In February, which is traditionally generous in Russia with blizzards and snowstorms, Valentine's Day is celebrated. Many people simply call this holiday Valentine’s Day and give their loved ones small gifts, heart-shaped Valentine’s cards. In our country, the celebration is secular in nature. The fact that the holiday is approaching is reminiscent of the assortment of gift shops, where a wide variety of goods of the relevant theme appear.
history of the holiday
The origin of the holiday is associated with a medieval legend called the Golden, which describes the events of the life of the Roman priest and field doctor Valentin.
Emperor Claudius II was obsessed with military campaigns and creating an army of strong-willed soldiers. He forbade legionnaires to marry, believing that a warrior not burdened with a wife and children would be better able to fight for the empire. Under the cover of darkness, Valentin performed wedding ceremonies and tied the knot with loving couples. When his secret activities were exposed, he was sentenced to death, which took place on February 14, 269. Since then, this day has become Valentine's Day.
While imprisoned, Valentin met the daughter of the prison guard, Yulia. He was captivated by her beauty and fell in love. Before his execution, he wrote a letter to the girl in which he told about his feelings. At the bottom I signed: “Your Valentine.” Soon the tradition of writing letters to loved ones on February 14 spread.
Background to Valentine's Day
The prototype of Valentine's Day was an erotic festival held in Ancient Rome. Lupercalia was the name of an unusual holiday, the purpose of which was to increase the birth rate. As usual, during any celebration, the Romans glorified the gods. And at the erotic festival the honor fell to Juno. The goddess patronized all women, and, of course, family life and motherhood.
During the holiday, girls who were not yet lucky enough to find a mate wrote their name on parchment. All the notes were collected in one huge basket. It was the guys' turn to tease fate. They blindly selected a note. Only a lucky chance could unite loving hearts; everyone else had to live for the next year with the chosen one whom fate had given him. This festival took place on February 14th.
And literally the next day the second stage of unusual fun took place. Young people of unearthly beauty had the honor of running through the streets of the city in the nude. In their hands were belts, with which the young men tried to whip the ladies and young ladies who got in their way. And if anyone thinks that the Romans resisted, they are greatly mistaken. The girls gladly exposed their soft spots, not forgetting to take off their clothes.
Similar holidays took place not only in Rome, but among almost all people who worshiped various gods. The meaning of such holidays was not so much the canonization of high relationships, but rather the continuation of the family line and the veneration of one’s deities.
Traditions and rituals of the holiday
Valentine's Day is a favorite holiday for teenagers and young adults.
On February 14, people confess their love. They give and mail greeting cards – valentines – to loved ones and close friends.
Loving couples spend this day together. They arrange surprises for each other, go on romantic dates, and give gifts. Couples who have a long-term proven relationship decide to get engaged or have a wedding on this day.
Entertainment show programs dedicated to the holiday are organized in nightclubs and restaurants. Romantic films are shown in cinemas. Shops and beauty salons organize promotions and sales.
On this day it is also customary to congratulate all Valentines and Valentines.
How to Spend Valentine's Day If You're Single
If you're celebrating the most romantic holiday of the year without your partner, don't be upset. Have a Self Love Day.
Go for a spa treatment or exercise
Visit a beauty salon, get a massage, go to a workout, or simply take a relaxing bubble bath. Show love and care to your body, and it will definitely thank you.
Listen to a lecture or attend a master class
Perhaps you have long wanted to learn something new. Why not start on this day? Take a clay sculpting class, take a cocktail-mixing class, or tune in to one of the thousands of online lectures now available.
Do a good deed
Choose a charity organization and find a cause that suits your strengths and capabilities. For example, you could spend the day with lonely elderly people, walk a shelter dog, or donate blood. And some funds may need help related to your profession. It is possible that they could benefit from a little counseling. We are sure that even such a simple thing will lift your spirits.
Go shopping
Shopping is one of the most obvious ways to please yourself. For it to bring positive emotions, try not to make impulsive purchases and choose something you really need that you will be happy to use. This could be clothes, beautiful dishes, a sex toy, or even something small like hand cream.
Do the cleaning
You don’t have to acquire new things, but, on the contrary, get rid of old ones. Take your unloved clothes to a thrift store and throw away all the extra junk you have accumulated at home. And after cleaning, try making a small rearrangement. The approaching spring is the best time for updates in life, even such simple and small ones.
Holiday traditions in different countries of the world
Each country has developed its own traditions and features of Valentine's Day.
USA. In the United States, on February 14, lovers exchange red and white caramel candies with words of love written on them, and give each other postcards and homemade valentines. The holiday is especially popular in schools. Students stage theatrical performances and make papier-mâché hearts, which they present to lonely people and the elderly.
Great Britain. In the UK, on Valentine's Day, it is a common tradition among young unmarried girls to tell fortunes about their betrothed. They believe that love spells and magical rituals have special power on this holiday. Lovers give each other homemade cards and homemade heart-shaped baked goods. On this day, the British congratulate not only their significant other, but also their pets: cats, dogs, birds.
