A day dedicated to celebrating romantic love, friendship and admiration. Valentine's Day, also called Saint Valentine's Day or the Feast of Saint Valentine, is celebrated annually on February 14. We have created a Timeline exploring the rich history of this day and how each country celebrates the holiday.
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Join MemoriesMary Carr The Valentine's Day card giving tradition started in 1415 by Charles Duck Verlene.
Mary Carr The earliest surviving Valentines in English appear to be those in the Paston Letters. Written in 1477 by Margery Brewes to her future husband John Paston, "my right well-beloved Valentine".
Mary Carr Giving chocolate was started by the American pilgrims. Dating back to September 1565, the sugar and cacao where consider a rarity. Giving someone chocolate was a very valuable gift back then and mostly done by kings and nobles to express their love for someone.
Mary Carr Romeo and Juliet: Verona Italy, the place where Shakespeare's lovers Romeo and Juliet lived, receives over 1000 letters every Valentine's Day from people all over the world.
Mary Carr Valentine's Day is mentioned by Ophelia in William Shakespeare's Hamlet (1600–1601). "To-morrow is Saint Valentine's day, All in the morning betime, And I a maid at your window, To be your Valentine. Then up he rose, and donn'd his clothes, And dupp'd the chamber-door; Let in the maid, that out a maid. Never departed more." — William Shakespeare, Hamlet, Act IV, Scene 5
Mary Carr The Taj Mahal was built due to an emperor’s love and devotion to his wife and mother of his children. It took 20 years to complete. With 1,000 elephants and nearly 22,000 labourers, artisans, craftsmen, calligraphers and masons all helping.
Mary Carr The 13th-century French manuscript "Romance of the Pear" contained an early depiction of the heart as a symbol of love (pictured).
Mary Carr The modern Valentine's Day poem can be found in the collection of English nursery rhymes by Gammer Gurton's Garland (1784). "The rose is red, the violet's blue, The honey's sweet, and so are you. Thou art my love and I am thine; I drew thee to my Valentine: The lot was cast and then I drew, And Fortune said it shou'd be you."
Mary Carr In 1797, a British publisher issued The Young Man's Valentine Writer, which contained scores of suggested sentimental verses for the young lover unable to compose his own.
Mary Carr In 1797, printers had already begun producing a limited number of cards with verses and sketches, called "Mechanical Valentines."
Mary Carr In the 1800s doctors commonly advised their heartbroken patients to eat chocolate, claiming it would soothe their pain.
Mary Carr Esther Howland (1828–1904), known as the “Mother of the American Valentine”, was an artist and businesswoman who was responsible for popularising Valentine’s Day greeting cards in America.
Mary Carr Paper Valentines became so popular in England in the early 19th century that they were assembled in factories. Fancy Valentines were made with real lace and ribbons, with paper lace introduced in the mid-19th century. In 1835, 60,000 Valentine cards were sent by post in the United Kingdom, despite postage being expensive.
Mary Carr In 1837, a government postal official named Rowland Hill published a seminal pamphlet: "Post Office Reform; Its Importance and Practicability." Hill is credited with inventing the postage stamp and originating the modern postal service.
Mary Carr In the United States, the first mass-produced Valentines of embossed paper lace were produced and sold shortly after 1847 by Esther Howland (1828–1904) of Worcester, Massachusetts.
Mary Carr A writer in Graham's American Monthly observed in 1849, "Saint Valentine's Day ... is becoming, nay it has become, a national holyday."
Mary Carr The English practice of sending Valentine's cards was established enough in 1851 to feature as a plot device in Elizabeth Gaskell's Mr. Harrison's Confessions. "I burst in with my explanations: 'The Valentine I know nothing about.' 'It is in your handwriting', said he coldly."
Mary Carr Victorian Valentine Card, 1868.
Mary Carr In 1868, the British chocolate company Cadbury created Fancy Boxes.
Mary Carr Valentine by Esther Howland.
