St.Valentines Day - 14th February

The History Of St Valentine

Shrouded in myths and folklore, the name St Valentine is now firmly established in modern understanding as being associated with romance and love. But who was St Valentine and how did this Saint come to extend such an influence, that every year a day for romance and love is celebrated throughout the world?

Well the origins of St Valentine are thought to date back to Roman times. It is known that the Romans killed Christians who were then referred to as martyrs and it is also relatively accepted that at least three men by the name of Valentine (Valentinus in Latin) were killed, with the date of 14th February also mentioned. Valentinus was a relatively common name, being derived from the Latin for ‘worthy’. One of the martyrs was known to be a priest in Rome whilst another was a bishop. It is believed that these two men were burned to death. Little is known about the third.

One very poignant tale, for which there is no proof, nor any evidence to suggest that it is not true, relates to when one of the ‘Valentines’ was in prison, awaiting execution. It tells how Valentine became friendly with the jailer’s daughter. She showed him kindness and he fell deeply in love with her. They both knew that he would die and so they tried to contain their love, but their feelings were simply too strong. He was worried that if he were too demonstrative, she would feel even worse when he was executed. However, he wanted her to have a keepsake to remember him by and so he left her a note, of love and fondness. He signed it simply ‘From your Valentine’ and thus began the long association between love and St Valentines.

A Christian Tradition

Yet there is somewhat more to Valentines Day than the Christian tradition. In the days of the Roman Empire, the date of February 14th was an important date. On this day a celebration was held to honour the Goddess Juno who was known as the Goddess of both women as well as marriage and she was known as the Queen of both Gods and Goddesses. In effect she was well revered and held in very high esteem. The day after this holiday and feast, February 15th, the Feast of Lupercalia was held.

This feast involved effectively ‘pairing’ young boys with young girls, through the girls writing their names on bits of paper which were then placed in containers. The boys would pick a container and the boy and girl would then be effectively paired off. For most this was a simple piece of fun, but for some it was very serious and a real example of ‘puppy love’. However, for the authorities it began to be regarded as a nuisance.

Emperor Claudius II became irritated by the Feast of Lupercalia, since he felt that it was preventing young men from becoming soldiers and thereby securing the future of his Empire. His view was that love, romance and being family orientated was a weakness and he sought to eradicate anything that promoted these values. Thus the feast of Lupercalia was banned. Yet to some extent this simply drove it underground and the feast actually survived the Roman Empire and was still being celebrated as a pagan ritual, long after the Empire had ceased to be.

In the year 496, the Pope declared that a feast day should be set aside for martyrs and St Valentine was mentioned among these. But in actual fact, when the Pope declared that February 14th was to be the feast for martyrs, amongst whom is St Valentine, what he was doing was trying to eradicate the pagan ritual of celebrating the feast of Lupercalia. Yet for many the two simply remained firmly entwined and so over generations, the concept of romance and ‘love’ became further associated with the Feast which was held on February 14th.

This association with love and romance further grew, as particularly within both Britain and France, there was a widespread belief in the middle ages that in February birds and some animals began to ‘pair off’ and find a mate. There may also have been some association with the advent of spring. In olden days winters were long and very dark, with no artificial light and no heating, so the sign of birds beginning to find a mate and start the process of reproduction would have been a very welcome sight, heralding the coming of spring and warmer times as well as times of more plentiful food.

The 14th Century poet Chaucer wrote about how on St Valentine’s Day every fowl (bird) comes to find her mate, so the custom was well established by that time.

The Tradition Of St Valentine's Day

And as the custom became established, so did the traditions of St Valentine’s Day. In the 21st Century, when we think of St Valentine’s Day we usually think of cards, roses and perhaps chocolates or exotic lingerie, but it was not always so. In particular because until the 19th Century people were in general poor and they had little means of buying gifts for their sweetheart, so various other ways of declaring love had to be found.

Flowers were the obvious choice for sweethearts who had little money. They began to acquire meanings and associations, such as Snowdrops radiating hope and Forget me Nots being the sign of everlasting love and so on.

