{"id":7450,"date":"2022-02-09T11:00:00","date_gmt":"2022-02-09T16:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.aesu.com\/?p=7450"},"modified":"2022-02-09T11:00:00","modified_gmt":"2022-02-09T16:00:00","slug":"a-history-of-valentines-day","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bobeckmedia.com\/aesu\/a-history-of-valentines-day\/","title":{"rendered":"A History of Valentine\u2019s Day"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"A<\/a>
Valentine\u2019s Day is one of the most popular holidays in America.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Valentine\u2019s Day is one of the most popular holidays in America. Every year, lovers exchange gifts and cards and share their love with one another, and restaurants are full of couples sharing a great meal together. However, have you ever wondered where this holiday originated? History buffs might have a clue, owing to the prominence of Cupid (the Roman god of desire) in the iconography of the holiday. Let\u2019s take a closer look at the history of Valentine\u2019s Day!<\/span><\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

Murky Origins<\/b><\/h2>\n

While ancient <\/span>Rome<\/span><\/a> is indeed where the celebrations of Valentine\u2019s Day first originated, it\u2019s hard for scholars to separate fact from legend. Catholic Church legends speak of two saints with the name Valentine that became martyrs after they were killed by the Roman government \u2013 one of them performed illegal marriages of young couples in love, while the other was killed simply for preaching Christianity. It\u2019s likely that the name of the holiday came from them, especially given the former Valentine\u2019s connection to love, but it isn\u2019t certain. What is certain is the choice of date for this holiday \u2013 later Christian leaders would deliberately connect Church celebrations with former Roman pagan traditions. February 14 & 15 also marked the celebrations of the old Lupercalia festival. This festival, dedicated to Juno, was used to purify the city and celebrate fertility \u2013 another potential link with the later Valentine\u2019s Day celebration.<\/span><\/p>\n

Traditions that Evolved with Time<\/b><\/h2>\n

As with many other traditions with origins in the Roman Catholic Church such as Halloween and Christmas, the traditions of Valentine\u2019s Day evolved throughout the course of history. In the Middle Ages, it was said that Valentine\u2019s Day was the date when birds chose their mates. In England during this time, it was believed that you would meet or dream about your true love. The tradition of sending romantic messages to your beloved began in the 1600s, which evolved into the mass production of cards for this purpose later on. Most of the modern traditions of Valentine\u2019s Day, like <\/span>Christmas<\/span><\/a>, were set and popularized in the early 20<\/span>th<\/span> century in America.<\/span><\/p>\n

Beyond the Western World<\/b><\/h2>\n

Valentine\u2019s Day has also been adapted and celebrated by countries beyond its Western origin as well \u2013 East Asian countries, in particular, have developed an entire culture around the holiday. <\/span>Japan<\/span><\/a>, perhaps because of the influence of American culture in the post-war period, has done the most to promote Valentine\u2019s Day in the Eastern world. An entire social obligation etiquette of giving various quality chocolates to lovers, crushes, male family members, and even male coworkers was developed for Japanese women to follow on Valentine\u2019s Day. However, men these days are expected to \u201creply\u201d to these sentiments through the promotion of White Day, which follows one month after Valentine\u2019s Day on March 14! In some countries such as China, White Day is actually more widely observed than Valentine\u2019s Day!\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Explore the World with AESU!<\/b><\/h2>\n

Are you ready to plan an adventure of a lifetime? AESU offers unique, thrilling travel programs for college students and young professionals at affordable rates. Each trip is action-packed and informal\u2014designed just for people your own age. We are also able to design custom tours just for your group.<\/span><\/p>\n

Experience an exhilarating adventure in 2022 on the\u00a0<\/span>Cosmopolitan<\/span><\/a>,\u00a0<\/span>Great Escape<\/span><\/a>,\u00a0<\/span>Greek Island Hopper tour,<\/span><\/a>\u00a0and more! 2022 tour dates are now available! If you have any questions or want help booking your next adventure, please contact AESU by calling 800-638-7640, or fill out the contact form found on our website. Follow AESU on\u00a0<\/span>Facebook<\/span><\/a>,\u00a0<\/span>Twitter<\/span><\/a>,\u00a0<\/span>Instagram<\/span><\/a>,\u00a0<\/span>LinkedIn<\/span><\/a>, and\u00a0<\/span>Pinterest<\/span><\/a>.<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Valentine\u2019s Day is one of the most popular holidays in America. Every year, lovers exchange gifts and cards and share their love with one another, and restaurants are full of couples sharing a great meal together. However, have you ever wondered where this holiday originated? History buffs might have a clue, owing to the prominence […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"postBodyCss":"","postBodyMargin":[],"postBodyPadding":[],"postBodyBackground":{"backgroundType":"classic","gradient":""},"footnotes":""},"categories":[539],"tags":[494,79],"class_list":["post-7450","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-united-states","tag-holiday","tag-valentines-day"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nA History of Valentine\u2019s Day - AESU Travel<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Valentine\u2019s Day is one of the most popular holidays in America. 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