In ancient China, willow branches(柳枝) were often used as a gift to friends and family members who would leave. Do you know why willow branches are a symbol of saying goodbye?
One reason is that willow trees are strong. They can live in any soil, wet or dry, north or south. Because of this special feature, when saying goodbye to loved ones, giving a willow branch is a way to tell them you hope they will easily get used to their new living environment.
Another reason is that, in Chinese, the pronunciation for the willow tree"柳"is similar to the character "留". So giving a willow branch in ancient China was like asking the others to stay, even though you know that they must leave.
It's said that this custom became popular during the Han Dynasty. At that time, Baqiao, a bridge in Chang'an, today's Xi'an, was a common place to say goodbye. People often stopped there and handed willow branches to people who were going to depart.
Willow branches, as a symbol of saying goodbye, were often mentioned in poems, especially at the time of the Tang and Song dynasties.
