While you’re with your special someone this Valentine’s Day or crying in your room with a box of chocolates you bought yourself, your tradition is nothing compared to the pagan’s ancient rituals.
Valentine’s Day was rumored to have started in the 6th century B.C. with a pagan festival called Lupercalia. According to NBC Washington, the festival, held annually between February 13 and 15 in ancient Rome, was “intended to purify the city and facilitate fertility, but it fostered ominous rituals, including sacrificing animals and beating women.”
Based on Roman mythology, this festival took place to honor the Roman god of fertility, Lupercus. She was thought to have nursed the twin brothers, Romulus and Remus, who founded Rome after they were abandoned as infants.
Centuries later, Pope Gelasius I replaced this tradition and decided to celebrate Saint Valentine instead. NBC Washington stated, “Although the stories behind Saint Valentine are a bit vague, some legends say that he was a Roman priest who defied Emperor Claudius II, who banned marriage so men would be more willing to go to war, by continuing to marry people in secret.”
History said that an English poet, named Geoffrey Chaucer, was a clue as to when Valentine’s Day started to represent love. It stated, “Geoffrey Chaucer was the first to record St. Valentine’s Day was a day of romantic celebration in his 1375 poem “Parliament of Foules” when he wrote, “For this was sent on Saint Valentine’s Day, When every foul cometh there to choose his mate.”
The idea of written valentines started in the 1400s. Shakespeare made references to Valentine’s Day multiple times in his play in the early 1600s and two centuries later, Esther Howland began to produce Valentine’s Day cards, which became popular in America. NBC Washington revealed that Howland was “often called the mother of the American valentine” and her cards are still collected to this day.
But in this century, fun traditions start early with children in elementary school. Homemade Valentine’s cards and mailboxes cover kindergarten classrooms and chocolate exchanges take over the school week.
Adults steer towards romantic evenings with significant others, filled with expensive presents and marriage proposals. According to Legacy Box, “There are approximately 220,000 proposals in the U.S. alone on this special day. 2.2 million marriages take place each year in the States.”
All over the world, single women tend to celebrate the holiday with Galentine’s Day parties, honoring the strength of female friendships, or wallowing at home with overpriced chocolate. Good Housekeeping calculated that more than 36 million heart boxes of chocolate are sold every year.
In a recent survey, only 15.4 percent of Stroudsburg students stated that they’d be celebrating Valentine’s Day with a significant other, while 53.8 percent would be hanging out with friends. 30.8 percent of students report that they are spending the holiday alone this year.
But in this century, modern Valentine’s Day traditions have become based on consumerism rather than human sacrifices. According to the National Retail Foundation, “Americans spent nearly $26 billion on Valentine’s Day gifts in 2023. People were also expected to spend an average of approximately $193 for Valentine’s Day.”
Good Housekeeping also estimated that more than 8 million Conversation Hearts are produced every year and Americans send an average of 145 million Valentine’s Day cards per year.
But while you’re admiring a bouquet of roses on Valentine’s Day this year, remember that the popularity of the color red this season might be rooted in the bloody sacrifices that happened centuries ago.