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The Legends and Lore of Valentine's Day
Every February, lovers, friends and suitors exchange candy, flowers, and gifts in the name of St. Valentine.
Yet why do we celebrate this holiday and who is this patron saint?
Legends abound because the history of Valentine's Day is shrouded in mystery. Here are a few possible explanations.
One legend contends that Valentine was a priest who served during the third century in Rome. Emperor Claudius II decided that single men made better soldiers than those with wives and families so he outlawed marriage for young men, which were his crop of potential soldiers.
Valentine, realizing the injustice of the decree, defied Claudius and continued to perform marriages for young lovers in secret. When Valentine's actions were discovered, Claudius ordered that he be put to death. He suffered martyrdom on the 14th day of February, about the year 270.
According to another legend, Valentine actually sent the first 'valentine' greeting himself. While in prison, it is believed that Valentine fell in love with a young girl -- who may have been his jailor's daughter and visited him during his confinement.
Before his death, it is alleged that he wrote her a letter, which he signed 'From your Valentine,' an expression that is still used today.
The tradition of Valentine's cards did not become widespread in the United States until the 1850s, when Esther A. Howland, a Mount Holyoke graduate and native of Worcester, Mass., began mass-producing them. Today, of course, the holiday has become a booming commercial success.
Valentine’s Day Trivia:
- According to English tradition - what happens "to the first man a woman sees on Valentine's Day?
- What date was the first recorded Valentine sent?
- What fruit is also known as the "love apple"?
- Sailors often scratched or carved designs on bone, tusk or wood to give as a love token, this hobby was called?
- Phenlethylamine is the natural chemical of this addictive sweet Valentine treat?
- Why is an"X" on a love letter supposed to represent kisses?
- What does it mean if a woman sees a robin flying overhead on Valentine's Day?
- What if a woman sees a sparrow or a goldfinch flying overhead on Valentine's Day?
- Love letters throughout the year are often signed with a string of "X's" to .