Valentine’s Day is celebrated around the world every year in mid-February. But did you ever wonder how the holiday began? This holiday of romance wears a robe of mystery that barely reveals the naked truth. To get to the bottom of it, I consulted the Internet. And what did I find? Enough theories of origin to keep the gossip columns buzzing until next February 14.
Here’s my favorite version of the rumor:
After some research I found out that Valentine’s Day may have started with a Roman festival called Lupercalia, held on February 15. Whether this celebration was an erotic wolf-defending, woman-whipping festival of fertility or a feverish honoring of the Roman goddess of love, only Cupid knows. Sources agreed on one point, though: that on this day a love-note laden with a woman’s name was hand-picked from an urn by a man. The couple then feasted and played games. If they were lucky, they fell in love and married.
When Christianity grew in popularity, these sinfully sexual celebrations were sanctioned as immoral and a plan was set to purify the ritual. The clergy encouraged the participants to draw names of saints from the jar, instead of women. They then wanted the lucky men to emulate the ideals the saints symbolized for the next twelve months. This suggestion quickly became unpopular and poor Juno Febrata, the once honored love goddess, stood in the unemployment line with the rest of the gods.
So down with the multiple-god festivities and up with the multiple Saint celebrations. You see, the Christian church had at least two saints named Valentine! In one version, St. Valentinus rebelled against Emperor Claudius II, who forbade men to marry in order to keep them in the army. St. Valentinus was caught red-handed secretly performing marriage rites for young couples. He was sentenced to death and thrown in jail. While in jail, the priest cured the jailer’s daughter of her blindness, and she fell madly in love with him. The young maiden received a love-note slipped to her by the future saint on the eve of his execution. It was signed “From your Valentine.”
Another legend describes St. Valentinus as friend to all children. The Romans imprisoned him because he would not worship their gods. The children, who missed dear Valentine, tossed notes between the bars of his cell window. According to the legends, St. Valentinus was martyred on February 14, or the new holiday Valentine’s Day.
So, no matter which story you believe, Valentine’s Day is the internationally recognized day for lovers. You may choose to honor this day in any way that makes you happy. Here are some of my top choices:
1) In Wales wooden love spoons decorated with hearts, keys, and keyholes were given as gifts to lovers as a symbol of unlocking their heart.
2) The bachelorette Englishwomen of the 1700’s wrote men’s names on scraps of paper, rolled them each in a little piece of clay, and dropped them into the water. The first paper to rise to the top was her true love.
3) 1700’s English maidens also pinned five bay leaves to their pillows–one on each of the four corners and one in the middle. They believed this would help them dream of their future husbands.
4) In Derbyshire, young women circled the church three or 12 times at midnight and repeated a love verse.
And finally, 5) In the Middle Ages young men and women drew names from a large bowl to see who their “Valentines” would be. They wore the names on their sleeves for one week. This is where the saying “wear your heart on your sleeve” comes from.
Happy Valentine’s Day!