Valentine’s Day is a globally recognized and celebrated day, but it’s not an official holiday. It’s only celebrated by 59% of people around the whole world.
Valentine’s Day comes from France and England and goes back to the 8th century. Originally, Valentine’s Day was a bloody and violent day, called Lupercalia. Some say that the Catholic Church introduced the Feast of St. Valentines on Feb. 14 to put a stop to the practices they did before.
It wasn’t until the Middle Ages that Valentine’s Day became romantic and adopted the expression of love for those they cared about. The first Valentine’s Day card that was recorded was written by Charles Duke of New Orleans in 1415. Charles was 21 and wrote it for his wife while he was imprisoned in the Tower of London.
In the early stages of Valentine’s Day, people would make homemade cards decorated with anything they had in their home to make it look pretty. American companies in the 1840s began to create “commercial” Valentine’s cards. This was known as the “Mother of the American Valentine.”
Today, Valentine’s Day is celebrated for friendships, romantic love, and admiration. We are able to give out cards, chocolate candies, flowers, and much more to our loved ones. The most popular Valentine’s Day gifts, according to national retail, are chocolates, flowers, and jewelry.
In other countries, they tend to celebrate Valentine’s Day differently, depending on their culture. In Japan, women give out gifts to men they appreciate and love. In the United States, men and women can give gifts to each other.
