"...Filbert may be derived from 'full beard', describing its long leafy husk or, alternatively from St. Philberts Day [August 20], which is celebrated about the time that filbert nuts ripen. The name hazlenut is often used as a general term for nine species of Corylus but these species can also be known as cobnuts or filberts..."

- Susanna Lyle, Fruit and Nuts 

Symbol of peace and health

The hazelnut has been known from time immemorial. The Greeks and Romans ate the nut because of its exceptional flavour. The hazelnut was used as medication in the old days. Not only the nut was used, the bark and leaves of the tree were also used against various ailments. Furthermore, the tree was the symbol of marriage, abundance of wealth and family happiness. The hazelnut was seen, as it were, as the symbol of peace and health and a source of wealth and power.