Italy. In Italy, Valentine's Day is called a "sweet" day. This is due to the existing tradition among lovers of giving each other sweets and candies with wishes inside. Other popular gifts: flowers, jewelry, souvenirs. On this holiday, couples go on romantic dates to cafes and restaurants, and have picnics in the fresh air. On February 14, Turin becomes the city of brides. This is due to the fact that many couples want to get married on this day.
France. Among the French, there is a tradition on Valentine's Day to dedicate quatrains of recognition to their beloved ones, which they write on valentines. Popular gifts for February 14: scarlet roses, sweets in the shape of hearts, souvenirs in the form of kissing birds and winged Cupids. In France, on this day, men often propose marriage to their beloved girls.
Japan. In Japan, there are two holidays for lovers.
On February 14, girls congratulate their boyfriends, and a month later (March 14) comes White Day, when men present pleasant surprises to women. The most popular gift is chocolate. The Japanese believe that only sweet chocolate can express the feelings of loving hearts.
History of Valentines
The tradition of giving notes to loved ones appeared in the 15th century. Before this, lovers exchanged signs of their feelings in other ways. They were more likely to sing, play musical instruments, dance, and express feelings in words or poetry.
The most famous Valentine's card is considered to be a note from the Duke of Orleans to his wife. He wrote to her from the dungeons of prison, and the note itself in the shape of a heart is still kept in the museum.
Since the 18th century, postcards and notes in the shape of hearts have become especially popular. They are given as signs of special attention. Young ladies and young men decorate cards with lace and write love messages on them. Antique hearts look simply gorgeous, they cannot be compared even with modern ones printed in a printing house. But if you wish, you can still make magnificent crafts with your own hands in the form of hearts, valentines or postcards.
Signs and beliefs
- On February 14 it is warm and there is no wind - spring will be warm and early.
- Getting married on Valentine's Day means a happy and long family life.
- If the first call on this holiday comes from a loved one, then he will be nearby all year.
- Breaking a mirror on this day is good luck: for sincere love or a long family life.
- Stumbling on February 14th means separation or unrequited love.
Valentine's Day is a great occasion to express love and respect to your significant other. On this holiday, it is customary to give each other pleasant little things, make surprises and present symbolic cards - valentines. Many romantic couples decide to tie the knot on this day.
Where did Valentine's Day come from?
Valentine's Day, or Valentine's Day, is celebrated every year on February 14th.
Now the holiday is known all over the world, but few people know its intricate history. There is a common but unconfirmed opinion The Dark Origins Of Valentine's Day that it originated from the ancient Roman pagan Lupercalia - festivities in honor of the god Lupercus (Pan in Greek mythology). The priests (Luperci) sacrificed goats in mid-February and made belts from their skins. After that, they lashed everyone they met with them, running around the city with almost no clothes. It was a good sign for women to fall under such a blow: according to legend, it promised them an easy birth and large offspring.
Festival in honor of Lupercus, 1677. Image: Wikimedia Commons
In the 5th century, Pope Gelasius I abolished these wild festivities and supposedly at the same time declared February 14 as St. Valentine's Day.
The most interesting thing is that there were several Saint Valentines. There are at least three known early Christian martyrs with this name. The first died Acta Sanctorum on February 14 in the African colony of Rome, along with 24 fellow believers. Another Saint Valentine was a Roman priest, and a third was a bishop from Umbria. There was not much reliable information about the lives of all three. For this reason, several legends about St. Valentine appeared in the Middle Ages, and his image became to some extent collective.
Saint Valentine of Terni and his disciples, France, Paris, XIV century. Image: Wikimedia Commons
According to one such legend, Valentine was arrested for refusing to renounce his faith. With his prayers, he restored the sight of the jailer’s blind daughter, after which he freed the prisoner and was baptized along with his entire family. But Valentin was later convicted again and sentenced to death on the same charges. In a more romantic version of the legend, the saint and the blind girl had tender feelings for each other and before his execution he left her a love letter signed “Your Valentine.”
Later they began to talk about Valentin as a kind priest who secretly married Christian couples, despite the ban of Emperor Claudius II. The ruler believed that family attachment prevented men from fighting valiantly in numerous wars. It soon became known that Valentin was breaking the law and helping lovers. By order of Claudius, he was beheaded for this crime.
Despite the popularity of these legends, literary historian Jack Orach argues that the tradition of celebrating Valentine's Day as a holiday for lovers only appeared in the late 14th century in England. The scientist and several of his colleagues consider Who's to blame for Valentine's Day? , that the poet Geoffrey Chaucer made the patron of martyr couples. In his work “Parliament of Birds,” he wrote that birds begin to look for a partner on Valentine’s Day. Later, other poets and writers began to spread this statement and call February 14 the holiday of lovers. There are such lines, for example, in Shakespeare's Hamlet.