In some parts of the world carved gifts were made. For example in Wales, wooden spoons were carved and known as Love Spoons, since the man could demonstrate his dexterity and ability through skilful carving and this would then woo his intended.

Cards, as the symbol of St Valentine’s Day were relatively unknown until the 1800’s and even then they were mainly sent by the aristocracy, since few people had money to spend on such luxuries. However, what started off as being a tradition within the upper classes, soon spread and became very popular, particularly as the railway system improved postal networks.

Valentine Customs

Various customs also sprang up around St Valentine’s Day. These vary according to different parts of the world, but all have the same common theme of finding that ‘special one’. For example, some people believed that the first person of the opposite sex whom you saw after you left the house on Valentine’s Day would become your betrothed. Then there was a custom about peeling an apple in one long ring, tossing it over your shoulder to reveal the initial of the boy you would marry. Apples also featured in the custom of slicing an apple in two and then counting the seeds to discover how many children you would have. In some countries it was tradition or custom for the man to send his intended a gift of clothing. Were she to accept this gift then it was a sign that she was set to marry him.

In France St Valentine’s Day was effectively curtailed by the authorities after the ritual of ‘drawing out’ where people would attempt to call out their intended, but if unhappy with their choice, would desert the valentine and various skirmishes, disputes and burning effigies resulted in the practice being seen as too uncivilised, so it was stopped, with Valentine cards being encouraged instead.

In some areas, St Valentine’s also became quite a significant custom. In Norfolk, England and indeed in many rural areas of the country, St Valentine became bigger than Christmas, with more elaborate gifts bought to symbolise love and desire, than were purchased at Christmas. Often gifts were dropped off and then the giver would knock on the door and run off, hoping that the intended knew whom the gift was from.

Yet there were also some very gentle customs associated with this special day. The association of lovebirds with romance and St Valentine became increasingly popular, particularly within the wealthy circles of American, British and French Society. For those who could not give lovebirds, there were cards or ornaments of these very special little birds. Roses also became very popular, with red roses symbolising love.

Cupid with his bow who would cause a man and woman to fall helplessly in love also became a symbol of Valentine’s Day and is still associated with it today. Chocolates and fine foods also became associated with Valentine’s Day since they could not only display the suitor’s wealth, but also were thought to help romantically!

Valentine's Day Today

So whereas today many people regard St Valentine’s Day as just a bit of fun, it is actually a symbol of a ritual and special day which dates back almost two thousand years and thus it is very much part of the culture and fabric of modern Society. This really is a very special day when love is given the chance to flourish and ripen. And so we need to think about St Valentine and how he has been revered for such a long time. St Valentine’s deserves to be celebrated and commemorated in a very special and significant manner, as it has for literally hundreds of years.

Across the world, Valentine's day has a tradition where lovers show their love for each other by sending Valentine Cards. Unlike most other occassions where people send cards, Valentine's Cards are normally sent anonymously - a very apt way of showing someone that you like them.

Hearts and cupids are common on these love notes/valentines with over 1 billion of these being sent each valentine's day in the United States alone (3/4 of which are purchased by females). St. Valentine's day is the second most popular occasion where cards are sent with Christmas being the most popular. Valentine's gifts typically include chocolates or red roses and occasionally jewellery.

Historical Valentine Customs

• A young girl is supposed to marry the first eligible male she met on 14th February. If she was brave enough, she would go to the local graveyard on St. Valentine's eve at midnight, sing a chant and run twelve times around the church.

• It was common for young children in England to go around singing and collecting small gifts. It was also custom to put valentine's gifts on the doorsteps of their friends.

Valentine's Day Around The World

• In France, Valentine's Day is known as Saint Valentin and celebrated in the same way as other European countries.
• Valentinsdag is the Danish and Norweigan term for Valentine's Day. It is not really celebrated, although people do spend time being romantic with their partners.
• In Sweden, the day didn't start being celebrated until the 1960s when florists launched the day to extend their commercial possibilities and today it enjoys a large sale of flower sales on the day.
• The Finnish call it Ystavanpaiva which translates to Friend's Day where the tradition is to remember one's friends, rather than one's loved ones.