Valentine’s Day: History of the Holiday and Traditions Worldwide

14 February is one of the busiest flower days of the year: florists put together thousands of bouquets, most of them with red roses. Yet the lovers’ holiday has a tangled history and looks very different from country to country. Here is what is actually known about St Valentine and how the day is celebrated around the world.

Bouquets for Valentine’s Day: red roses and roses in a box.

View full-size photo

Who St Valentine was

Early Christian sources mention not one but at least two martyrs named Valentine, who died in Rome and in Terni in the 3rd century. Almost nothing reliable is known about their lives, and the popular stories of secret weddings and a note signed “from your Valentine” appeared much later and are regarded as legends. Tradition credits Pope Gelasius I with establishing the feast on 14 February in the late 5th century. In 1969 the Catholic Church removed it from the general calendar precisely because of the lack of historical evidence, although local veneration continues.

How it became a day for lovers

The link between 14 February and romantic love first appears clearly in 14th-century literature, in Geoffrey Chaucer’s poem “Parliament of Fowls”, where birds choose their mates on St Valentine’s Day. One of the oldest surviving valentines is a poem Charles, Duke of Orléans, wrote to his wife in 1415 while held prisoner in the Tower of London. Paper cards became widespread in the 19th century, once printers began producing them.

View full-size photo

Traditions around the world

• Japan and South Korea. On 14 February it is mainly women who give chocolate to men, and return gifts follow on 14 March, “White Day”.
• Finland and Estonia. The holiday is Friends’ Day: cards and small gifts go not only to partners but to friends, colleagues and classmates.
• Denmark. Before Easter, Danes send a “joking letter” — a rhyme signed with dots instead of a name, often with a snowdrop. The custom belongs to Easter but often sits alongside the February holiday: if the recipient guesses the sender, the sender owes them an Easter egg.
• Wales. As well as 14 February, couples mark 25 January, the day of St Dwynwen, the Welsh patron saint of lovers.

In Ukraine, Valentine’s Day has been widely celebrated since the 1990s. The most popular gift is flowers: red roses, tulips and flowers in a box.

View full-size photo

Flowers for 14 February

The red rose was a symbol of passion long before the holiday, but demand for it peaks on 14 February. Good alternatives include soft peony-style roses, tulips and fragrant bouquets. Planning a romantic dinner? See table flower decorations, and for a scented bouquet, the most fragrant flowers.

FAQ

Why is the heart the symbol of the holiday?

The heart as a symbol of love spread in Europe in the late Middle Ages and became a fixture on valentine cards in the 19th century.

Did St Valentine really marry soldiers in secret?

That is a later legend with no historical evidence behind it.

When should I order flowers for 14 February?

A few days ahead: demand for flower delivery is at its highest on the day itself.

Author: Maria Svitlovir

Graduated from Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Institute of Biology and Medicine (2001). BSc in Biology, MSc in Horticulture. Writes about plants, works at a garden centre selecting and repotting plants, and contributes to plant reference guides.

About the author →