The history of Valentine's Day is obscure, and further clouded by various fanciful legends. The holiday's roots are in the ancient Roman festival of Lupercalia, a fertility celebration commemorated annually on February 15. Pope Gelasius I recast this pagan festival as a Christian feast day circa 496, declaring February 14 to be St. Valentine's Day.
2007-03-16 03:30:22
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answer #1
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answered by jon_mac_usa_007 7
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Saint Valentine's Day or Valentine's Day is on February 14. It is the traditional day on which lovers express their love for each other; sending Valentine's cards or candy. It is very common to present flowers on Valentine's Day. The holiday is named after two men, both Christian martyrs named Valentine. The day became associated with romantic love in the High Middle Ages, when the tradition of courtly love flourished.
The day is most closely associated with the mutual exchange of love notes in the form of "valentines." Modern Valentine symbols include the heart-shaped outline and the figure of the winged Cupid. Since the 19th century, handwritten notes have largely given way to mass-produced greeting cards. The U.S. Greeting Card Association estimates that approximately one billion valentines are sent each year worldwide, making the day the second largest card-sending holiday of the year behind Christmas. The association estimates that women purchase approximately 85 percent of all valentines.[1]
In the United States, the marketing of Valentine's Day has tagged it as a "Hallmark holiday." A recent trend has been to refer to February 14 as Singles Awareness Day.
2007-03-16 13:26:02
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answer #2
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answered by Anonymous
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Valentine's Day was a feast day for St. Valentine, a martyred priest who was killed for marrying couples in front of his church as legend goes. At that time, the Church was keeping with Pauline doctrine that people should not marry. Valentine apparently disagreed with the non-practiced and married couples in front of his church. Later on, the Church realized it was a profitable venture in marrying people and forswore the non-practice. To make up for his death - they made him a saint.
As to why do people celebrate it. Years ago it became fashionable to make 'valentines', cards for one's love in memory of St. Valentine. Eventually, like Christmas and Easter, it became the commercialized event that we know today.
2007-03-16 10:29:13
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answer #3
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answered by sagegranny 4
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People celebrate Valentine's Day to celebrate their love for one another.
2007-03-16 18:20:24
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answer #4
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answered by Ebonique 2
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Valentine's Day started in the time of the Roman Empire. In ancient Rome, February 14th was a holiday to honor Juno. Juno was the Queen of the Roman Gods and Goddesses. The Romans also knew her as the Goddess of women and marriage. The following day, February 15th, began the Feast of Lupercalia.
The lives of young boys and girls were strictly separate. However, one of the customs of the young people was name drawing. On the eve of the festival of Lupercalia the names of Roman girls were written on slips of paper and placed into jars. Each young man would draw a girl's name from the jar and would then be partners for the duration of the festival with the girl whom he chose. Sometimes the pairing of the children lasted an entire year, and often, they would fall in love and would later marry.
Under the rule of Emperor Claudius II Rome was involved in many bloody and unpopular campaigns. Claudius the Cruel was having a difficult time getting soldiers to join his military leagues. He believed that the reason was that roman men did not want to leave their loves or families. As a result, Claudius cancelled all marriages and engagements in Rome. The good Saint Valentine was a priest at Rome in the days of Claudius II. He and Saint Marius aided the Christian martyrs and secretly married couples, and for this kind deed Saint Valentine was apprehended and dragged before the Prefect of Rome, who condemned him to be beaten to death with clubs and to have his head cut off. He suffered martyrdom on the 14th day of February, about the year 270. At that time it was the custom in Rome, a very ancient custom, indeed, to celebrate in the month of February the Lupercalia, feasts in honor of a heathen god. On these occasions, amidst a variety of pagan ceremonies, the names of young women were placed in a box, from which they were drawn by the men as chance directed.
The pastors of the early Christian Church in Rome endeavoured to do away with the pagan element in these feasts by substituting the names of saints for those of maidens. And as the Lupercalia began about the middle of February, the pastors appear to have chosen Saint Valentine's Day for the celebration of this new feaSt. So it seems that the custom of young men choosing maidens for valentines, or saints as patrons for the coming year, arose in this way.
2007-03-16 10:26:10
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answer #5
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answered by Cambion Chadeauwaulker 4
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I know it had something to do with a priest that secretly married couples that were in love but did not have aproval from their families. Something to that effect. Very romantic.
2007-03-16 12:16:40
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answer #6
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answered by MariChelita 5
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this day is celebrated to glorify a saint named valentine
2007-03-16 10:21:49
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answer #7
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answered by Anonymous
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