Valentine’s Day, named after a Christian saint, could now be marked in nations around the globe however traditions are sometimes very totally different – and generally don’t have anything in any respect to do with romance.
Whereas in Europe it’s all about {couples} celebrating their relationship, in the US it’s as a lot about schoolchildren marking friendships, whereas in Japan girls give candies to their bosses.
The origins of the annual February 14 event are shrouded in thriller however the day is, after all, related to the cult of the Roman Christian martyr Saint Valentine, who lived within the third century AD.
He actually misplaced his head over love – decapitated on the orders of Emperor Claudius II, they are saying, for secretly performing weddings. In line with the legend, Valentine cured his jailer’s blind daughter and the day earlier than his dying slipped her a word signed “Your Valentine”.
In England, the change of messages often known as “Valentines” on February 14 developed with the rise of the postal service within the Nineteenth century, with the sender usually signing off “Your Valentine”.
The celebration took a industrial flip within the mid-Nineteenth century within the US, with the invention of mass-produced greeting playing cards. Promoters rapidly bought the thought to increase the “custom” past lovers, with schoolchildren usually anticipated to convey a Valentine card for each one among their classmates.
At the moment it has change into a $20bn enterprise.
The Japanese Valentine custom started after World Conflict II when confectionery makers got here up with the thought of having girls provide candies to their bosses and boyfriends on February 14.
A half-century later, the follow has change into an annual ritual, with tens of millions of Japanese girls giving pralines or ganaches to point out affection, friendship or skilled respect.
However elsewhere, the vacation – a comparatively latest import from the West – usually clashes with conservative cultural forces in addition to anti-capitalist sentiment in components of society.
