Saint valentine's or birthday. St. Valentine's Day. History of origin. Traditions of celebrating Valentine's Day in different countries

For about a quarter of a century, every year on February 14, Russia has been celebrating "Valentine's Day."

There was no such holiday either in the Soviet Union or in the Russian Empire. Where did it come from, what is it dedicated to and why did it suddenly appear here in the troubled times of the early 90s?

It must be said at once that the origin of this holiday, as well as the figure of “Saint Valentine”, after whom this day is named, are dark and contradictory.

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It is the only reliably known that in ancient Rome, where the roots of this holiday grow, moral norms were distinguished by extreme "freedom" and licentiousness, even in comparison with modern European gay pride parades and parents under serial numbers.

And one of these ancient Roman holidays, called Lupercalia, were youth gatherings at the foot of the Palatine Hill, where, according to legend, the she-wolf fed Romulus and Remus, the founders of Rome. These gatherings, beginning as fertility rituals, almost always ended with group orgies. Tellingly, Lupercalia was observed annually from 13 to 15 February.

Then, in 494 AD, Pope Gelasius I banned Lupercalia. And just two years later - in 496 - the church introduced the celebration of Valentine's Day on February 14. Coincidence? Unlikely.

It is said that Valentine was a priest who allegedly served in the armies of the Roman emperor Claudius in the second half of the 3rd century AD. And as if on February 14, 270 AD, by order of Claudius, Valentine was executed for violating the law forbidding soldiers of the imperial army to marry during the campaigns. Valentine's fault was that, despite the ban, he continued to secretly marry legionnaires.

But then there are two versions. According to one of them, more fine looking, Valentine married soldiers and their beloved girls. According to another version, it was about homosexual "marriages" between the legionnaires themselves, which for that time was not so much immoral as it violated class-class traditions and laws.

Which of these versions corresponds to reality (or maybe both?) It is difficult to judge now. Moreover, “Saint Valentine” himself is a person, rather mythical than real.

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It is quite clear that modern Western "promoters" of "Valentine's Day" speak only of the first of the named versions, "modestly" keeping silent about the second.

So why only relatively recently - in the second half of the last century, the cult of "St. Valentine's Day" so actively burst into the mass consciousness - first the Western man in the street, and then our Russian?

There are two reasons here.

The first is purely economic. In the period after the end of World War II and before the collapse of the USSR, the leading capitalist countries experienced an acute economic crisis. At this time, Western corporations, whose business was associated with the sale of gifts and greeting cards, thought about how to get rid of the traditional February decline in sales. Christmas has already passed, and it is still a long time before the rest of the holidays. It was then that the half-forgotten "Valentine's Day" came in handy. So in a couple of decades from an almost unknown "Valentine's Day" a whole Valentine’s Day industry has grown.

The second reason is ideological and class. Valentine's Day is a universal thing, suitable for young adolescents, married couples, and gay people. Moreover, both in the "developed" countries of the West and in modern post-Soviet Russia.

The main thing here is to “split” society and its constituent social classes into small “cells”: personal, family, kindred, etc. To protect the ruling class from the organized protest of the masses, dissatisfied, for example, with the fall in their living standards.

By the way, other means from the arsenal of modern class struggle are also aimed at this - serials about rich idlers, stupid TV shows, stupid advertising, the imposition of a cult of thoughtless consumerism, negativity towards people of a different nationality, income level, religion, lifestyle and much more. ...

Let them give each other "valentines" and kisses, so long as they do not ask unnecessary questions and, God forbid, protest.

Personally, I have only one opinion about the origin of Valentine's Day - it was invented and popularized by flower girls, confectionery manufacturers and manufacturers of souvenir cards. They also need to make money on something, and income from the attributes of love and attention to the opposite sex is inconsistent - on Valentine's Day, the purchase of valentine attributes is mandatory. But everything, of course, is not so simple ... The origin of this holiday "goes back to the past centuries" (a classic phrase!) And has a completely different history than the one imposed on us by the media.

