What's the orgin of Valentine's Day?

Answer 1

In truth, the history of Valentine's Day is equal parts blood, violence, persecution and paper hearts filled with romantic words.



Saint Valentine was a real person — though historians aren't exactly sure which real person the day refers to, as there are three saints with similar names from roughly the same time period. Historians theorize that the Saint Valentine of Valentine's Day fame was a third century Christian priest serving in Rome.

Claudius II, the emperor at the time, made the strange decision that single men fought better than married ones. Since the Roman Empire was at this point beset on all sides by unfriendlies, Claudius II banned marriage among young men.

Apparently Valentine — or Valens, or Valentius, or Valentinian, we're not sure of the name — continued performing secret marriages in defiance of the imperial edict. When Claudius found out (as emperors always do), Valentine got chucked into prison. While awaiting a doubtlessly painful execution, the legend goes; he fell in love with his jailer's daughter, and sent her secret love letters signed "From your Valentine." Valentine's execution was supposedly carried out on February 14, 270, and the rest is somewhat dubious history.



The randy Romans were the source of another potential origin of the holiday. Much earlier than the above story, pagan Romans celebrated the Feast of the Lupercalia, one of the many orgy-centric all-day bashes enjoyed by Romans. During festival time, women would write love letters and leave them in a large urn. Each Roman man would draw a note from the urn and pursue the woman who had written the message they chose.



Lupercalia was also held on February 14, and in addition to the secret messages, it involved the chopping up of goats, running through the streets naked while swinging goat pieces and similarly unappetizing traditions which thankfully did not make it into the festivities of the modern holiday. As Christianity took over the empire, Lupercalia was banned, and Valentine's Day was offered as a substitute.

So while you look forward to this most romantic of all holidays, remember the chopped up goats, the executed priest and all the other grim reminders that though Saint Valentine's Day is a happy time for lovers now, it wasn't always so.

Answer 2

St. Valentine's Day, like St. Patrick's Day, is a Catholic feast day with universal appeal.

St. Valentinus was an early Christian martyr. That is to say, he died rather than deny Christ. His earliest mention in Christian Martyrology is in 354, when Christianity was still illegal.

I read a legend once that he was imprisoned. He sent out biblical verses (to encourage others) which he "penciled" with a finger nail, on ivy leaves (which are vaguely heart shaped) that he had plucked from outside his prison window.

There are relics of St. Valentine in Dublin Ireland and Roquemaure France.

Contrary to what Wikipedia says about St. Valentine, his feast day was not removed from the Catholic calendar because he is thought to be a legend. We know for a fact he existed.

There is a St. Valentine Church in Pennsylvania.

Answer 3

Saint valentines made Valentines day Saint Valentines from the late middle ages

Answer 4

So back in historical Rome each and each physique of those Christian douchebags began inflicting all this ruckus. The Emperors have been all like, "hello, i like getting under the effect of alcohol and doing loopy ****. permit's basically feed those assholes to the lions." St. Valentine (or Valentinus) grew to become into between the Christian douches and, interior the three hundred and sixty 5 days 269 advert, he grew to become into fed to three lions. So, thousands of years later, in 496, as quickly as there have been adequate Christian douchebags to provide up all the sturdy cases that used available in Rome, the Pope on the time, Gelasius I, mentioned, "hello, bear in mind that Valentine dude? That ****** incredibly have been given his *** kicked via those lions. yet he grew to become right into a funky dude, so permit's throw a party for him each February 14th." Now, like lots of the recent Christian holiday trips, they positioned them on the comparable days as older holiday trips as to attempt to get each and all of the pagans on board. February 14 had traditionally been customary as Lupercalia in Rome, which grew to become right into a fertility holiday. It grew to become into dedicated to the god Lupercus (the Roman version of the Greek Pan) and that they used to sacrifice **** for him. besides, the Pope replaced all this and mentioned, "forget Lupercus, it incredibly is all approximately that douchebag St. Valentine now." So besides, some thousand years later this author named Chaucer wrote a poem commemorating the anniversary of england's Richard II and Anne of Bohemia. interestingly this grew to become into any such kickass poem that all and sundry have been given all worked up approximately it. interior the three hundred and sixty 5 days 1400 Paris institutionalized Valentine's Day as an afternoon of affection and courtship.

Answer 5

A bunch of mafia dudes were shot up and killed, that's why all VD stuff is red and has hearts. This commemorates the blood and hearts that got shot into.

Answer 6

I have no idea, but I'd bet it was invented by a woman.