When you hear the words “Valentine’s Day,” the first thing to come to your mind might be a vision of chocolates and roses. Or, maybe you think of cards in the shape of hearts with romantic messages written inside. Maybe you just think of the romance that the day symbolizes. However, have you ever wondered where Valentine’s Day originated?

There are many legends regarding the origin of Valentine’s Day--all of which somehow incorporate a Catholic priest now called St. Valentine. Many of these legends take place in the Roman Empire.

Some say that Claudius II, Emperor of Rome, decided that single men were better for fighting in the army because they would not leave behind a wife and family. So, logically, Claudius outlawed marriage for young men who could possibly become soldiers. St. Valentine felt the decree was unlawful and illegally married and protected many young couples. After Claudius discovered Valentine’s deeds, Claudius sentenced him to death. And so, February 14th was thereafter named “Valentine’s day” in St. Valentine’s honor.

Others believe that, while imprisoned for helping Christians in Rome, St. Valentine fell in love with a young girl--who some say was the prison-guard’s daughter. To show his love, he sent her a card--or a “Valentine.” Now Valentine’s Day commemorates Valentine’s martyr-like death, and his romance.

The legend of Cupid--who is commonly shown as a man in a diaper with wings who shoots men and women with his arrows of love--began long before St. Valentine was born. Roman myths say that Cupid, an immortal, fell in love with a mortal--Psyche. His mother, Venus, became jealous of Psyche and sent Cupid to punish her. But while he was supposed on earth “punishing” Psyche, he married her instead. Because of her mortality and Cupid’s immortality, Psyche could not look at him. However, one day, Psyche’s sisters convinced her to look at him, and the action resulted in Cupid leaving Psyche. Psyche was deeply saddened by this, so she went to find and bring Cupid back to her side. While searching for Cupid, Psyche ran into Venus--who then sent her on many tasks, each more difficult than the last. The final task involved finding the “beauty of Proserpine,” and placing it in a box. Despite the fact that Psyche received instructions not to--under any circumstances--open the box, curiosity got the best of her. Instead of finding beauty inside of the box, she found death. After finding Psyche’s body, Cupid removed the death from her body, placed it back in the box, and forgave her. When the gods saw Psyche’s love for Cupid, they made her a goddess. And so Cupid and Psyche lived “happily ever after.”

From the earliest years, February has been a month of love. In Rome, February was celebrated as the beginning of spring. Charles, Duke of Orleans, sent the first-known Valentine to his wife in 1415. In 17th-century Britain, hand-written notes and tokens of affections were sent from lovers to their loved ones. Later, people started printing Valentines so that the public could send valentines to their friends and loved ones.

Valentine’s Day was first celebrated in America in the 1700’s, and at that time was celebrated very much like the way the British celebrated the holiday. In 1840, Esther A. Howland started mass-producing Valentines.

Now, people across the world celebrate Valentine’s Day. Today, 1 Billion Valentines are sent each year. The number of cards sent is second only to Christmas, when 2.6 Billion Christmas cards are mailed.

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