Valentine’s Day is celebrated annually on February 14th in many countries where it’s associated with romance and chocolate. But did you know that this day comes from a dark origin, filled with violence and brutality?
The story goes all the way back to ancient Rome. From February 13th to 15th, they celebrated Lupercalia. One of the events that happened during this fete was men drawing out the names of women from a jar. Those two people would then have to be coupled up for the rest of the festival, or even for longer if they ended up falling in love. Moreover, men slaughtered a goat and a dog. Then they beat women with those animals’ dead skin from the belief that this would make them fertile.
Romans are also to be blamed for the name of Valentine’s Day. On February 13th in two different years during the third century, two men, both named Valentine, were executed by Emperor Claudius II. Their deaths became to be honored by the Catholic Church, known as St. Valentine’s Day. Nearby, the Normans were celebrating Galatin, meaning “lover of women.” Sounding similar to St. Valentine’s Day, these two were often mixed up.
As time went by, this day became less violent and rather sweet. As playwrights such as Shakespeare romanticized Valentine’s Day, the tradition gained popularity in the rest of Europe. Then, it reached the Industrial Revolution where the production of paper cards became mass popular. Since then, Valentine’s Day has become popular in a quite different way from how it originated.
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