"Lock" valentine

I'll start with disappointment for the fair sex - no young priest named Valentin, who secretly betrothed young couples during the reign of Claudius II and suffered for it, did not really exist! Accordingly, there was no love between the priest Valentine and the blind, healed supervising daughter Julia, there was also no valentine suicide note with a declaration of love. A story that is extremely popular in the media and among manufacturers of souvenir and chocolate paraphernalia for Valentine's Day is a bike that has been sucked from the finger.

Roman goddess Juno

And what actually happened? But what - on February 14-15, Ancient Rome celebrated two major holidays, the first was dedicated to Juno, the wife of Jupiter and the supreme goddess of the Roman pantheon, the second was called Lupercalia and was partly dedicated to the she-wolf-nurse of the founders of Rome - the brothers Romulus and Remus, partly to God Faunu, among whose many nicknames was the name Luperc. Lupercalia was a special Roman holiday, incredibly licentious in the modern view, but completely normal for the customs of the ancient Romans - it was a kind of festival of eroticism, its participants were partially or completely naked.

Roman Lupercalia

The prehistory of the holiday of Lupercalia is as follows - in 276 BC Rome was struck by an incomprehensible for its reasons and a huge wave of mortality among newborns, the great city was threatened with extinction ... Families of the Romans, in which there were less than 3 children and those families that did not have children in general were subjected to massive censure, they were considered damned. And on February 15, immediately after the day of celebration of Juno, the celebration of Lupercalia was scheduled, held at the walls of Rome in the place where, according to legend, the she-wolf nursed Romulus and Remus. It all began with sacrifices to the gods, then belts were cut from the skins of the sacrificial goats, they were taken by half-naked and smeared with sacrificial blood young men and paraded to the walls of Rome, where the Romans of childbearing age awaited them. The young men mercilessly thrashed the Romans with belts, who believed that each blow increased their chances of conception and childbirth. I repeat - the picture of the celebration of Lupercalia looks wild for us, but for the ancient Romans everything was in the order of things.

Capitoline Wolf with Romulus and Remus

On the night between the celebrations of Juno and Lupercalia, there was a custom among Roman youth, somewhat similar to the celebration of Valentine's Day today. In ancient Rome, the upbringing of boys and girls was carried out separately, they practically did not see each other. On the eve of Lupercalia, the girls wrote their names on sheets of paper and put them in a large bowl, and the guys took them out one by one - the girl whose name was on an elongated piece of paper became a couple for the guy during the holiday and for a year after it, they could freely meet. Subsequently, many couples that formed by chance before the holiday of Lupercalia, were united by marriage.

As the power of the Catholic Church and the papal throne grew, the popes did everything possible to erase from the memory of people the pagan gods and the celebrations dedicated to them. As in the case of All Saints' Day, the holidays of Juno and Lupercalia, very popular among the Romans, were abolished, instead, in 496 AD, Pope Gelasius I introduced a new Catholic holiday - Valentine's Day, setting it on February 14. However, in 1969, Pope Paul VI abolished Valentine's Day, since it was not clear to which particular Valentine or Valentine it should be dedicated - in the history of Catholicism there were three great martyrs with such names.

08.02.2015

In Catholic countries, the celebration Valentine's Day has long become a pleasant tradition, but in Russia this holiday has appeared relatively recently. Many have already managed to fall in love with it almost more than the New Year, others are skeptical about it, assuring everyone around that this is “not our” holiday and should not be celebrated. But there is no such person who would not know about the existence of Valentine's Day.

Lovely hearts, warm valentines, colorful balloons, declarations of love, romantic dates by candlelight - all this has become a part of the life of modern people and is firmly associated with February 14th.

On the eve of the quivering day, many stock up on presents for their soulmates, but few know where this tradition originated from. There are quite a few legends about the origin of Valentine's Day. Some of them seem more believable, others less. But all of them are necessarily romantic, as befits such an event.

