The Greeks considered thyme a symbol of vigor. They observed its stimulant properties and the beneficial effect it had on the mental powers of elderly people who regularly drank a tisane of thyme. Dionysius, the 4th-century BC tyrant of Syracuse in Sicily, perked up his palace parties by scattering thyme on the floors, because he believed it to be an aphrodisiac. His guests would crush the leaves underfoot to liberate the supposed love potion.
Thyme comes from the Greek word thumon, meaning to "burn as a sacrifice"; it was used as an incense to perfume the air and repel insects. There are other associations, however, for thyme with the word "courage." During the Middle Ages, a sprig of thyme was given to knights by their ladies to keep up their courage. Scarves embroidered with a bee alighting on a sprig of thyme were believed to produce the same result. Before jousting, knights were required to swear that they carried no magic herb to foil their opponents or their weapons, nor guide their own, but these embroidered likenesses gained huge popularity because, for some reason, they didn't count as betrayals of the oath.
Thyme and fairies are bound together historically in lore: fairies reveled in beds of thyme after putting their babies to sleep in the flowers, with the full assurance that passing bees would lull them to sleep. Thyme is also an important ingredient in the herb bundle bouquet garni and in the liqueur Bénédictine.
From The Food Encyclopedia by Jacques Rolland and Carol Sherman
