The Myths And History Of Valentines Day
Valentines Day, one of the most recognizable secular holidays in the United States, has been celebrated in some way for quite a long time. Because of this, there are popular misconceptions wrapped up in the history of Valentines Day, so many that it's sometimes hard to determine the origin of the holiday. For those who are fans of the holiday, knowing the history of Valentines Day is part of the fun of celebrating it.
A Roman Holiday?
There are plenty of myths about Valentines Day celebrations as well as about Saint Valentine himself, and while they make for interesting stories, there is little truth to them.
One common myth about Valentines Day is that its traditions, such as the emphasis on love and the giving of valentines, is a continuation of traditions from a Roman holiday celebrated in the middle of February, known as Lupercalia.
The truth about the history of Valentines Day as a romantic holiday is that the first instance of the feast of St. Valentine being connected with love is a poem written in the 1300s by Geoffrey Chaucer.
The associations of Valentines Day with romance actually come from the popularity of courtly love, which was a highly romanticized and formal sort of method of expressing affection, one that included a mirroring of the concepts of feudalism, with the man considering himself to be the vassal of the woman he loved.
As part of this, in 1400 these love games went so far as to the establishment of a Court of Love on February 14, which parodied actual courts, instead hearing cases about love.
Another key part of Valentines Day history, that of the first valentine, comes from this same century, with the oldest known valentine sent from the Duke of Orleans to his wife, a love poem while he was kept as a prisoner of war.
The Saint Himself
Another key feature of this same point in history of Valentines Day, that of the 1400s, is that the first known stories about St. Valentine began to circulate. One of these rumors stated that St. Valentine helped couples to marry when a Roman emperor banned them.
Another story talks about a Christian martyr who sent love letters to his jailer's daughter, signed "Your Valentine." While these stories are interesting, there is in fact no proof in the history of Valentines Day that these events actually happened.
The moment in history that sets Valentines Day as a holy day stems from a decree by Pope Gelasius in 496, declaring February 14 as the feast of Saint Valentine. However, when declaring Valentine to be a saint, the pope himself was evasive as to who Valentinus was or what he had achieved.
The best guess that historians can come up as to his identity is one of three martyrs who died more two centuries prior to the decree. So, even this key moment, the ultimate source of all Valentines Days in history, is muddled up in speculation. But despite the myths and uncertainty about how and why Valentines Day began, history has shown it to be an enduring and popular holiday, even today. |
