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St. Valentine's Day
February 14th became associated with romantic love in fourteenth century England when the tradtion of courtly love flourished. Geoffrey Chaucer and his friends invented many of the current legends that characterize St. Valentines today.
The day is most closely associated with the mutual exchange of love notes in the form of 'Valentines'. Lovers express their love for each other by sending Valentine's cards, gifting candy or giving flowers. Modern Valentine symbols include the heart-shaped outline and the figure of the winged Cupid. Since the 19th century, handwritten notes have largely given way to mass-produced greeting cards.
Saint Valentine (also Valentinus) refers to one of several Early Christian martyred saints of ancient Rome but their birthplaces and birthdates are unknown. Various dates are given for their martyrdoms: 269, 270, & 273. The name was a popular one in late antiquity and is derived from valens meaning worthy.
The feast of St. Valentine was first decreed in the year 496 by Pope Gelasius I, who included Valentine among those "... whose names are justly reverenced among men, but whose acts are known only to God." As Pope Gelasius implied, nothing is known about the lives of any of these martyrs. Until 1969 the Catholic Church celebrated Valentines Day on 11 different days of the year ... possibly the birthdates of 11 different martyrs?
Compiled from info taken from
Wikipedia, Dictionary.com and Reference.com
