The dove is a symbol that has been used by many cultures and religions throughout history. Doves are members of the pigeon family known for their small size, gentle nature, and symbolic meaning of peace. Here is an overview of the history and symbolism of the dove.
Origins and Early History
The earliest images of doves appear in ancient Mesopotamian and Egyptian art dating back over 5,000 years. In these cultures, doves were associated with goddesses of love and fertility like Ishtar and Aphrodite. Doves were seen as gentle, nurturing mothers devoted to their young, and thus symbols of femininity, motherhood, and new life.
By 3000 BC, images of doves appear in the art of the ancient Minoans on the island of Crete. Here they were linked to goddesses of nature and new beginnings. Later in ancient Greece and Rome, doves pulled the chariots of goddesses like Venus and Aphrodite, cementing their connection to love and birth.
Doves in Judaism and Christianity
In Judaism, doves were used in various rituals and sacrifices. In the story of Noah’s Ark, a dove was released by Noah to find dry land after the biblical flood. The dove came back with an olive leaf in its beak, indicating life had begun again on Earth. Thus the dove became a symbol of hope, new beginnings, and God’s forgiveness.
In the New Testament Bible, the Holy Spirit is depicted as descending on Jesus like a dove when he was baptized. The dove represented the peace, hope, and new life that Jesus brought to the world. From then on, the dove became the primary symbol of the Holy Spirit and God’s benevolent presence.
By the Middle Ages in Europe, the dove was used in religious art and literature as a symbol of the Holy Spirit as well as love, innocence, devotion, and peace. It remains an important Christian symbol today, often shown with an olive branch in its beak or around its neck.
Doves as Messengers
Beyond their broad symbolic meanings, doves have had some very practical roles in human society. One of the earliest was as messengers.
In the ancient Middle East, Egypt, and Persia, dove keeping was a professional occupation. Doves were bred and trained to carry messages between towns, cities, and countries. Their homing ability and devotion to their young made them reliable message carriers.
Carrier pigeons were used this way from about 1150 BC to the early 20th century when telephones and modern communications rendered them obsolete. Nonetheless, racing and performing pigeons are still used for entertainment today.
War Pigeons
During wartime, messenger pigeons played critical communication roles. One famous example took place during the 1870-1871 Siege of Paris in the Franco-Prussian War. Parisians used messenger pigeons to get messages past the Prussian blockade to the French provisional government across the country. The pigeons enabled continued communication and coordination of transporting supplies to the besieged city.
During World War I, messenger pigeons were still used to carry tactical messages between units on the frontlines and commanders stationed behind the lines. Both the Allied and Central powers had pigeon corps with tens of thousands of trained birds. The pigeons were so reliable that shooting them down became a priority. Despite new technologies like telegraphy, pigeons remained crucial for quickly sending messages across enemy lines when telegraph wires had been cut.
World War II saw less use of messenger pigeons. But the British MI14 and U.S. Pigeon Service still deployed homing pigeons on the frontlines, saving many lives with their timely messages.
Doves as Peace Symbols
The dove’s long-standing association with peace derives from its gentle, innocent nature. The ancient Greeks believed killing a dove would incur the wrath of Aphrodite. The Romans saw the dove as the sacred emblem of their goddess of love, Venus.
In the Old Testament Bible, an olive branch brought back to Noah’s Ark by a dove signaled God’s appeasement after the Flood. In the New Testament, the dove represented the Holy Spirit bringing the peace of God’s love.
By the Middle Ages, images of doves holding olive branches proliferated in religious artworks across Europe. They represented the peace of God, or of the soul reaching out to God’s benevolence.
Picasso’s 1949 lithograph, La Colombe, a stylized image of a dove with an olive branch, was chosen as the emblem for the World Peace Congress in Paris that year. It became an instantly recognizable symbol of hope for peace, reprinted on posters and protest banners.
In the 1960s and ’70s, the dove was adopted by the anti-war movement. It appeared in posters, buttons, and jewelry as a plea for peace in the Vietnam War era. Some student protesters burned draft cards or waved banners bearing dove images at rallies and marches calling for an end to the war.
More recently, the dove remains a common emblem used by political groups to symbolize their commitment to peace. Stylized dove images continue to appear on anti-war banners and signs at protests around the world.
