Norway was courting Game of Thrones style long before Game of Thrones was even a thing. Once girls reached marrying age, their fathers would present them with an empty sheath. (You know, the belt-like thing that holds a knife while you carry it? To keep it from cutting you?) The girls would wear the empty sheath on a belt around her waist during social events and mixers. If a guy was interested, he would put his knife in her sheath. (Symbols, anyone?) If she kept it and continued to wear it, they were engaged. If she returned it, she just wasn’t that into him.
Although our modern-day bachelors aren’t walking around wielding knives for the women, they are offering some kind of token. “Will you accept this rose?” is just an updated version of the presentation of the knife, although I haven’t seen many of the contestants giving their roses back, like those sassy Nordic women.