The main version of the emergence of Valentine's Day

Despite the variety of options, the main hypothesis of the origin of this holiday dates back to the 3rd century AD. It was then that Rome ruled ClaudiusXI... This emperor was firmly convinced that all troubles came from marriage. He believed that it was family ties that prevented the soldiers from properly performing their duty. Therefore, Claudius, by order, insisted that all his legionnaires were free from any obligations.

But no despot or tyrant is capable of forbidding young people to love. In secret, under cover of darkness, the Roman soldiers continued to whisper tender confessions and exchange vows with their beloved. And the priest by name Valentine performed a ceremony over everyone.

One day Claudius learned that his laws were not being fulfilled. He ordered to capture Valentine and imprison him. A little later, he was sentenced to death. But during the time that the holy father was in prison, tender feelings penetrated into his own heart.

Valentin's chosen one was the daughter of a local jailer. The young people exchanged passionate notes. On the day before the execution, the future saint sent the last message to his beauty, signing it “from Valentine”.

At the moment, this legend is considered the most believable. This version is adhered to by most historians who study the origin of various holidays and traditions.

Alternative versions of the origin of Valentine's Day

There is also a more magical version of the emergence of a bright holiday. According to her, Valentine, imprisoned by the order of Claudius XI, fell in love with a girl named Julia. She was the daughter of the governor of the prison in which the priest was placed. Julia was blind, but that could not temper Valentine's ardor. Before his death, he sent her a note, to which he attached a yellow saffron. Opening the message and picking up the saffron, the girl miraculously regained her sight.

The name Valentine was borne by several saints who lived at different times. Valentine, whose life researchers usually refer to when it comes to the history of the celebration of Valentine's Day, lived in 269 AD in the territory of the Roman Empire. A little later, Bishop Intermana, also Valentin, in turn was sentenced to death. This man had the ability to heal, and was sentenced to death for having managed to convince the son of a local mayor of the truth of his faith.

According to another legend, Christian clerics have nothing to do with celebrating Valentine's Day. Some claim that this tradition has its roots in pagan times. At that time there was a holiday of Lupercalia. It was dedicated to Faun, who patronized the flocks, and was celebrated in Rome. This day was considered a day of abundance and love. The girls wrote quivering messages, folded them in half and lowered them into a narrow vessel, from where the guys pulled them out. This is how it was determined who was to take care of whom on that day.

Valentine's Day celebration

The first valentine in history came from the pen of the duke Orleans... When the nobleman ended up in prison, he longed not only for freedom, but also for his wife. He began to write passionate messages to his half, in which he confessed his love to her in every way.

Today this tradition is firmly rooted. Valentines for every taste and color can be bought at any bookstore or just in tents. Some of them look cute and modest. Others already contain florid text with a confession of passionate feelings. You can, of course, show your imagination and make a valentine yourself, hitting your chosen one in the very heart.

In addition to love notes, the traditional symbols of the holiday today are flowers and chocolate. They are given by men and women to each other as material proof of their affection.

Timeless options for celebrating Valentine's Day are romantic dinners, rose petals, moonlit walks and the ubiquitous candles. Those looking for a more noisy entertainment can attend theme parties at many of the clubs that prepare for the day in advance.

Sometimes the city authorities give a gift to all lovers and set up stages in the main squares where festive performances are held and favorite performers perform. Many couples believe that a happy future awaits them, if it is February 14 in St. Valentine's Day they will get married, and therefore this is one of the most common days for weddings, especially in Catholic countries.

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Valentine's Day or Valentine's Day, the most romantic holiday, is celebrated in most countries of the world on February 14 - on this day for more than one and a half thousand years, people confess their love to each other.

Curiously, the commemoration of St. Valentine was originally established as an homage to his martyrdom, without any connection with the patronage of lovers.

Gradually, Valentine's Day turned from a Catholic holiday into a secular one. Many people celebrate this holiday with pleasure, although it is not included in the calendar among official holidays.

Story

Valentine's Day has existed for more than 15 centuries, but according to pagan traditions, the "Love" holidays were popular even in ancient times.

So, in ancient Rome on February 15, every year they celebrated the feast of abundance - Lupercalia - in honor of the god Faun (Luperk is one of his nicknames), the patron saint of herds. And the day before Lupercalia was celebrated the feast of the Roman goddess of marriage, motherhood and women Juno and the god Pan.

