For centuries, the people of Japan—and of the world—have been impressed by the beauty and uniqueness of the ginkgo tree and its delicate, unusually-shaped leaves. The ginkgo leaf is a popular motif in Japanese art, ceramics, textiles, family crests, symbols or logos, literature, and poetry. The tree’s complete name, Ginkgo biloba, is due in part to its distinctive bi-lobed leaves. The origin of the name “ginkgo,” however, is unclear, and may be based on a misspelling by German botanist Engelbert Kaempfer, the first European to see a ginkgo (long believed extinct by Westerners) growing in a Japanese temple garden in 1690. The ginkgo, known as ichou or ichô in Japanese, is a “living fossil,” with fossils recognizably-related to modern ginkgo dating back 270 million years to the Permian era. The ginkgo tree’s longevity—possibly up to 1,500 years—is thought to be a trait that has helped the tree survive as a species for so long. The hearty ginkgo can even withstand the environmental stresses of urban areas. As a result, it is often planted as an ornamental tree in cities and suburbs. Although ginkgos disappeared from the European and American fossil records 2.5 million and 7 million years ago, respectively, they continued to grow in China and were cultivated in temple gardens by monks from about 1100 AD. Around the year 1192 AD, ginkgos were brought to Japan from China (in relation to Buddhism) and were planted near temples. Then, as now, particularly old trees were revered for their longevity. A testament to the gingko’s heartiness and longevity: Four gingko trees in Hiroshima survived the atomic bomb blast on August 6, 1945 and are still alive today. As a result, the ginkgo tree is considered “the bearer of hope” and a symbol of peace. Ginkgo nuts, or ginnan in Japanese, were traditionally used medicinally in Japan to aid digestion and ease other ailments following the Chinese tradition. Ginnan are mentioned in Japanese textbooks from 1492 and later for use at tea ceremonies as sweets and dessert. In the Edo-period (1600-1867), common people began to eat them as a vegetable and used them as an ingredient for pickles. In the 18th century, the nuts became a side dish for drinking sake. Today they are used (grilled or boiled) in chawan-mushi (a pot-steamed egg dish) or in nabe-ryori. The grilled nuts are still often eaten in Japan when drinking sake. Taken as a dietary supplement, ginkgo biloba increases circulation to the brain, and is reputed to enhance mental activities such as memory. Ginkgo is also used for bonsai, including traditional-style bonsai, and ginkgo bonsai created using “chichi.” Chichi (Japanese for “nipples”) are aerial growths that grow downward from branches on ginkgo trees, resembling stalactites. For bonsai, the chichi can be cut from a tree and potted upside-down. Delicate gingko leaves will then grow from the woody chichi into a unique bonsai. Several Japanese legends and novels have been written relating to the ginkgo. The first description of the ginkgo found in Japanese literature is from 1530 when the poet Socho wrote in his travel diary that he had gathered yellow ginkgo leaves and gave them to someone together with a waka (poem). In the Edo period, the ginkgo was described as being part of everyday life in the haiku of Kikaku, Buson, and Shoha and the waka of Ryokan. The ginkgo is mentioned in lists of haiku season words, and when used in Japanese haiku it is called icho-ba(ne) meaning “ginkgo-feather.” Modern Japanese poets such as Akiko Yosano (1878-1942), Mokichi Saito (1882-1953), and others have also composed verses about ginkgo. From about the 17th to the 19th centuries, ginkgo appeared as a motif on swords, handmirrors, ceramics, and tsuba (hand guards on Samurai swords). The gingko leaf was (and remains) a popular motif on ceramic plates and vases, paintings, woodcarvings, kimonos, lacquerware, textiles and prints. In Japan, family crests with a ginkgo-leaf design have been used since the Middle Ages. Family crests typically appeared on roof tiles, gates, castle walls, temples, shrines, mansions, gravestones, sword guards, flags and ceremonial kimonos. A stylized form of the ginkgo leaf appears in the modern logos of several organizations, including the city of Tokyo and Osaka University, and the gingko tree is the prefectural tree of Osaka, Japan. The ginkgo’s popularity in Japan is proving to be as long-lived as the trees themselves, and the unique appeal of its simple, delicate leaves continues to this day. In the United States, the tree is often a reminder for Japanese Americans of their heritage. It is often found in Japanese-style gardens such as the Seattle Japanese Garden in Washington, but is als now found widely throughout the country as an ornamental tree. November 2007 |
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