Valentine’s Day
Ah Valentine’s Day. Beloved by couples, greeting cards companies and florists the world over. But why do we give gifts and cards on February 14th?
Valentine’s Day actually started as a Christian day to worship Saint Valentine, or rather St Valentines as there were several. The main one associated with Valentine’s Day was a priest in Rome, who is believed to have been executed on February 14th, almost two thousand years ago. Some historians believe that his crime was performing the marriage of Christian couples. The emperor at the time, Claudias II, was not a fan of the church and had supposedly forbidden people from marrying. It is said that he thought young men would be less prepared to die in battle if they had a wife at home to mourn them. Instead, he encouraged them to take several lovers. Valentine continued to perform marriage ceremonies in secret, but was discovered and sentenced to death.
The story goes that Valentine healed the daughter of one of his jailers, and, on the day of his execution, left her a note, and signed ‘From your Valentine’. How much of this actually happened, we’ll likely never know.
St. Valentine’s Day started to be associated with love around the 14th Century, when the idea of romantic love gained popularity. Geoffrey Chaucer referred to Valentine’s Day in The Parliament of Fowls, as a day when birds would meet their mate.
8
A poem by the Duke of Orleans, which he wrote for his wife while imprisoned in the Tower of London in 1415, is believed to be the oldest surviving Valentine’s Day gift. The Duke wrote:
Je suis desja d’amour tanné Ma tres doulce Valentinée (I am already sick of love My very gentle Valentine)
However, it wasn’t until many years later that the giving of tokens of love on Valentine’s Day became commonplace. In Victorian times, cards were hand drawn, and hand cut. They would have been quite expensive, so were cherished and many still survive today.
While February 14th is the most popular date for St. Valentine’s Day, the Eastern Orthodox Church celebrates it on July 6th. Other cultures and countries have different festivals to celebrate love. Columbia, for example, has Dia de Amor y Amistad (Love and Friendship Day) on September 20th. Unlike Valentine’s Day, Dia de Amor y Amistad isn’t just about romantic love, however. People might invite friends over for dinner, and give small gifts to family members.
Whether you’re celebrating with a loved one, heading out with friends, or doing your best to ignore the day altogether, we wish you a happy Valentine’s Day.
To advertise in thewire t. 07720 429 613 e.
fiona@thewireweb.co.uk
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78 |
Page 79 |
Page 80 |
Page 81 |
Page 82 |
Page 83 |
Page 84 |
Page 85 |
Page 86 |
Page 87 |
Page 88 |
Page 89 |
Page 90 |
Page 91 |
Page 92 |
Page 93 |
Page 94 |
Page 95 |
Page 96 |
Page 97 |
Page 98 |
Page 99 |
Page 100