© photo: Sputnik / Pavel Balabanov

On this day, the girls wrote love letters, which were placed in a huge urn, and then the men pulled the letters. Then each man began to look after the girl whose love letter he pulled out.

In ancient Greece, this holiday was called Panurgy - ritual games in honor of the god Pan (in Roman mythology - Faun) - the patron saint of herds, forests, fields and their fertility. According to mythology, Pan is a merry fellow and a rake, perfectly plays the pipe and always pursues the nymphs with his love.

There is information that this day was also called the "Bird's Wedding", since it was believed that birds form mating pairs precisely in the second week of the second month of the year.

Saint Valentine

There are many legends associated with the name of St. Valentine. The most beautiful and romantic of them is the story of a Christian preacher who in 269 married the legionaries of the Roman Empire with their beloved, despite the ban of Emperor Claudius II.

To preserve the military spirit, the emperor issued a decree prohibiting marriage to legionnaires, since it was believed that a married man thinks about how to feed his family, and not about the good of the empire and military prowess.

© photo: Sputnik / Maxim Blinov

Romantic action "Knight of Love"

Saint Valentine sympathized with the lovers and tried to help them in every possible way - he reconciled the quarreling lovers, composed letters for them with declarations of love, gave flowers to the young spouses and secretly married the soldiers.

Claudius II, learning about this, ordered to throw the priest in prison, and soon signed a decree on his execution. The last days of St. Valentine's life are also shrouded in a halo of romance.

According to legend, the jailer's blind daughter fell in love with him, but Valentine, as a priest who took a vow of celibacy, could not answer her feelings. However, on the night before the execution on February 13, he wrote her a touching letter, where he spoke of his love. And the girl, having read the message after the execution of the priest, regained her sight.

It is assumed that it is from there that the tradition of writing love notes - "valentines" - on Valentine's Day began.

© photo: Sputnik / Igor Zarembo

According to the Catholic Church, Saint Valentine really healed a blind girl - the daughter of the dignitary Asteria, who believed in Christ and was baptized. Claudius then ordered Valentine's execution. That is, Valentine suffered for his faith, and therefore was numbered among the Saints.

There is an assumption that the Church introduced Valentine's Day as a counterbalance to the popular pagan holiday of Love, which they could not eradicate with the advent of Christianity.

Around the same time, a legend appears, designed to explain why Saint Valentine patronizes lovers.

One way or another, two hundred years later, Valentine was proclaimed a Saint, the patron saint of all lovers.

However, in 1969, as a result of the reform of the worship service, Saint Valentine was removed from the liturgical calendar of the Catholic Church. The reason for this was the fact that there is no information about this martyr, except for the name and information about the beheading by the sword.

Valentine

The very first Valentine's greeting card in the world is considered a note sent by Charles, Duke of Orleans, to his wife from the Tower of London, where he was imprisoned in 1415.

© photo: Sputnik / Artem Zhitenev

Participants of the flash mob "1000 hearts"

Valentine cards were very popular in the 18th century, especially in England. They were exchanged as gifts. The lovers made cards out of colored paper and signed them with colorful ink. By the beginning of the 20th century, with the improvement of printing technology, handwritten postcards were replaced by printed ones.

Today, on Valentine's Day, it is customary to give each other valentines in the form of hearts, with declarations of love, marriage proposals or just jokes. They also like to arrange weddings and get married on this day.

Traditions

In Europe, this holiday has been widely celebrated since the 13th century. In England, they used to carve wooden "spoons of love" and give them to their loved ones. They were decorated with hearts, keys and keyholes, which symbolized that the way to the heart was open.

Louis XVI, who presented such a bouquet to Marie Antoinette, is considered the ancestor of the tradition of giving to lovers exactly red roses. According to legend, Aphrodite stepped on a bush of white roses and stained the roses with her blood, so red roses appeared.

