Did you know that Valentine’s Day was not always celebrated as a romantic holiday?
It was not until the late 14th-century poet Geoffrey Chaucer, best known for “The Canterbury Tales,” published a 699-line poem titled, “The Parliament of Fowls,” that the holiday was associated with romance. The opening lines of the poem read: “So short our lives, so hard the lessons, so difficult the tests, so sudden the final victory, so tenuous the hope of joy that so easily evaporates into fear-this is what I mean by love.”
The reference to Valentine’s Day is in the following passage: “For this was on St Valentine’s Day when every bird comes there to choose his mate.”
Chaucer was referencing the fact that people in the Middle Ages thought that February 14 was the first day of the bird mating season, hence it was the proper day for youth to express their love.
Some more fun facts about Valentine’s Day:
There are two schools of thought regarding the origin of Valentine’s Day: Some postulate that Valentine’s Day has its roots in the Roman Feast of Lupercalia, where on February 15th, naked men spanked young maidens in hopes of increasing their fertility.
Others believe that it goes back to the policy of the Roman Emperor Claudius II that forbade young men to marry. St. Valentine defied the ban and performed secret marriages, and for this he was executed on February 14, 269 AD.
Pope Gelasius I made the Feast of St. Valentine an official holiday in 496 A.D, in an apparent effort to get rid of the Pagan celebration of Lupercalia by combining it with St. Valentine’s Day.
Pope Paul VI decided to remove St. Valentine’s Day from the Church Calendar after the Second Vatican Council in 1969.This was done primarily because there is very little verifiable information about the actual St. Valentine . However, Roman Catholics are allowed to observe the holiday. February 14 is recognized as an official feast day by Anglicans and Lutherans .The Eastern Orthodox Church however, celebrates St. Valentine on July 6.
The first “official” celebration of Saint Valentine’s Day took place in Paris, France, February 14, 1400. This coincided with King Charles VI of France establishing the “High Court of Love.” which was run solely by women , and was implemented to deal with marriage issues such as divorces, infidelity, and domestic violence.
It has been estimated that nearly 6 million couples get engaged on Valentine’s Day.
A 2017 study commissioned by diamond retailer James Allen showed that 43% of millennials chose Valentine’s Day as the “ideal day” to either propose or accept a proposal.
A survey conducted by the National Retail Federation Found that Americans spent $23.9 billion on Valentine’s Day in 2022. This amount was the second-highest year ever recorded . The record was set in 2020, with $27.4 billion being spent on the romantic holiday.
In 2021, Americans spent an astounding $4.1 billion on jewelry to give to their sweetheart. According to a National Confectioners Association survey, both men and women prefer candy over flowers for Valentine’s Day. It also showed that chocolate sales represent at least 75% of total candy purchased.
A survey by the National Retail Federation in 2017 found 27% of people who celebrated Valentine’s Day in 2020 said they were buying gifts for their pets as well as their human romantic interests, a ten percent increase from 2010.
The first box of Valentine’s Day chocolates was put on the market by Richard Cadbury 1868.
Four states have a city named Valentine: Arizona, Nebraska, Texas and Virginia, however, the city in Virginia adds an “s” on the end.
Red Roses are associated with romance and the reason for that dates back to Roman Mythology. According to Alfred Palomares, vice president of merchandising for 1-800-Flowers.com: “According to popular lore, the red rose began its well known symbolic history by being the favorite flower of Venus, the Roman goddess of love. Red roses are the most popular flower for Valentine’s Day, and, through the ages, continue to be the iconic representations of expressing affection and, of course, love.”
Random important events that took place on Valentine’s Day: Alexander Graham Bell applied for his telephone patent on February 14, 1876 and penicillin was introduced by Dr. Alexander Fleming 53 years later.