In the late Middle Ages, an extremely romantic mood reigned among noble people. Vows of eternal love and sophisticated courtship for the lady (or gentleman) of the heart were a fashionable pastime, and the idea of a holiday dedicated to all lovers was received with a bang. The tradition of confessing your feelings to your loved ones on Valentine's Day took root and eventually spread throughout the world.
Modern veneration of Saint Valentine
As for the veneration of the saint, this is what has happened in modern times. During the reform of the Roman Catholic Calendar of Saints in 1969, the celebration of Saint Valentine as a church saint was abolished on the grounds that there was no information about this martyr other than his name and information about his beheading. Today, on February 14, the memory of St. Valentine is celebrated exclusively optionally.
In the Orthodox Church, on the contrary, Saint Valentine is still revered. More precisely, both martyrs mentioned earlier - the bishop and the presbyter - have their own days of remembrance. Valentine the Roman, a presbyter, is venerated on July 19 (6), and the Hieromartyr Valentine, Bishop of Interamna, on August 12 (July 30). If you carefully read the lives of these saints, it becomes clear that the legends that are widespread today mix up fragments relating to completely different people, and even medieval writings supplemented them with many romantic, but completely unrealistic episodes.
It turns out that the emergence of the image of St. Valentine as the patron saint of lovers, as well as the numerous legends associated with him, we owe to the Middle Ages and their romantic literature, and not at all to the circumstances of the lives of real martyrs who died at the dawn of Christianity.
And if we’re talking about “whose” holiday this is, then we have to admit that for more than forty years now there has been no Valentine’s Day in the Catholic liturgical calendar; instead, on February 14, the memory of Saints Equal-to-the-Apostles Cyril and Methodius is celebrated. So today, both Saints Valentine are “ours”; at the general church level, only the Orthodox Church honors their memory.
What is customary to give and what can be given
Everyone gives gifts on this day, so it’s better to take care of gifts in advance. On the eve, there is a rush in the stores, as the stronger sex, often ironic about this date, nevertheless goes on a search at the last moment.
Flowers, soft toys and chocolate are traditional gifts; you shouldn’t refuse them. The chosen one will appreciate the original presentation, so it is advisable to think through all the details.
Here are some interesting ideas for girls:
- sweet bouquet of sweets (Raffaello, any chocolates, kinders are suitable);
- cosmetic bag with useful little things (hand cream, nail files, varnishes). This set will please a girl, and there is no need to select individual cosmetics products;
- joint photo shoot;
- beautiful keychain with initials;
- decorative pillow with a heart or in the shape of a heart;
- a video with photos of your dates, meetings, walks;
The young man is given:
- “delicious” gifts (any dish prepared with your own hands for a romantic dinner);
- useful little things for your computer with engraving of your loved one’s name;
- purse;
- housekeeper;
- mug with photo;
- original design passport cover;
- flash drive;
- T-shirt or tank top.
If gifts with hearts and other cute symbols of love are suitable for a girl, then for the stronger sex it is better to refuse such decorations. A “Valentine” in the shape of a heart will be enough for a gift, and for engraving or other design they choose a name and initials.
On a note!
If you start preparing for the holiday in advance, you can knit your loved one a stylish sweater or at least a pair of socks with an original pattern.
Online stores offer a large selection of various non-standard gifts. And do not forget that in any case, attention is important, not the cost of the gift.
Memory
- The relics of St. Valentine in the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in the Lviv region
- Relics of Saint Valentine in the Basilica of St. Valentina in Terni
- Skull of Saint Valentine in the Basilica of Santa Maria in Cosmedin in Rome
- Stained glass window in the city of Terni "St. Valentine crowns Serapia and Sabino"
- Stained glass window in the Temple of the Virgin Mary in England "St. Valentine and St. Dorothea"
- Painting by Jacopo Bassano “St. Valentine of Rome baptizes St. Lucilla"
- St. Valentine's Church in Dublin
- Documentary film “Secrets of Love”, in the role of Saint Valentine - Vadim Demchog
- Feature film by Marius Weisberg “Love in the City”, in the role of Saint Valentine - Philip Kirkorov
What to cook
It is customary to celebrate Valentine's Day together, although it is not forbidden to gather in noisy groups. But since this is a day for loving hearts, it is advisable to spend the evening with your loved one, and a romantic dinner will be very appropriate.
The menu includes light salads, appetizers and, of course, dessert. If you don’t have time to cook yourself, you can order dishes and sweets at the restaurant.
Girls and women prepare a variety of treats for their “other half.” A mandatory attribute is a heart-shaped dish, and it can be served in a very original way. Cakes and pastries are a traditional dessert, but if you get creative, you can make a delicious romantic dish even from simple pasta.
So, in the shape of a heart you can prepare:
- salad with original cut vegetables;
- spaghetti with sauce;
- cakes;
- cupcakes with heart-shaped filling;
- pizza;
- sandwiches with various fillings.
For a festive dinner, you can put rolls and sushi, canapes, and make portioned salads on dishes in an original way. Rose petals, candles, elegant tablecloths and napkins, and beautiful table settings add ambience and a sense of celebration.
