Where, when, and why did the phrase and practice of pulling flower
petals of a flower while reciting s/he loves me, s/he loves me not
originate?

Hello danikk,

FTD florists apparently believe the phrase and practice began in Victorian times:

"A well-known practice originated with heartbroken Victorian maids who
wished to be loved once again by their suitors. A maid would pluck a
daisy's petals one by one, chanting, 'He loves me, he loves me not,'
for each petal pulled. Of course, it was the last petal that predicted
the situation's outcome."

Online posting, "Re: loves me loves me not" (February 13, 2000)
The Phrase Finder
http://www.phrases.org.uk/bulletin_board/3/messages/261.html

However, the phrase and practice also appear in the first part of
Goethe's Faust, published in 1808.

"MARGARETE (halblaut): 
Er liebt mich- liebt mich nicht. 
FAUST: 
Du holdes Himmelsangesicht! 
MARGARETE (fährt fort): 
Liebt mich- nicht- liebt mich- nicht- 
(Das letzte Blatt ausrupfend, mit holder Freude.)
Er liebt mich!"

"MARGARET  (half aloud)
He loves me?loves me not.		
FAUST
Sweet angel, with thy face of heavenly bliss!		
MARGARET  (continues)
He loves me?not?he loves me-not?
(Plucking off the last leaf with fond joy.)		
He loves me!"

"Faust: Der Tragödie Erster Teil: Garten"
Projekt Gutenberg-DE
http://gutenberg.spiegel.de/goethe/faust1/faust017.htm

"Faust. Part I. 2500?2999" (The Harvard Classics, 1909?14)
Bartleby.com
http://www.bartleby.com/19/1/6.html

"Johann Wolfgang von Goethe" [which notes that Faust, Part I, appeared in 1808]
Answers.com
http://www.answers.com/Johann%20Wolfgang%20von%20Goethe

Goethe and/or Victorian maids may well be responsible for the modern
phrase and practice.  However, the concept goes back, at least in some
form, much further.  There are references in the 15th century, in a
German tapestry and book, to plucking flowers to determine whether the
lover truly loves his beloved.  And there are references in German
writings in the 13th century to the practice of measuring a
grass-stalk while stating "'she does [love me], she does not.'"

"The Secret Middle Ages : Discovering the Real Medieval World, by
Malcolm Jones" [searched inside the book for: daisy oracle] [sign on
to Amazon.com to view pages]
Amazon.com
http://www.amazon.com/gp/reader/0275979806/ref=sib_dp_srch_pop/104-0315752-3151118?v=search-inside&keywords=daisy+oracle&go.x=0&go.y=0

I cannot say why this practice and phrase began, other than to
speculate that they were a way to deal with the uncertainty of love. 
The true reasons are presumably lost in the mists of time.

- justaskscott


Search strategy --

Searched on Google, A9, and/or Bartleby for:

"loves me not"
"phrase finder"
daisies
faust
"liebt mich nicht"
"daisy oracle"

Fantastic answer to a longly desireable question.

In addition, it could be added that the daisy-like flower in Europe
that is (was) commonly used for this is called margarite, also in
Latin, and from the name is associated with St. Margaret (various
spellings).  She was beheaded in 307 in Antioch after defending her
faith in opposition to being married.
Although she is not a patron saint of virgins, the German prayer for
her intersession suggests that picking the petals from "her" flower to
test a lover may have had a religious content.

"St. Margaret, our time is full of earthly temptations.  Many have
lost their orientation and faith.  Pray for our hope and courage, that
we may show our children the way to a meaningful future.  Stand by the
young women in their difficult hour."

As she was also the patron saint of women in childbirth, the last line is clear.

Quite an appropriate prayer for Goethe's Margarete, also in connection
with the saint's resisting marriage for her belief, a theme in
Goethe's Faust.

The plucking petals fits in with other traditions for girls to
identify their true love:  finding seven flowers or plants by the
light of the new or full moon to put under their pillow, and the like.
So there may be a pre-Christian tradition behind the practice, "lost
in the mists of time."