Gifts Bulletin
The Origins of the Valentines day
Jan
History of the Valentines day
As popular as St. Valentines day is, it is not a public holiday in any country. However, the Anglican Communion and the Lutheran Church recognize it as an official feast day
In fact there a number of Saints or martyrs associated to various Valentine’s days. That means there are many Valentine’s days in addition to the popular February the 14th one.
The 14th February St. Valentine’s day is to commemorate the widely recognized 3rd Century Roman Saint known as the St. Valentine of Rome. Originally, the St Valentine of Rome was not a patron of love as many tend to believe. He was rather the patron of beekeepers and epilepsy.
So far, there are no records of romantic celebrations on Valentines day before 1357. This changed when the famous English poet Geoffrey Chaucer’s work “Parliament of Fowls” depicted the February 14th as the day birds and humans come together to find mates.
Why does the Valentine’s day fall on February the 14th?
History has it that the Romans celebrated the romantic feast of Lupercalia from February the 13th to 15th. Lupercalia was an ancient pre roman pastoral annual festival to avert evil spirits and purify the city and bring about health and fertility.
During the Lupercalia celebrations the young priest called Luperci would sacrifice a goat and a dog at the Lupercal altar. The chief priest would then use the blood from the animals to anoint the Luperci. The men would then make thongs from the sacrificed animals that the Luperci use to whip the women as they run around the Lupercal cave to bring about fertility and health.
Many young women queued for the lashes in the hope for fertility. The young men were later on matched to the young women in the festival.
Geoffrey Chaucer wrote:
“For this was on seynt Volantynys day
Whan euery bryd comyth there to chese his make
Of euery kynde that men thinke may
And that so heuge a noyse gan they make
That erthe & eyr & tre & euery lake
So ful was that onethe was there space
For me to stonde, so ful was al the place.”
In modern English this means:
“For this was on Saint Valentine’s Day
When every bird comes there to choose his match
(Of every kind that men may think of!),
And that so huge a noise they began to make
That earth and air and tree and every lake
Was so full, that not easily was there space
For me to stand—so full was all the place.”
Most probably, Chaucer chose the 14th February based on such Lupercalia rituals when writing his “Parliament of Fowls” collection and the trend was set.
Other poets during the same period such as Otton de Grandson from Savoy, John Gower from England, and a knight called Pardo from Valencia wrote about birds mating on the Valentine’s day.
Valentines day in the Middle Ages
The “Charter of the Court of Love” issued by Charles VI of France at Mantes-la-Jolie in 1400, documents how the Valentine’s day was celebrated. The celebrations were lavish and various activities like poetry competition, jousting, dancing and so on took place. According the charter the queen Isabeau of Bavaria was in attendance as well.
There were no other records of such festivities but the flow of Valentine poems kept coming all through. Even the great poet William Shakespeare penned about Valentine’s day a lot. A great example was in his Hamlet collection (1600 to 1601) where he wrote:
“To-morrow is Saint Valentine’s day,
All in the morning betime,
And I a maid at your window,
To be your Valentine.
Then up he rose, and donn’d his clothes,
And dupp’d the chamber-door;
Let in the maid, that out a maid
Never departed more.”
— William Shakespeare, Hamlet, Act IV, Scene 5
Modern Times
In 1797 a British publisher published a collection entitled The Young Man’s Valentine Writer. The collection suggested romantic verses for young lovers who were unable to compose on their own. This led to the booming production and sales of valentine cards. It is not known if there were any gifts exchanges at this period apart from the valentine’s cards. Probably gifts like home made chocolates and jewelry used to be given out.
Valentine’s day Chocolates
The British chocolate manufacturer Cadbury was the first mass producer of Valentine chocolates. In 1868, they introduced heart shaped Valentine’s chocolates and the bug caught on. Many other companies followed suit and now there is no valentine without chocolates.
In the mid-19th Century, the tradition of exchanging cards on the Valentine’s day extended to many other gifts such as jewelry, flowers, chocolates and the list is still growing to date.
Cited Works:
1. Wikipedia contributors. (2020, December 27). Lupercalia. In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 06:47, January 18, 2021, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Lupercalia&oldid=996637701
2. Wikipedia contributors. (2021, January 16). Valentine’s Day. In Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia. Retrieved 07:06, January 18, 2021, from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Valentine%27s_Day&oldid=1000642799
