The UBC Department of Asian Studies logo is often mistaken to be a lotus flower, with its symbolization of purity, non-attachment and enlightenment in Buddhist tradition.
The design (courtesy of Asian Studies MA student in Japanese Literature and Visual Culture and graphic designer Julien Butterlin) does indeed gesture in this direction, but the flower depicted is in fact that of Camellia sinensis or Thea sinensis, the tea plant whence many teas are derived.
A genus of flowering plants in the family Theaceae, Camellia sinensis is used to harvest white tea, green tea, oolong, pu-erh tea and black tea.

Tea is the second-most widely consumed beverage in the world after water, and has played and continues to play such a central role in all Asian cultures that it was a natural choice to symbolize the diverse Asian languages, literature, cultures, histories, and religions represented in the Department of Asian Studies.
The UBC Department of Asian Studies logo is often mistaken to be a lotus flower, with its symbolization of purity, non-attachment and enlightenment in Buddhist tradition. The design (courtesy of Asian Studies MA student in Japanese Literature and Visual Culture and graphic designer Julien Butterlin) does indeed gesture in this direction, but the flower depicted is in fact that of Camellia sinensis or Thea sinensis, the tea plant whence many teas are derived. A genus of flowering plants in the family Theaceae, Camellia sinensis is used to harvest white tea, green tea, oolong, pu-erh tea and black tea.
Tea is the second-most widely consumed beverage in the world after water, and has played and continues to play such a central role in all Asian cultures that it was a natural choice to symbolize the diverse Asian languages, literature, cultures, histories, and religions represented in the Department of Asian Studies.
UBC Department of Asian Studies