- Valentine’s Day has its roots in Ancient Rome, where it is believed to have originated from the Roman festival of Lupercalia, celebrated on February 15th. Later, it was replaced by St. Valentine’s Day and moved to February 14th.
- The oldest known Valentine’s card dates back to 1415 and was sent by Charles, Duke of Orleans, to his wife while he was imprisoned in the Tower of London.
- An estimated 1 billion Valentine’s Day cards are exchanged each year, making it the second largest card-sending holiday after Christmas.
- The first-ever box of chocolates created specifically for Valentine’s Day was produced by Richard Cadbury in the late 1800s.
- In Victorian times, it was believed that signing a Valentine’s Day card with your left hand would signify that you were truly in love with the recipient.
- In Finland and Estonia, Valentine’s Day is called “Friendship Day,” celebrating friendships rather than romantic relationships.
- The phrase “wearing your heart on your sleeve” comes from a Middle Ages tradition where young men and women would draw names from a bowl to determine their Valentine. They would then wear the name on their sleeve for a week.
- Each year, around 220,000 marriage proposals take place on Valentine’s Day, accounting for 10% of all marriage proposals in a year.
- Approximately 36 million heart-shaped boxes of chocolates are sold each year during the lead-up to Valentine’s Day.
- The city of Verona in Italy, home to Shakespeare’s famed characters Romeo and Juliet, receives around 1,000 love letters addressed to “Juliet” every Valentine’s Day.
- In Japan, it’s customary for women to give chocolate to men on Valentine’s Day, while men reciprocate with gifts on White Day, celebrated on March 14th.
- Red roses are the most popular Valentine’s Day flower, with a staggering 50 million being given each year, symbolizing passion and love.
- Teachers receive the most Valentines, followed by children, mothers, and spouses or significant others.
- Valentine’s Day is associated with the color red because it represents love, passion, and fertility. In Roman mythology, red was the color of Venus, the goddess of love.
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