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Valentines Day
Technically,
it is St. Valentines Day. Valentine's
Day has three possible origins: Lupercalia, the death of Saint
Valentine, and the mating habits of birds. In all likeness it is a
blending of all three.
The Feast of Lupercalia, also known as Februata, was The Feast of
Purification held on February 15th. Lupercalia was an ancient festival
in honor of Lycaeus, who was the wolf mother of Romulus and Remus, the
founders of Rome. Februata Juno was the fertility goddess. Young men
and women would pull names, then spend the day enjoying the company of
the person whose names they pulled. They were allowed freedom
to
do whatever they wanted with each other. In an attempt to get rid of
this pagan ritual, the Church in Rome began replacing the names of the
citizens with the names of saints on February 14th.
Valentine's Day is named for Saint Valentine or rather a Saint
Valentine. The Catholic Church actually recognizes three
different saints all named Valentine (or Valentinus), and all of whom
were martyred. There are many myths and legends told of these
saints, but nothing conclusive.
One St.
Valentine is also
known as Valentine of Terni and Valentine of Rome. He is the patron
saint of affianced couples, bee keepers, epilepsy, against fainting,
happy marriages, love, and plague.
Another Saint Valentine was believed to be beheaded on February 14th.
Legend tells that during the times of the Roman Empire, Emperor
Claudius II (known as Claudius the Cruel) stopped letting couples get
married. He felt that their hearts belongs to him and the wars he waged
and that love and marriage would only cloud their judgment. A priest
named Valentine secretly married lovers. When he was caught,
he
was sentenced to death. While in prison awaiting his execution, he fell
in love with the jailer's daughter. In his final letter to her he
signed, "From your Valentine".
Another belief is that birds began to pair off and mate on
February 14th. People began associating love and marriage with this
date with the notion that "every bird chooses a mate this day".
Today,
Valentines Day beaus give their gals flowers, candy, cards, jewelry, or
some other gift and gals buy that something special for their
sweethearts. A candlelight dinner usually follows either homemade or at
a romantic restaurant. Children and families celebrate too. Children
make hearts and valentine crafts in school to bring to their moms and
dads and the family might have a special dinner and celebrate the love
that keeps them together.
The
number of cards sent on
Valentines Day places second only to Christmas-New Year cards. Card
giving goes back to when English settlers first arrived in the United
States. It was against the law to display affection in public. Giving
cards to loved ones was a way of showing one's affection without doing
something "illegal" and avoiding public ridicule.
 Fun Valentine Stats
24.6 pounds of candy per capita
was consumed by Americans in 2003; it is believed a large portion is
consumed around Valentines Day. Candy consumption has actually declined
over the last few years; in 1997, each American gobbled up more than 27
pounds of candy a year.
The combined wholesale value of domestically produced cut roses
in 2003 was $52 million for all operations in 36 states, with $100,000
or more in sales. Among all types of cut flowers, roses were second in
receipts to lilies ($70 million).
There were 28,914 jewelry stores in the United
States in 2002. In February 2004, these stores sold $2.4 billion worth
of merchandise, a much higher total than in the preceding month or
succeeding months.
stats from the U.S. Census Bureau
by
W.Holidays
modified April 15, 2008
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