Kimjongilia

Kimjongilia, national flower of North Korea, named after Leader Kim Jong Il.

To commemorate Kim Jong Il's 46th birthday in 1988, Japanese botanist Motoderu Kamo cultivated a new perennial begonia named "kimjongilia", representing the Juche revolutionary cause of the Dear Leader, admiration, and loyalty. According to North Korean sources, the flower symbolizes wisdom and good human feelings such as future loving, justice and peace and possesses strong great man bearing.

The North Korean government claims that kimjongilia, now the national flower, have widely spread throughout North Korea from the Korean Central Botanical Garden and since to over 60 nations, including the United States and Russia.

Above: Prize-winning kimjongilia exhibited.

Above: President Kim Il Sung admires an exhibit of kimjongilia, the flower named after his son in this 1988 photo.