

What are willow trees used for? — Purpose

Willow trees have been used for wicker work. Because the wood of the willow is rot-resistant it can be used to build boats. The bark can be made into a twine that is sometimes used as harpoon lines. Native American tribes used willow wood to start fires because of the ease with friction. The slender shoots can be used to weave baskets as well.

The leaves and bark of a willow are mentioned in ancient texts from Assyria, Sumer, Egypt, and ancient Greece. The physician Hippocrates wrote about its medicinal properties in 5,000 BC. In Nicholas Culpeper’s herbal book in the 1600s mentions using willow to staunch wounds, remove warts, or other issues by using burnt ashes of willow bark mixed with vinegar (similar to modern uses of salicylic acid). The Native Americans as late as the 1990s relied on willow as a staple of their medicinal treatments. They used the bark to treat sore throat and tuberculosis, finding headache relief when chewing the bark, used as an effective painkiller.

Willow in the Bible

Willow in Hebrew is Arava (עֲרָבָה). They have a wide crown and are low to the ground, symbolizing humility and meekness. Here are some scriptures that use this Hebrew word in the Bible:

And ye shall take you on the first day the boughs of goodly trees, branches of palm trees, and the boughs of thick trees, and willows of the brook; and ye shall rejoice before the Lord your God seven days.
— Leviticus 23:40

And they shall spring up as among the grass, as willows by the water courses.
— Isaiah 44:4

The shady trees cover him with their shadow; the willows of the brook compass him about.
— Job 40:22

We hanged our harps upon the willows in the midst thereof.
— Psalm 137:2

Therefore the abundance they have gotten, and that which they have laid up, shall they carry away to the brook of the willows.
— Isaiah 15:7

The Willow Tree in Sukkot Holiday

As mentioned in Leviticus 23:40, willow of the brook is one of the four woods used in the Jewish festival of Sukkot, Feast of Tabernacles, or Feast of Booths that lasts for 7 days (this holiday is celebrated around September or October, the 15th-21st day of Tishrei in the Jewish calendar). This holiday celebrates and marks the end of the harvest time and agricultural year. In Leviticus it mentions commemorating the Exodus and the dependence of the Israelites on the will of God.

Arava is a leafy branch of a willow tree and is bound together with 3 other branches, then waved in all four directions to attest to God’s mastery over all of creation and symbolically voice a prayer for adequate rainfall over Earth’s vegetation in the coming year. The 3 other species in the arba’ah minim bundle is Lulav (a palm frond), etrog (a citron), and hadasim (myrtles).

At the temple in Jerusalem on Sukkot, the willow branches were collected and piled upright on the sides of the altar with their tops bent over the top. The shofar (musical instrument using a ram’s horn) was sounded and the worshippers walked about in procession and recited Psalm 117, similar to what certain Jewish communities do today. They would recite things like “Please YHWH, save us, vindicate us.”. On the seventh day, they circled the altar seven times. Then this bundle is beaten against the ground until many of the leaves have fallen out. There is no explicit explanation for why this practice of beating the aravot against the floor happens, but tradition has held for centuries.

In all respect for Judaism and their cultures and traditions, I see a powerful symbolism of the Messiah here with the willow branches being waved together with three different species, then beaten onto the floor, and also laid against the altar. The willow seems to symbolize Jesus Christ. For Jews, the willow branches represent the simple folk who are not learned in the Torah and lack good deeds. The beating is a symbol of casting off old sins and of prayerful hope for God’s blessings of good harvest season in the upcoming year.

Other Religious Connections to Willow

Orthodox churches often use willow branches in place of palms in their ceremonies of Palm Sunday.

In Buddhism, a person on the path of awakening (the bodhisattva of compassion) is often shown seated on a rock with a willow branch in a vase of water at her side.

Throughout China, some people carry willow branches with them on the day of their Tomb Sweeping (Qingming Festival). They put these branches at the front gates and believe they help ward off evil spirits that wander on this day, which is when the ruler of the underworld allows the spirits of the dead to return to earth. The willow branches keep their presence away.

In Korea, a poem is written that states to her parting lover: “I will be the willow on your bedside.”

In Japan, willows are associated with ghosts and are used frequently in folklore and myths, believed that a ghost will appear where a willow grows.

Wisdom

Hans Christian Andersen writes a story called “Under the Willow Tree” in 1853 where children ask questions of a tree they call “willow-father”. In the movie Pocahantus, she seeks advice from “Grandmother Willow” who helps her on her path. Wisdom seems to be a common theme among many traditions surrounding the willow tree.

Mourning with Others

In Asian folklore, the willow tree symbolizes loss and mourning. Certain species are literally called “weeping willows” for their characteristic of branches that bend down as if to cry. This can be a reminder to mourn with those who mourn and be a person who is a listening ear and warm shoulder for those suffering with heartache or loss.

Symbols of Willow

Strength, Flexibility, Adaptability — You will not snap

Willow tree branches have the ability to sway in the breeze. In large wind storms their flexibility allows it to not snap and it creates that beautiful swaying imagery. I would encourage a Willow that she has the ability to adapt to her circumstances, be flexible and not allow rough winds to snap her in half. She has an inner strength that she can cultivate and sway whenever needs be.

“The wind may blow, but you won’t break.”

Hope, Celebration, Spring, Rebirth

Willow trees symbolize these symbols of springtime and rebirth, hope and celebration for new things. A Willow can take courage that she brings so much happiness to people. Think about when you see a willow tree unexpectedly, they are so beautiful and people find them awe-inspiring. These trees are romantic and lovely. The intertwining branches is like the friendships and relationships they will interact with in their lifetime and make an impact on others as well as their influence on her.

Gifts for Willow

Articles I used in my research:

https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/the-ritual-of-beating-the-willow/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aravah_(Sukkot)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Willow