The Origin of Valentine’s Day

By: Christian Gruis

With 1 billion Valentine’s Day Cards sent each year, the holiday is recognized as the second largest card-sending holiday of the year, second only to Christmas. Valentine’s Day gained popularity as it traveled through time and progressed along the way. In the 1400s, written valentines were being introduced by prominent figures as the new love trend. By the 1800s it became common for people of all standings to exchange cards, flowers, and gifts to their loved ones. While we may figure the exchanging of gifts was obviously, the origin of the beloved holiday actually had a connection to the Catholic Church itself.

In fact, it has been said that the name “Valentine” dates back to the fifth century and came from a saint named Valentine or Valentinus. Unfortunately, the problem with this theory has been that the Catholic Church recognized at least three different saints of the same name. It is unclear which of these Valentines the holiday is based off of, but they, oddly enough, share very similar backgrounds.

One legend suggests that St. Valentine was martyred for assisting the escape of Christians from punishment in Roman prisons. Supposedly the story goes on to say that St. Valentine was a priest who served during the third century in Rome when Emperor Claudius II outlawed marriage for young men. Defying the emperor, Valentine continued to marry young couples and paid dearly when his actions were discovered. It is believed that during St. Valentine’s imprisonment, he wrote a last love letter to his significant other and signed it “From your Valentine.” Thus, coining the phrase that is commonly used today on Feb. 14.

Although mystery still surrounds its origin, Valentine’s Day is understood to date all the way back to 753 B.C when the Romans celebrated it under the name of Lupercalia (a day that promoted fertility and purity for the people of Rome). It is legend that the women of Rome would put their names in a pool of others which single men would draw from; the couple would ultimately marry. Eventually, Lupercalia was outlawed during the rise of Christianity at the end of the fifth century. Shortly after that, February 14th was officially recognized by the Pope as Valentine’s Day; the day hastily became centered on the idea of love, compassion and care for others.