We all know we’re suckers when it comes to Valentine’s Day. I mean come on, a big candy heart and a giant stuffed teddy bear? All I’m saying is that it’s sad we only find that acceptable one day a year.
Oh, but what a day! Did you know that this year Americans are expected to spend about 20 billion dollars on love-themed memorabilia? Americans are also expected to buy a whopping 58 million pounds of chocolate! Bet you thought you ate a lot of chocolate during your last break up. Maybe we should switch to celebrate being single, might end up being healthier for all of us.
But seriously, where did this fascination with a day dedicated to love start?
Some believe that the origins of the holiday are linked to a pagan fertility ritual that was practiced in Ancient Rome. Every year, on February 15th, people would come together and celebrate the Feast of Lupercalia. The feast consisted of a sacrifice of goats and dogs, followed by a giant celebratory meal and then the skins of the animals would be used to strike the women. An odd practice but one that apparently held a lot of honor because when a woman was struck, it would signal that she would be fertile for the following year.
The more romantic (kind of) part of this tradition was the practice of pairing up couples. There would be a drawing of names, the men and the women would come together and if they hit it off, they would live happily ever after. A kind of Ancient Roman tinder? Swipe right if the animal sacrifices really got you in the mood.
The ritual survived well into the 5th century but didn’t quite fit in with the comfort levels of the Catholic Church, so Pope Gelasius decided to replace it with St. Valentine’s Day on February 14th.
But who was St. Valentine?
There are a couple of different tales surrounding the character of St. Valentine, but the most famous legend concerns a Priest who married couples secretly but completely illegally. At the time, Emperor Claudius II declared that men would be better warriors if wives and families didn’t tie them down. With that notion in mind, he denied marriage to the young soldiers. Cue entrance: Valentine. The Priest would marry the lovers in order for them to live out their fairytales. Talk about some real-life Romeo and Juliet.
The first official reference to St. Valentines Day was in a published work written by Chaucer. Yeah, turns out the guy that wrote The Canterbury Tales was a big fat romantic. In a poem written in 1357, he references “Seynt Valenyne’s day.” Not exactly the right spelling but let’s not be too harsh on the man.
So, what are you waiting for? Go get yourself that cute lil card. Oh and want a tip to make the mood even more romantic? Have your significant other read this article. History is sexy, y’all.