According to an ancient custom, in England and Scotland, on the eve of the holiday dedicated to St. Valentine, young people put tickets in the urn with the names of young girls written on them. Then each took out one ticket.

The girl, whose name went to the young man, became his "Valentina" for the coming year, and he her "Valentine". This meant that between the young people for a year there was a relationship similar to those that, according to the descriptions of medieval novels, arose between a knight and his "lady of the heart."

© photo: Sputnik / Vitaly Belousov

Electric ovens for lovers installed in Sokolniki Park

According to legend, in Britain, unmarried girls on February 14 get up before sunrise, stand near the window and look at the passing men - the first man they see is the betrothed.

Italians call February 14 a sweet day and give sweets and candies. Valentines are mailed in a pink envelope with no return address. In romantic Denmark, dried white flowers are usually sent to each other, and in Spain, it is considered to be the height of passion to send a love letter with a carrier pigeon.

In France, it is customary to give jewelry on Valentine's Day. On Valentine's Day, the French also hold various romantic contests. For example, there is a very popular competition for the longest serenade - a love song. And it was in France that the quatrain message was first written.

Valery Melnikov

In Japan, on Valentine's Day, which began to be celebrated in the 30s of the XX century, it is customary to give chocolate to men - usually in the form of a Valentine's figurine. This is not so much a declaration of love as a sign of attention.

The tradition of giving sweets on this day appeared at the suggestion of a large chocolate company. In addition, the Japanese hold a competition for the loudest and brightest love message. Boys and girls climb the platform and shout from there about their love.

Valentine's Day has been celebrated in the United States since 1777. The tradition of giving gifts on this day grew stronger every year and for some it has become a fairly successful business. At the beginning of the 19th century, the Americans developed a custom - to give marzipan figurines to their beloved on this day. And marzipans in those days were considered a great luxury.

In the post-Soviet space, people first noticed Valentine's Day about two decades ago. And only recent years have been celebrated en masse with valentines, congratulations and declarations of love.

Valentine's Day is also celebrated in Georgia, despite the fact that the country has its own Day of Love, which is celebrated on April 15.

© photo: Sputnik / Natia Tsirekidze

It is curious that the Georgian Day of Love was once introduced as an alternative to Valentine's Day, the tradition of celebrating which came to the newly independent states from Western countries. Romantic Georgians, like many other countries that have their own alternative day of Love, today celebrate both holidays, according to the principle, the more the better.

But there are countries in the world where a taboo was imposed on the holiday of Love. First of all, this is Saudi Arabia, which is the only country in the world where this holiday is officially banned, moreover, under pain of heavy fines.

The material was prepared on the basis of open sources.

Valentine's Day, which is celebrated annually on February 14, has long been shrouded in various secrets and legends of its origin. Some supporters of the holiday of lovers attach romantic significance to this day, while others regard it only for commercial reasons. However, it is still worth finding out where we can take the origins and history of the well-known date.

Valentine's Day history

Valentine's Day or Valentine's Day is not only a holiday of romance, love and tenderness. According to various sources, the holiday is shrouded in many legends, and no one knows for sure whether Saint Valentine existed and whether he really gave his beloved a romantic valentine for the first time.

Priest Valentine

According to one legend, in 269 A.D. the Roman emperor Claudius II sought to conquer the whole world, but to carry out expansion he had to collect a strong army. Since the family institution kept men from military service, the emperor issued a decree prohibiting marriage during military service.

However, the young priest Valentin, who was still engaged in natural sciences and medicine, did not listen to the orders of Claudius II and secretly married the lovers. When the emperor found out about this, he sentenced Valentine to death. But while waiting for the execution of the death sentence, Valentine in prison fell in love with the jailer's blind daughter Julia and healed her.

Before the execution, he left her a farewell message and signed it "Your Valentine". It is with this incredible moment and manifestation of love that the appearance of Valentine's Day and the custom of giving valentines are associated. The priest was beheaded, and later Valentine was canonized by the Catholic Church. In 496, Pope Gelasius I declared February 14 as Valentine's Day.

