Which Roman goddess of flowers and spring was honored during the Floralia festival? Flora was the Roman goddess of flowers and spring.
Flora represented flowering plants, vegetation, fertility, and the renewal associated with spring. Although she was not among Rome’s most powerful gods, her cult had official status: she had a state-supported priest, the flamen Floralis, and a temple in Rome. Her name is related to the Latin word for flower.
The Floralia honored Flora with public games, sacrifices, flowers, theatrical performances, and colorful celebrations. In the Julian calendar, the festival was held from April 28 to May 3. Its lively and sometimes deliberately provocative atmosphere distinguished it from more solemn Roman religious observances.
Flora is sometimes confused with Ceres, who was chiefly associated with grain, agriculture, and the harvest, or with Pomona, who watched over fruit trees and orchards. Flora’s Greek counterpart was generally identified as Chloris, a figure connected with flowers and spring. Roman writers also linked Flora with Favonius, the west wind, whom Greek tradition called Zephyrus.