22 Date Ideas For The Perfect Valentine’s Day In Louisville

The celebration of Valentine’s Day seems to be a tale as old as time, but how did it originate? Where did the flowers and chocolate, February time frame, and even the word “Valentine” come from? Let’s take a dive into the history books to find out where this beloved and romantic holiday started.

The origins of Valentine’s Day are a bit murky, as most history tends to be, as there are multiple historical figures credited with the creation of the holiday.

Roman Catholic Origins
Valentine’s Day has roots within the Roman Catholic Church due to the multiple Saint Valentine’s recognized within the church. While the different Saints all have separate stories, one thing they all had in common was their untimely end, all resulting in martyrdom. One Saint Valentine was known for performing illegal marriage ceremonies after the emperor of Rome outlawed marriage when he realized that single men were more likely to serve in war than coupled ones. Another Saint Valentine was rumored to have released Christians from Roman Catholic prisons, and yet another Saint Valentine is credited with signing a love letter with “From your Valentine,” a possible origin for the saying we still use today. While their endings were unfortunate, the figures behind the “Valentine” name were all regarded as heroic, and romantic, heroes.

Pagan Origins
Another possible origin of Valentine’s Day is the evolution of the pagan celebration of Lupercalia, a festival celebrated on February 15th to honor Faunus, the Roman god of agriculture, and the founders of Rome, Romulus and Remus. Continuing with the gruesome roots to a romantic holiday, this festival involved sacrificing a goat for fertility and a dog for purification, then dipping strips of the sheep hide into the sacrificial blood, and gently slapping the women and crop fields around the town with the bloody hides. The day would conclude with all the young women placing their name in a large urn, then the available bachelors in town would draw a name to create their “perfect match.” This festival did not survive the rise of Christianity, and at the end of the 5th century, Pope Gelasius declared February 14th as the official “Valentine’s Day.”

Romantic Origins
This holiday was permanently interwoven with romance back in 1375, when English poet Geoffrey Chaucer became the first individual to record Valentine’s Day as a romantic event. His tying of the two came from the belief that February 14th marked the first day of bird mating season, as Chaucer wrote about the date that birds would find their mate.

The Valentine’s Day of now is definitely different than the celebrations of old, but it is always interesting to find out where our unique holidays came from. Check out our list below to find your perfect way to celebrate Valentine’s Day!

Research sourced from history.com.