Valentine’s Day falls on February 14. This year, the day will be observed on Wednesday. On this day lovers express their affection with greetings and gifts. Given their similarities, it has been suggested that the holiday has origins in the Roman festival of Lupercalia, held in mid-February. The festival, which celebrated the coming of spring, included fertility rites and the pairing off of women with men by lottery. At the end of the 5th century, Pope Gelasius I forbid the celebration of Lupercalia and is sometimes attributed with replacing it with St. Valentine’s Day, but the true origin of the holiday is vague at best. Valentine’s Day did not come to be celebrated as a day of romance until about the 14th century.
Across the globe, candy, flowers and gifts are exchanged between loved ones, all in the name of St. Valentine.
But who is this mysterious saint and where did these traditions come from?
The Legend of St. Valentine
Where did Valentine’s Day originate from? The history of the holiday—and the story of its patron saint—is shrouded in mystery. We do know that February has long been celebrated as a month of romance, and that St. Valentine’s Day, as we know it today, contains vestiges of both Christian and ancient Roman tradition. But who was Saint Valentine, and how did he become associated with this ancient rite?
The Catholic Church recognizes at least three different saints named Valentine or Valentinus, all of whom were martyred. One legend contends that Valentine was a priest who served during the third century in Rome. When Emperor Claudius II decided that single men made better soldiers than those with wives and families, he outlawed marriage for young men. Valentine, realizing the injustice of the decree, defied Claudius and continued to perform marriages for young lovers in secret. When Valentine’s actions were discovered, Claudius ordered that he be put to death. Still others insist that it was Saint Valentine of Terni, a bishop, who was the true namesake of the holiday. He, too, was beheaded by Claudius II outside Rome.
Other stories suggest that Valentine may have been killed for attempting to help Christians escape harsh Roman prisons, where they were often beaten and tortured. According to one legend, an imprisoned Valentine actually sent the first “valentine” greeting himself after he fell in love with a young girl—possibly his jailor’s daughter—who visited him during his confinement.
Before his death, it is alleged that he wrote her a letter signed “From your Valentine,” an expression that is still in use today. Although the truth behind the Valentine legends is murky, the stories all emphasize his appeal as a sympathetic, heroic and—most importantly—romantic figure. By the Middle Ages, perhaps thanks to this reputation, Valentine would become one of the most popular saints in England and France.
Origins of Valentine’s Day
While some believe that Valentine’s Day is celebrated in the middle of February to commemorate the anniversary of Valentine’s death or burial—which probably occurred around A.D. 270—others claim that the Christian church may have decided to place St. Valentine’s feast day in the middle of February in an effort to “Christianize” the pagan celebration of Lupercalia. Celebrated at the ides of February, or February 15, Lupercalia was a fertility festival dedicated to Faunus, the Roman god of agriculture, as well as to the Roman founders Romulus and Remus.
To begin the festival, members of the Luperci, an order of Roman priests, would gather at a sacred cave where the infants Romulus and Remus, the founders of Rome, were believed to have been cared for by a she-wolf or lupa. The priests would sacrifice a goat, for fertility, and a dog, for purification. They would then strip the goat’s hide into strips, dip them into the sacrificial blood and take to the streets, gently slapping both women and crop fields with the goat hide. Far from being fearful, Roman women welcomed the touch of the hides because it was believed to make them more fertile in the coming year. Later in the day, according to legend, all the young women in the city would place their names in a big urn. The city’s bachelors would each choose a name and become paired for the year with his chosen woman. These matches often ended in marriage.
A Day of Romance and Love
Lupercalia survived the initial rise of Christianity but was outlawed—as it was deemed “un-Christian”—at the end of the 5th century, when Pope Gelasius declared February 14 St. Valentine’s Day. It was not until much later, however, that the day became definitively associated with love.
During the Middle Ages, it was commonly believed in France and England that February 14 was the beginning of birds’ mating season, which added to the idea that the middle of Valentine’s Day should be a day for romance. The English poet Geoffrey Chaucer was the first to record St. Valentine’s Day as a day of romantic celebration in his 1375 poem “Parliament of Foules,” writing, “For this was sent on Seynt Valentyne’s day / Whan every foul cometh ther to choose his mate.”
Valentine greetings were popular as far back as the Middle Ages, though written Valentine’s didn’t begin to appear until after 1400. The oldest known valentine still in existence today was a poem written in 1415 by Charles, Duke of Orleans, to his wife while he was imprisoned in the Tower of London following his capture at the Battle of Agincourt. (The greeting is now part of the manuscript collection of the British Library in London, England.) Several years later, it is believed that King Henry V hired a writer named John Lydgate to compose a valentine note to Catherine of Valois.
