I did not know how Valentine’s came to be, but I wanted to find out. According to several articles that I had read, their are several competing theories on the actual origin of Valentine’s Day, but I want to focus on one story in particular that I found most interesting.
Some historians believe that Valentine’s Day was adapted from an Ancient Roman Festival called Lupercalia. February 15 used to represent the beginning of Spring, was a time for purification and represented a time for fertility. Apparently, priests would sacrifice a goat, which represented fertility and a dog, which represented purification. The local boys in town would then carry the goat hides and slap the single women in town. Women encouraged this as they believed that it led to increased fertility. Later that day, all single women in the village would place their names in a large urn and all the single men would pick names our of a hat and the other person would be their partner for the year. This often resulted in marriage.
My brother and I have decided to return back to our humble beginnings and have purchased goat hides soaked in blood and plan to run around our village slapping single women with our goat hides to represent the beginning of the fertility season and to signal a time of renewed purification.
For more information about The History of Valentine’s Day, click here – http://thecatutoringsolution.com/blog/489/the-history-of-valentines-day/