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By B. Schwartzmann Lucio  Valentine’s Day, held on February 14th every year, had a very different origin to what we celebrate nowadays. Forget all the flowers, heart balloons and chocolate boxes – the festival was not about lovers expressing their affection.
Historians propose that the celebration derived from the Roman festival named Lupercalia, which was also held in mid-February. The festival began with sacrificing goats and dogs, which were done by the Luperci (derived from Lupus – wolf in latin), a corporation of priests. Then, two of the Luperci had their foreheads touched by a bloody knife. Luperci used wool to wife off the blood and dip it in milk, and that required two men to laugh. Additionally, names of women would be drawn for a jar, forming couples which would stick together throughout the festival, and even longer if it worked out. The festival was also associated with fertility rites, in which promised to make women fertile. Further on, St. Valentine’s Day was named after two men named Valentine, who were executed by Emperor Claudius II, on February 14th. This was a way for the Catholic Church to celebrate the martyrs. In the fifth century, Pope Gelasius I combined both festivities to remove pagan celebrations. During the same time, Normans celebrated Galatin’s Day, which means “lover of women” day. Historians say that Valentine’s Day must have confused with Galantin’s Day at some point, as the names are very similar, and we now celebrate Valentine’s Day as a festivity of lovers. With time, influent people such as Shakespeare began to romanticize the holiday, including it in his words, which made the celebration spread across Britain and the rest of Europe. In the middle ages, handmade paper cards were made. Later on, with the industrial revolution, factory-made cards were made popular, encouraging couples to send each other love letters. Nowadays, Valentine’s Day is a source of revenue for many big companies, which take the opportunity to sell their products and make special sales. In Brazil, we often celebrate Dia dos Namorados, which is held on June 12th, and holds the same value as Valentine’s Day across the world. Sources: https://www.npr.org/2011/02/14/133693152/the-dark-origins-of-valentines-day https://www.britannica.com/topic/Lupercalia https://www.britannica.com/topic/Valentines-Day
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