The Origins Of Valentine's Day

Valentine's Day

February 14th has been observed as a day to express love for untold centuries. But where did this holiday come from? Why do people send valentine’s cards to those whom they desire? Where did the symbol of the heart come from, and why is it used to represent love and sexual desire? How did a character named cupid become associated with personal intimate feelings? So, keep reading to know the history of Valentine's Day.

Every February 14, in various countries around the world, candy, flowers and gifts are exchanged between loved ones but where did the celebration of Valentine's Day originate. To begin we should consider the title of the month in which this holiday falls February is the second month of the year according to the Gregorian calendar used by Western nations and the name of this month comes from the Latin "Februus" literally means "Month of Purification".

Pantheon.org stated that:

The name comes either from the old-Italian god februus or else from februa, signifying the festivals of purification celebrated in Rome during this month

And so the title of the month February gives insight into the practices of ancient Romes as winter began to pass and the days became longer the festivals of purity, fertility, spring time love and suppose it spiritual enlightenment begin.

John Robertson an expert on the ancient Roman and modern western calendar stated that:

The name, Februarius, came about because of the Roman ceremonies for religious purification and expiation which took place during that month in anticipation of the new year; which originaly begin on March

February is a time when spring and new life draws near and therefore fertility played a major role in the rites, during this month and the religious ceremonies of purification at that time included the worship of several believer deities there was the pagan gods Juno februa and other mythical gods. These mythical gods were associated with purification and fertility further there was goat hide whip fashioned for use during the wanton ceremony of the Lupercalia at that time and this instrument was called the "februa".

During this festival young men would galavant around the hilly boundaries of the city dressed only in a thin layer of goat skin covering their loins. They would carry these whips and strike men and women who would line up along the way and this act was believed to magically provide fertility, easy child birth and protection from curses to anyone the februa touched. It is said that some would even bare their nakedness to the februa in hopes of obtaining better results.

Shocking History Of Valentine's Day

From Feb. 13 to 15, the Romans celebrated the feast of Lupercalia. The men sacrificed a goat and a dog, then whipped women with the hides of the animals they had just slain.

The Roman romantics "were drunk. They were naked," says Noel Lenski, a historian at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Young women would actually line up for the men to hit them, Lenski says. They believed this would make them fertile. One can easily imagine the depravity of the scene and it's not difficult to surmise that sexual behavior would have followed the ceremony in which it was believed that the woman had suddenly became fertile.

James Oliver explained in his book Seasonal Feasts and Festivals stating:

The chief purpose of the Lupercalia was to remedy barrenness in women, though in all probability it originated as a rustic purification festival for the protection of the flocks and herds as well as for the promotion of fertility in man, beast and the crops, before it became an urban observance of the Palatine. Thus, encircling of the sttlement by the Luperci girded with flees of the sacrificed goats, carrying the februa, would seem to have been a beating of the bounds in order to trace a magic circle round the city to shut out the evil influences responsible barrenness, and all other harmful things...

The brutal fete included a matchmaking lottery, in which young men drew the names of women from a jar. The couple would then be, um, coupled up for the duration of the festival — or longer, if the match was right.

The ancient Romans may also be responsible for the name of our modern day of love. Emperor Claudius II executed two men — both named Valentine — on Feb. 14 of different years in the 3rd century A.D. Their martyrdom was honored by the Catholic Church with the celebration of St. Valentine's Day.

Later, Pope Gelasius I muddled things in the 5th century by combining St. Valentine's Day with Lupercalia to expel the pagan rituals. But the festival was more of a theatrical interpretation of what it had once been. Lenski adds, "It was a little more of a drunken revel, but the Christians put clothes back on it. That didn't stop it from being a day of fertility and love."

Around the same time, the Normans celebrated Galatin's Day. Galatin meant "lover of women." That was likely confused with St. Valentine's Day at some point, in part because they sound alike.

Expansion Of Valentine's Day

Formal messages, or valentines, appeared in the 1500s, and by the late 1700s commercially printed cards were being used. The first commercial valentines in the United States were printed in the mid-1800s. Valentines commonly depict Cupid, the Roman god of love, along with hearts, traditionally the seat of emotion. Because it was thought that the avian mating season begins in mid-February, birds also became a symbol of the day. Traditional gifts include candy and flowers, particularly red roses, a symbol of beauty and love.

The day is popular in the United States as well as in Britain, Canada, and Australia, and it is also celebrated in other countries, including Argentina, France, Mexico, and South Korea. In the Philippines, it is the most common wedding anniversary, and mass weddings of hundreds of couples are not uncommon on that date. The holiday has expanded to expressions of affection among relatives and friends. Many schoolchildren exchange valentines with one another on this day.

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