Origin of Valentine’s Day
February 13, 2010
Valentines Day like many other holidays celebrated today are shrouded in mystery and wherever you look for the answers, you will find that there is more than one version of the origin of the various holidays. Valentines Day is like every other holiday with several versions of the first Valentines Day.
Valentine’s Day Origins
St. Valentine, a Roman that refused to give up his Christian beliefs was martyred on Feb. 14, 269 AD. It is told through legend that St. Valentine left a note for the jailer’s daughter who had befriended him while in prison and signed the farewell note, “From your Valentine”.
Another story is that St. Valentine was a priest during the reign of Emperor Claudius. Emperor Claudius imprisoned St. Valentine for defying him. Pope Gelasius in 496AD set Feb. 14 the day to honor St. Valentine.
In ancient Rome during the reign of the Roman Empire, February 14 was a holiday to honor Juno the Queen of the Roman Gods and Goddesses. The goddess Juno was the Goddess of women and marriage. The holiday was followed by the Feast of Lupercalia beginning on Feb. 15.
No matter the origin, throughout history there have been many traditions seen in the celebration of Valentine’s Day. A few of the traditions include:
In England long ago, children dressed up as grown-ups and went caroling from one house to another.
In the Middle Ages, names were in placed in a bowl with young men and women drawing names to learn their Valentine. The names that were drawn would be worn on the sleeve of their garment for one week.
In Wales, what was known as wooden love spoons would be given as gifts on February 14. The spoons would decorations carved on them, which were keys, keyholes, and hearts with the meaning of “you unlock my heart”.
The beginning of sending Valentine’s Day cards in the United States is attributed to Esther Howland. By the 1800’s valentines became commercialized. Today, Valentines Day is spent celebrated in many ways for one to show another that they love them dearly. In most cases, it is a day set aside for lovers, however, children give Valentine’s Day cards to classmates, parents give gifts to children, and so on and so forth.
We at Tulsa Real Estate Mall, would like to take this time to say, Happy Valentine’s Day! May you spend the day with those you love and enjoy the love that is bestowed upon you.
One Comment to Origin of Valentine’s Day
Comments
Fake holiday for many people. For me, too)
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