Valentine’s Day is a day to celebrate romance, love and
devotion. It is usually celebrated by giving friends, family and especially
significant others flowers and gifts to show affection. Valentine’s Day is
celebrated I honor of St. Valentine, a third-century Roman saint associated
with love and marriage.
The traditions of Valentine’s Day date back to ancient Roman
times. The Romans celebrated the feast of Lupercalia from February 13 to 15
yearly, including a matchmaking lottery in the festivities. In the fifth
century, the Pope combined Saint Valentine’s Day with the feast of Lupercalia
and made it a day of fertility and love.
The tradition of written Valentine’s Day cards began after
1400. The oldest written Valentine’s Day greeting still in existence today
dates back to 1415. It was written by the Duke of Orleans to his wife while he
was imprisoned in the Tower of London. King Henry V also allegedly sent a
Valentine written by a hired writer to Catherine of Valois.
Valentine’s Day gained worldwide popularity in the 17th
century. By this time it was a widespread practice for friends and lovers to
send each other handwritten Valentine’s Day cards and tokens of their
affection. By 1900, printed cards began to gain popularity following major
advances in large-scale printing technology.
Today Valentine’s Day is celebrated throughout the world.
Each year on the holiday, about 1 billion Valentine’s Day cards are sent. Other
popular Valentine’s Day presents are chocolates, candy hearts, teddy bears, and
other small tokens of affection. In the United States it’s common for children
to celebrate Valentine’s Day by buying or making cards for other members of
their class at school, and for couples to celebrate the day by going on dates
and exchanging gifts.
Other countries have unique ways to celebrate Valentine’s
Day. In the Philippines, Feb. 14 is a popular date to get married or to renew
vows. Couples gather together in mass wedding ceremonies in parks, malls, or
other public areas to get married. In South Africa, women pin the name of their
love interest on their shirtsleeves on Feb. 14, in a tradition known as
Lupercalia.
