Editing Common sunflower (section)

=== Symbolism ===
The sunflower is the national flower of [[Ukraine]].<ref name="auto">{{Cite web|url=https://fox4kc.com/news/kansas-news/how-sunflowers-officially-connect-kansas-and-ukraine/|title=How sunflowers officially connect Kansas and Ukraine|date=28 February 2022}}</ref> Ukrainians used sunflower as a main source of [[cooking oil]] instead of butter or [[lard]] forbidden by the [[Orthodox Church of Ukraine|Orthodox Church]] when observing [[Lent]]. They were also planted to serve as [[Bioremediation of radioactive waste|bioremediation]] in [[Chernobyl]]. In June 1996, U.S., Russian, and Ukrainian officials planted sunflowers at the [[Pervomaisk, Mykolaiv Oblast|Pervomaysk]] missile base where Soviet [[Ukraine and weapons of mass destruction|nuclear weapons]] were formerly placed.<ref name="Smithsonian">{{cite magazine |last1=Mufarech |first1=Antonia |date=31 March 2022 |title=Why Sunflowers Are Ukraine's National Flower |url=https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/why-sunflowers-are-ukraines-national-flower-180979850/ |magazine=[[Smithsonian (magazine)|Smithsonian]] |publisher=[[Smithsonian Institution]] |access-date=8 February 2023}}</ref> During the [[Russian invasion of Ukraine]], a video widely shared on social media showed a Ukrainian woman confronting a Russian soldier, telling the latter to "take these seeds and put them in your pockets so at least sunflowers will grow when you all lie down here".<ref>{{Cite web|date=25 February 2022|title=Ukrainian woman offers seeds to Russian soldiers so 'sunflowers grow when they die' – video|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/video/2022/feb/25/ukrainian-woman-sunflower-seeds-russian-soldiers-video|website=[[The Guardian]]}}</ref> The sunflower has since become a global symbol of resistance, unity, and hope.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Hassan |first= Jennifer |date=2 March 2022 |title=The sunflower, Ukraine's national flower, is becoming a global symbol of solidarity|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/2022/03/02/ukraine-sunflower-solidarity-russia-war/ |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]]}}</ref>

The sunflower is also the [[state flower]] of the U.S. state of [[Kansas]]<ref name="Spellenberg-2001" /><ref name="auto"/> and one of the city flowers of [[Kitakyūshū]], Japan.

During the late 19th century, the flower was used as the symbol of the [[Aesthetic Movement]].

The sunflower was chosen as the symbol of the [[Spiritualism (movement)|Spiritualist Church]], for many reasons, but mostly because of the (false) belief that the flowers turn toward the sun as "Spiritualism turns toward the light of truth". Modern Spiritualists often have art or jewelry with sunflower designs.<ref>Awtry-Smith, Marilyn J. The Symbol of Spiritualism: The Sunflower. Reprinted from the ''New Educational Course on Modern Spiritualism''. Appendix IV in ''Talking to the Other Side: A History of Modern Spiritualism and Mediumship'', ed. by Todd Jay Leonard. {{ISBN|0-595-36353-9}}.</ref>

The sunflower is often used as a symbol of [[green ideology]]. The flower is also the symbol of the [[Vegan Society]].

The sunflower is the symbol behind the [[Sunflower Movement]], a 2014 mass protest in [[Taiwan]].

The [[Hidden Disabilities Sunflower]] was first used as a visible symbol (typically worn on a lanyard) in May 2016 at [[London Gatwick Airport]]. It has since come into common usage throughout the UK and in the [[Commonwealth]] more generally.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://sunfieldcenter.com/the-sunflower-lanyard-for-hidden-disabilities/|title=The Sunflower Lanyard for Hidden Disabilities|first=Becca Bordner, Rachel Piper, LMSW, Morgan Nicoll|last=LLMSW|date=28 March 2022}}</ref>