Valentine’s Day: Curiosities From The World
February is the month of love, and Valentine’s Day is among the most popular worldwide. At Mash&Co, we are mindful of the themes of sharing and feelings on this occasion. We researched the traditions and the celebrations of Valentine’s Day worldwide. This is a starting point for all those thinking of an alternative way to spend this day.
Valentine’s Day: A bit of history
Valentine’s Day has very ancient origins. In ancient Rome, February was the period before the spring of rebirth. This month, from 13 to 15 February in Rome, the Lupercalia, established by Romulus and Remus, was celebrated. During these celebrations, rituals and sacrifices were made for the fertility that spring would bring with them.
Later on, in 496 AD, Pope Gelasius turned these rites into Valentine’s Day in honor of Valentino, bishop of Terni, who dedicated his life to spreading the values of feelings and love.
It is believed that on Valentine’s Day, he was executed for having celebrated the marriage between the Christian Serapia and the pagan legionary Sapino.
Moreover, according to the legend, the marriage was celebrated in a hurry because the young woman was very ill and ended with the death of the spouses and the martyrdom of Bishop Valentino.
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Valentine’s Day in the world
Italy, Spain, France, Germany
Here, love is celebrated with chocolates, love letters, red roses, dinners, and romantic walks.
England
In addition to the chocolates, on Valentine’s Day, the “Valentine”, also known as heart-shaped cards, are also exchanged. Tradition has it that the sender is anonymous to create suspense when the message is received and to make a sweeter moment.
Ireland
On Valentine’s Day, according to the Gaelic tradition, people wear the Claddagh a ring with a heart held by two hands, and it can mean being “single” or “busy” depending on how it is oriented. At the same time, people celebrate the poet Geoffrey Chaucer, who lived between 1300 and 1400 and the first who was invited to remember the saint of love.
United States
Here, the celebrations involve the whole family as Valentine’s Day, for them, is the party of those we love. The children are very involved during the festivities. They prepare cards and treats for parents, friends, and teachers a few days before. At school, they also engage in performances.
Brazil
The day of lovers is celebrated on June 12 in honour of Sant Antonio, protector of lovers, and is called “Dia dos Enamorado”.
South Korea
In recent times, South Korea has become very “Westernized.” The celebration of lovers, which people have associated with White Day, is also used in Japan. White Day is, in fact, a tradition for which girls and boys give each other chocolate or flowers on February 14th. If the girl or the boy is interested, they return the gift a month later, on March 14th.
On the other hand, on April 14th, there is Black Day, in which all the unpaired boys and girls meet at a dinner where they eat jajangmyeon noodles, which are black because they are topped with very dark beans. And they talk to each other about “sentimental bad luck” that persecutes them.
Japan
Valentine’s Day is linked to the chocolate festival during which girls usually buy the Giri Choco (chocolate of obligation) and the Honmei Choco (true chocolate love). The first is given to male colleagues to express friendship or gratitude. The second is for engaged couples, husbands, or loved ones. Some women make the Honmei Choco by themselves to show their love for themselves. The boy will have to pay homage with a gift only to the person with mutual feelings a month later, on March 14, during the white day.
Philippines
Also, on Valentine’s Day, flowers, dinners, and chocolates are the preferred gifts for the significant ones. February 14, however, is also the chosen day to renew the marriage. Therefore, many renewals of the wedding vows happen, which are also celebrated in public places such as shopping centers or theatres.
China
There is a similar festival, the one of the Qixi, or feast of the seventh night, which falls on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month. This festival originates from a romantic legend: The story of Zhinü and Niulang, the daughter of a deity and a pastor who lived 2600 years ago.
Like Romeo and Juliet, the two could not love each other, and when Zhinü’s father discovered that they had secretly married on earth, he sent his daughter among the stars. Every year, however, in the days of Qixi, a flock of magpies allows the two lovers to reach and embrace, forming a bridge.
During this day, the girls prepare melons and fruit to offer to the goddess to appease the search for a lover as faithful as hers. Also, couples go to the temple to pray for their future.
South Africa
The Roman Lupercalia inspires the celebration. It denotes very much the propitiation of fertility. Usually, there is the tradition of pinning a ticket on the sleeve, (sometimes in the shape of a heart) with the name of the beloved person. Traditionally, lovers exchange gifts and flowers here as well.
India
Here, celebrating Valentine’s Day creates problems because traditionalists see this party as an intrusion into the Indian traditions from the West. To recognize it, Valentine’s Day was inserted into a Hindu legend in which that day, the god of love, Kamadeva, holds a bow of flowers and hits men and women to make them fall in love with each other.
There is a singular interpretation of Valentine’s Day worldwide aiming to express and spread love to our significant ones. We want to wish Happy Valentine’s Day to everyone from Mash&Co.