Who Is Cupid?
Cupid is often portrayed on Valentine’s Day cards as a naked cherub launching arrows of love at unsuspecting lovers. But the Roman God Cupid has his roots in Greek mythology as the Greek god of love, Eros. Accounts of his birth vary; some say he is the son of Nyx and Erebus; others, of Aphrodite and Ares; still others suggest he is the son of Iris and Zephyrus or even Aphrodite and Zeus (who would have been both his father and grandfather).
According to the Greek Archaic poets, Eros was a handsome immortal played with the emotions of Gods and men, using golden arrows to incite love and leaden ones to sow aversion. It wasn’t until the Hellenistic period that he began to be portrayed as the mischievous, chubby child he’d become on Valentine’s Day cards.
Greetings and Gifts
In addition to the United States, Valentine’s Day is celebrated in Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, France and Australia. In Great Britain, Valentine’s Day began to be popularly celebrated around the 17th century.
By the middle of the 18th, it was common for friends and lovers of all social classes to exchange small tokens of affection or handwritten notes, and by 1900 printed cards began to replace written letters due to improvements in printing technology. Ready-made cards were an easy way for people to express their emotions in a time when direct expression of one’s feelings was discouraged. Cheaper postage rates also contributed to an increase in the popularity of sending Valentine’s Day greetings.
Americans probably began exchanging hand-made valentines in the early 1700s. In the 1840s, Esther A. Howland began selling the first mass-produced valentines in America. Howland, known as the “Mother of the Valentine,” made elaborate creations with real lace, ribbons and colorful pictures known as “scrap.” Today, according to Hallmark, an estimated 145 million Valentine’s Day cards are sent each year, making Valentine’s Day the second largest card-sending holiday of the year.
Valentine’s Week
While Valentine’s Day falls on February 14, the excitement for the month of love begins in the week before. There are seven days dedicated to celebration of love before Valentine’s Day. It starts from February 7. These seven days of love are Rose Day (February 7), Propose Day (February 8), Chocolate Day (February 9), Teddy Day (February 10), Promise Day (February 11), Hug Day (February 12), and Kiss Day (February 13).
Rose Day
Rose Day falls on February 7 annually. It is the first day of the Valentine’s Week. On this day, couples exchange roses or send a bouquet to their loved ones. People also gift someone they like or adore with flowers to mark this occasion. While people generally gift their partners roses on this day, it shouldn’t stop you from surprising your love with a bouquet of their favourite flowers. Different colours of roses hold a special meaning on this day. For instance, red signifies love, yellow stands for friendship, pink signifies appreciation and admiration, and more.
Propose Day
Propose Day is the second day of Valentine’s Week. It falls on February 8. As the name suggests, it is the day for people to confess their feelings or pop the big question to their love interest – you can ask a potential partner to be your partner or to marry you. However, you should confirm that your partner wants you to ask this question before jumping the gun and putting them in an awkward position.
Chocolate Day
Chocolate Day is the third day and falls after Propose Day on February 9. On this day, people gift chocolates to their partner, crush or love interest. Some also prepare handmade chocolates or make an assortment of their partner’s favourite candies as a gift. In case, your loved one doesn’t like sweets, you can give them their favourite snack as a present.
Teddy Day
Teddy falls on February 10. It is the fourth day of the Valentine’s Week. People in love surprise their partners on this day by gifting them with adorable plushies or teddy bears. It is believed that a cuddly toy would help your partner destress or forget their worries as the present will remind them of your love.
Promise Day
Promise Day falls on February 11. It is the fifth day of the Valentine’s Week. On Promise Day, people make promises to love and cherish each other through thick and thin, strengthen their bond, be a cheerleader, and give support in difficult situations. This promise or commitment helps them show their partner the intensity of their love for them.
Hug Day
Hug Day is the sixth day of Valentine’s Week and falls on February 12. A hug is a comforting gesture, and when one receives it from their loved ones, it helps remove all worries from their mind. After all, physical affection works wonders when language fails to express our true feelings. Therefore, on Hug Day, partners hug each other to comfort each other and promise to be the light in each other’s darkest days.
Kiss Day
Kiss Day is celebrated a day before Valentine’s Day. It falls on February 13. People in love seal their relationship with a kiss on this day or show affection for their partner with this act of love.