White Doves at Weddings and Events
A popular modern dove tradition is the release of white doves at weddings, funerals, and special events like openings, launch parties, or memorial services. This practice started in the 1980s.
The release of doves symbolizes love, peace or farewell. At weddings, the birds represent the couple’s love and new beginnings. At funerals, the doves signify the release of the deceased’s spirit to the heavens. Doves may also be released to mark new beginnings like the grand opening of a business.
The birds are trained to circle above the location and then return to their handler or a designated release point. White homing pigeons are most often used.
Criticism of White Dove Releases
In recent years, criticism of white dove releases has grown. Animal rights groups contend the launches are cruel and harmful to birds who can become injured, lost, or eaten by predators after release. The American Veterinary Medical Association discourages the practice for these reasons. Additionally, non-native white doves can become invasive species and displace native birds in the environment.
Due to these concerns, wedding planners increasingly recommend symbolic dove-shaped items like pins, cookies, or paper cut-outs in place of live dove releases.
Doves in Politics and Activism
The dove remains a common symbol today for political parties, candidates, and causes focused on peace. Political groups use the dove in their names, logos, and branding to represent their commitment to reducing conflict and military intervention.
Some well-known examples include:
- The United States Peace Party – Founded in 1984, this party’s logo features a white dove over the word “Peace.”
- The Paloma Party – Formed in Spain in 2021, “paloma” means dove, and the party uses a stylized dove silhouette as its emblem.
- Pace e Libertà – An Italian political alliance in the 1940s that fought fascism and used a dove on its membership cards.
- The Global Day of Action on Military Spending – This international peace movement holds an annual protest under a logo with a dove carrying a ribbon reading “Demilitarize.”
Dove imagery remains a simple, instantly recognizable way for a wide range of peace-focused groups and activists to convey their message non-verbally through visual symbols.
Doves in Popular Culture
The dove has made its way into popular songs, films, commercial products, company logos, and more. Below are some prominent examples of doves in popular culture.
Music
- “White Dove” – A 1956 song by The Four Lads that became a plea for peace during the Vietnam War era.
- “La Colombe” – French singer Léo Ferré’s 1960 anti-war song named after Picasso’s famous dove lithograph.
- “Puff the Magic Dragon” – The innocent dragon named Puff lives in the land of “Hanah Lee”, meaning “white dove” in Chinese.
- Prince’s “Love Symbol” – The musician’s unpronounceable symbol combines the male and female gender symbols with a dove.
Companies and Brands
- Dove Soap – Uses a dove to symbolize its promise of gentle cleansing and care for skin.
- Paloma Picasso – The daughter of Pablo Picasso uses a dove-inspired signature in her jewelry designs.
- Turtle Dove Cottages – A vacation rental company using dove imagery to depict peacefulness.
- La Colombe Coffee Roasters – A specialty coffee company named after the French word for dove.
Movies and Television
- Innocent Dove – A 1983 Chinese drama film about a widowed father and his children starring Bai Ying.
- La Colombe – A 2014 Hungarian film about a war veteran that uses a dove to symbolize his longing for peace.
- The Dovekeepers – A 2015 miniseries dramatizing the siege of Masada in ancient Israel and the role of dove keeping.
From songs to soaps, the dove remains a ubiquitous symbol of ideals like love, peace, hope and innocence in popular culture.
Conclusion
For over 5000 years, the dove has carried symbolic meaning for cultures and faiths around the world. Beginning as a symbol of fertility and motherhood in ancient Mesopotamia and Egypt, it was adopted by Judaism, Christianity, and Islam to represent key values like hope, love, and peace.
Beyond its symbolic importance, the dove has served practical purposes like carrying messages for centuries. And despite new technologies, the dove remains a vital tool for communication during wartime thanks to its reliability and training.
In the modern world, the dove endures as a political emblem and activist symbol for its instantly recognizable association with peace. It adorns posters, banners, T-shirts, jewelry, and more in the ongoing struggle against violence. The dove’s grace and purity continue to be honored in traditions like releasing white doves at weddings and special events.
From ancient myth to modern memes, this small, gentle bird has left an outsized impact on human culture and society. The dove remains one of the most universal symbols transcending boundaries of politics, faith, art, literature, and popular culture.