Mary Carr 1909 Valentine's card.
Mary Carr A member of the Canadian Women's Army Corps and a member of the Canadian Air Force are pictured. The couple are chalking hearts onto a tree on Valentine's Day in 1944.
Mary Carr In 1948 emperor Claudius forbid his soldier to get married and bishop Saint. Valentine disobeyed him. He made people marry in secrecy. Later on, he was discovered and hanged. Now days people honour him by celebrating Valentine’s Day.
Mary Carr A couple in the 1950s enjoying a beautiful moment in time on a zip-line.
Mary Carr In 2001 the Greeting Card Association created the "Esther Howland Award" for a Greeting Card Visionary.
Mary Carr Over $1 billion worth of chocolate was purchased for Valentine's Day in the U.S in 2005.
Mary Carr The U.S. Greeting Card Association estimated that approximately 190 million Valentines are sent each year in the US. Half of those Valentines are given to family members other than husband or wife, usually to children.
Mary Carr An estimated 15 million e-valentines were sent in 2010. Valentine's Day is considered by some to be a Hallmark holiday due to its commercialisation.
Mary Carr The average Valentine's spending every year in the U.S, is from $108 a person.
Mary Carr Thousands of letterswere posted to Juliet's house from the original Shakespeare play, Romeo and Juliet. This occurs every year.
Mary Carr Over 50 million roses were purchased on Valentine's Day in 2011.
Mary Carr Different coloured roses have different meanings.
Mary Carr In the UK, around £1.9 billion was spent on cards, flowers, chocolates and other gifts for Valentine's Day.
Mary Carr Did you know 73% of people who buy flowers on Valentine's Day are men, while only 27% are women?
Mary Carr Read below to learn how each country celebrates Valentine's Day.
Mary Carr India 🇮🇳 In India, in antiquity, there was a tradition of adoring Kamadeva, the lord of love; exemplificated by the erotic carvings in the Khajuraho Group of Monuments and by the writing of the Kamasutra. This tradition was lost around the Middle Ages when Kamadeva was no longer celebrated.
Mary Carr China 🇨🇳 In China, Valentine's Day is called Lovers' Festival. The "Chinese Valentine's Day" is the Qixi Festival, celebrated on the seventh day of the seventh month of the lunar calendar. It commemorates a day on which a legendary cowherder and weaving maid are allowed to be together.
Mary Carr Romania 🇷🇴 In recent years, Romania has also started celebrating Valentine's Day.
Mary Carr South Korea 🇰🇷 In South Korea, women give chocolate to men on February 14, and men give non-chocolate candy to women on March 14 (White Day).
Mary Carr Brazil 🇧🇷 In Brazil, the Dia dos Namorados (lit. "Lovers' Day", or "Boyfriends'/Girlfriends' Day") is celebrated on June 12, because that is the day before Saint Anthony's day. Known there as the marriage saint, when traditionally many single women perform popular rituals, called sympathies, in order to find a good husband or boyfriend. The February 14 Valentine's Day is not celebrated at all because it usually falls too little before or too little after the Brazilian Carnival.
Mary Carr Pakistan 🇵🇰 In 2017, the Islamabad High Court banned Valentine's Day celebrations in public places in Pakistan.
Mary Carr France 🇫🇷 In France, a traditionally Catholic country, Valentine's Day is known simply as "Saint Valentin", and is celebrated in much the same way as other western countries.
Mary Carr Lebanon 🇱🇧 Lebanese people celebrate Valentine's Day in a different way in every city. In Beirut, men take women out to dine and may buy them a gift. Many women are asked to marry on that day. In Sidon, Valentine's Day is celebrated with the whole family – it is more about family love than a couple's love.
Mary Carr Israel 🇮🇱 Tu B'Av is celebrated as a second holiday of love by secular people (along with Valentine's Day), and it shares many of the customs associated with Saint Valentine's Day in western societies. In modern Israeli culture Tu B'Av is a popular day to proclaim love, propose marriage, and give gifts like cards or flowers.
