Skip to main content

Valentine's Day-Oldest Valentine's Day Message And it's Origin

Today is Valentine's Day. Ever wondered how it all started. Worry no more as we dug through the archives for you.

However, there are varied stories on how it originated.

The Oldest Known Valentine Message Written in 1477

The name of Valentine's Day can be traced back to the observance of the feast day of Saint Valentine. There are at least two saints named Valentine, one of whom became a martyr around the year 270 CE. The name Valentine comes from a Latin word meaning “strength.”

St. Valentine, he is the patron saint of lovers, epileptics, and beekeepers. By some accounts, St. Valentine was a Roman priest and physician who suffered martyrdom during the persecution of Christians by the emperor Claudius II Gothicus about 270.

February 14, observed in honor of St. Valentine as a day for the exchange of valentines and other tokens of affection.

Another narrative according to the legend, the day is celebrated to mark the death anniversary of Saint Valentine who died in mid-February in 270 AD. It is said that Saint Valentine was a priest, who defied emperors’ orders and secretly married couples to spare husbands from war. He was reportedly beheaded by Emperor Claudius II Gothicus.

Yet another: The origin of Valentine’s can be traced back to “Lupercalia”, a Roman festival for fertility. It is also believed that the day was celebrated as an attempt by the Church to add a religious twist to the Lupercalia festival. The festival was dedicated to Faunus, the god of agriculture, and Romulus and Remus, the founders of Rome. During the celebrations, men and women were paired based on a lottery system, and most of them eventually ended in marriage. At the end of the fifth century, Pope Gelasius I decided the time of Lupercalia celebrations as the date to celebrate Saint Valentine.

It is also believed that Saint Valentine was able to miraculously heal the blind daughter of his jailer. Another legend says that a Bishop named Saint Valentine of Terni was the true namesake of the holiday. Although it is believed by the people that they are the same person.  Saint Valentine became known as a patron saint of love. 

It was also said that he used to wear a ring with Cupid on it – the symbol of love – that helped soldiers were able to him. A poem written by medieval author Geoffrey Chaucer in 1381 is considered the origin of the modern celebration of love by historians. It connects Saint Valentine to the celebration of love, solidifying the belief in the history of the festival.

Source:BBC.CO.UK
Image Credit:Unsplash
Wikipedia 

Comments

Post a Comment

Type your comments here

Popular posts from this blog

In The Spotlight

Ed Sheeran shared a rare photo with his wife Cherry Seaborn as she turns 30 years old. The singer posted a sweet snap of him cuddling up to Cherry in a hammock on a sunny day. Ed shared the photo on Instagram, he wrote, “HBD to ma baby mama. 30 looks good on you.” To the delight of his 38 million Instagram followers. In the picture, Cherry holds a bottle of drink, as she stares adoringly at her childhood sweetheart, Ed Sheeran. Ed is a mega superstar and famous around the world, he remains incredibly private when it comes to his personal life.
Post a Comment
Read more

Israel To Pump Water From The Mediterranean sea, To Top Up The Sea Of Galilee

  The Sea of Galilee, Israel, despite its name, the Sea of Galilee in northern Israel is actually a freshwater lake, and it's one that has sustained life for millennia. Even today, the lake irrigates vineyards and local farms that grow everything from green vegetables to wheat and tangerines. Its archeology, hot springs and hiking trails bring tourism and livelihoods for local communities. But this place of religious pilgrimage — where the New Testament says many of Jesus' miracles were performed — is facing a bleak future, CNN reports. The climate crisis is causing huge fluctuations in the lake's water levels. Now it happens to be fairly full, but just five years ago, it hit a record low. Climate change and unsustainable water management are leaving lakes dried up all over the Middle East and beyond, but the Israeli government is hopeful it has a solution: It plans to pump water from the Mediterranean sea, take the salt out of it and send it across the country to top up th...
4 comments
Read more

FG Advises Nigerians (Especially Students)-Don’t Travel to Northern Cyprus

The Chairman and Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Nigeria Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM) Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, in a press briefing on Thursday, at the State House in Abuja. Advised Nigerians especially students not to travel to Northern Cyprus. Northern Cyprus, officially the Turkish Republic of Northern Cyprus, is a de facto state that comprises the northeastern portion of the island of Cyprus. Recognised only by Turkey, Northern Cyprus is considered by the international community to be part of the Republic of Cyprus. She said, Northern Cyprus is not recognized by the international community (the United Nations) as a country except by Turkey. Therefore there was little that could be done diplomatically to resolve the predicament of Nigerians.  The Minister explained,  “Honestly, it’s been a lot of problems in Northern Cyprus. So, we had youths come and tell us, ‘Please tell everybody to stop going to Northern Cyprus. We did that some time ago and some people said, ‘how c...
Post a Comment
Read more