There is a wonderful reason that, worldwide, oak has become so popular. Besides of course its natural beauty and hardiness, oak is and has for many years been one of the most popular trees in the world.

In fact the oak tree has been a celebrated plant since the ancient world where the tree was once sacred to Zeus, king of the gods in Greek Mythology.

In Epirus, the mountainous region in Greece and Albania it was believed that Zeus' voice was carried through the leaves of an oak tree. Priests would then interpret the rustling of the leaves to the messages that Zeus was attempting to convey to them.

Interestingly however, Greek mythology isn't the only culture which has embraced the oak tree within the realms of its religion, as too did the Druids of Britain.

Much like their Greek counterparts, the druids would frequently worship and practice rites around oak groves; so much so that the word druid is suspected to be a derivation of their word for oak, Duir.

Since then, the appreciation of oak has been forever set on the shores of Britain; helped so by the Christian adornment of the tree.

Its wood was favoured in the past much like it is today and the timber was used heavily in the construction of Tudor houses where before long, the material was used to carve beautiful ornamental creations.

So the next time that you purchase a beautiful oak cabinet, desk or bed, bear in mind that you are indeed using a material that some believe, has literally been sent down from heaven.

Here are some other Religions which use oak as a subject of worship:

  • Roman mythology
  • Teutonic mythology
  • Baltic mythology
  • Norse mythology
  • Slavic mythology