Mary Carr Malaysia 🇲🇾 Valentine's Day is not a public holiday in Malaysia.
Mary Carr Colombia 🇨🇴 Colombia celebrates Día del amor y la amistad on the third Saturday in September instead.
Mary Carr United Kingdom 🇬🇧 In the UK, just under half of the population spend money on their Valentines and around £1.3 billion is spent yearly on cards, flowers, chocolates, and other gifts, with an estimated 25 million cards being sent.
Mary Carr Singapore 🇸🇬 Singaporeans are among the biggest spenders on Valentine's Day, with 60% of Singaporeans indicating that they would spend between $100 and $500 during the season leading up to the holiday.
Mary Carr Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 In 2017 and 2018, the religious police did not prevent Muslims from celebrating the Valentine's Day.
Mary Carr Iran 🇮🇷 In Iran, the Sepandarmazgan, or Esfandegan, is a festival where people express love towards their mothers and wives, and it is also a celebration of earth in ancient Persian culture. It has been progressively forgotten in favor of the Western celebration of Valentine's Day.
Mary Carr Phillipines 🇵🇭 In the Philippines, Valentine's Day is called Araw ng mga Puso in much the same manner as in the West. It is usually marked by a steep increase in the price of flowers, particularly red roses. It is the most popular day for weddings, with some localities offering mass ceremonies for no charge.
Mary Carr Finland 🇫🇮 & Estonia 🇪🇪 In Finland, Valentine's Day is called ystävänpäivä which translates into "Friend's Day". As the name indicates, this day is more about remembering friends, not significant others. In Estonia, Valentine's Day is called sõbrapäev, which has the same meaning.
Mary Carr Latin America 🇲🇽 🇨🇷 🇵🇷 In most Latin American countries, for example, Costa Rica, Mexico, and Puerto Rico, Saint Valentine's Day is known as Día de los Enamorados (day of lovers)or as Día del Amor y la Amistad (Day of Love and Friendship). It is also common to see people perform "acts of appreciation" for their friends.
Mary Carr Norway 🇳🇴 & Denmark 🇩🇰 In Denmark and Norway, February 14 is known as Valentinsdag, and it is celebrated in much the same manner as in the United Kingdom.
Mary Carr Taiwan 🇹🇼 In Taiwan, traditionally called Qixi Festival, Valentine's Day and White Day are all celebrated.
Mary Carr Greece 🇬🇷 In contemporary Greece, Valentine's Day is generally celebrated the same as the common Western tradition.
Mary Carr Ireland 🇮🇪 On Saint Valentine's Day in Ireland, many individuals who seek true love making a pilgrimage to the Shrine of St. Valentine in Whitefriar Street Carmelite Church in Dublin. Which is said to house relics of Saint Valentine of Rome; they pray at the shrine in hope of finding romance.
Mary Carr United States 🇺🇸 Valentine's Day is a major source of economic activity, with total expenditures in 2017 topping $18.2 billion in 2017, or over $136 per person.
Mary Carr Spain 🇪🇸 In Spain, Valentine's Day is known as "San Valentín" and is celebrated the same way as in the rest of the West.
Mary Carr Afghanistan 🇦🇫 Amidst the Afghan tradition, love is often expressed through poetry. Some new generation budding poets like Ramin Mazhar, Mahtab Sahel are expressing themselves through poetry using Valentine's Day expressing concerns on any likelihood of erosion of freedoms.
Mary Carr Portgual 🇵🇹 In Portugal, the holiday is known as "Dia dos Namorados" (Lover's Day / Day of the Enamoured). As elsewhere, couples exchange gifts, but in some regions, women give a lenço de namorados ("lovers' handkerchief"), which is usually embroidered with love motifs.
Mary Carr Japan 🇯🇵 In Japan, the romantic "date night" associated to Valentine's Day is celebrated on Christmas Eve.