The inspirer of Christianity Valentine

If you believe another legend, then Valentine's Day arose as a memory of Christian Valentine, who was a real inspiration to others. During the secret wedding of the Roman patricians (representatives of the indigenous Roman people), they were all detained.

As a member of the upper class, Valentine could avoid execution, but his servants did not have such a privilege. However, they continued to admire him and hold secret marriage ceremonies under his cover.

Three Martyrs Valentine

As other legends and stories report, there may have been at least three more men named Valentine who died a martyr's death for the Christian faith.

The earliest Roman chronograph of 354 does not say anything about them, but if old legends are to be believed, then they all died no later than 270.

One of the Valentines was a priest and doctor in Rome and died in 269 (the time of Emperor Claudius II). The second Valentine was bishop in Terni (Italy) and died in 197. Two Valentines who died a martyr's death for the Christian faith were buried in the same cemetery (near the present-day Porta del Popolo in Rome, which is now often called the "Gate of St. Valentine").

Valentine's Gate in Rome

Subsequently, the remains of the first Valentine were kept in one of the churches of Rome, and in 1836 Pope Gregory XVI handed over the remains of the church in Dublin, where they are kept to this day. The remains of the second Valentine are today in the St. Valentine's Basilica in Terni, the city of his pastorship.

The third Valentine lived in Egypt from about 100-153. He was a valued candidate for the office of Roman bishop (i.e., Pope) and in his sermons extolled the values ​​of marriage as the embodiment of Christian love. Almost nothing is known about the circumstances of his death and about the place of burial.

Pagan roots

Also, some sources note that Valentine's Day in Christian times replaced the pagan holiday of Lupercalia (in honor of the god Faun, and according to another version - in honor of the goddess of marriage, the family of Juno), which was also once celebrated annually on February 14. This change took place in 496 by order of the same Pope Gelasius I.

Valentine's Day: the history of the holiday on February 14

But this practice is not surprising, since according to this principle, the dates for the celebration of the Nativity of Christ and the Nativity of John Kupala were chosen, which fall on the pagan festivals in honor of the winter and summer solstices (about December 25 and July 7, respectively).

Patron saint of the mentally ill

In the Roman Catholic Church, Saint Valentine is officially considered not the patron saint of lovers, but the patron saint of people suffering from nervous diseases. That is why icons often depict Valentine in the clothes of a priest or bishop, who heals a young man from epilepsy or mental disorders. Then such people were called mentally ill.

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Saint Valentine was the patron saint of the mentally ill

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Saint Valentine was the patron saint of the mentally ill

According to church tradition, at the grave of St. Valentine, a young man who had epilepsy prayed for a long time and recovered.

The disappearance of Valentine's Day

As you know, Roman Catholics have 16 Valentine Saints and two Valentine Saints. In 1969, the patron saint of lovers was removed from the calendar of saints due to dubious historical justification. Now on February 14, Roman Catholics celebrate the Day of Saints Cyril and Methodius, which Pope John II proclaimed the patron saints of Europe.

Today, the UGCC celebrates February 14 as the sundress of the Meeting and commemoration of the martyr Tryphon. The UOC also honors the memory of the martyr Tryphon, Perpetua, Satire, Satornila and others. It is believed that in Western Europe, Valentine's Day began to be widely celebrated since the 13th century, in the USA - since 1777.

Valentine's Day: the history of the holiday on February 14

According to the latest information, the relics of the patron saint of lovers, St. Valentine, have been preserved for three centuries in a row in the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Sambir (Lviv region). The authenticity of the relic is allegedly confirmed by a document from the Pope of 1759. As Fr. Bogdan Dobriansky from the parish in Sambir, Saint Valentine was the patron saint of the Przemysl-Sambir diocese.

Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Sambir (Lviv region)

The relics of St. Valentine in the Church of the Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary in Sambir (Lviv region)

The history of the emergence of valentines

According to legends, the ancient custom of sending loved ones postcards on Valentine's Day also originated in the Middle Ages. The very first valentine in the world is considered to be a note sent by Duke Charles of Orleans in 1415.