Valentine's Day !

What is Valentine's Day?

Valentine's Day is a holiday when lovers express their affection with greetings and gifts. It is also called St. Valentine's Day. The holiday has expanded to express affection between relatives and friends

History

However, the history of Valentine’s Day is rooted in a much darker and misogynistic place… Valentine’s Day dates back to when Romans would celebrate Lupercalia which was when men sacrificed animals and whipped women as they believed it made them more fertile. They would also take part in a sort of ‘matchmaking lottery’ when men would pick a woman’s name out of a jar and they would spend the night together. The Romans sacrificed two men named Valentine in two different years in the 3rd century. Their martyrdom was honoured by the Catholic Church with the celebration of St. Valentine's Day.

Around the same time, the Normans celebrated Galatin's Day. Galatin meant "lover of women.” This was confused with Valentine’s Day as the name was so similar. 

In a more modern era, writers like Shakespeare and Chaucer romanticised Valentine’s Day by including the day in their work. Today we celebrate Valentine’s Day with cards, chocolates and gifts of jewellery and flowers. This has made the holiday a massive industry making companies and businesses billions every year.

‘Personally, I love a great love story’ - Megan Markle