Lovers celebrate Valentine's Day on February 14th. How did this holiday come about? Who is Saint Valentine? Why does everyone give valentines on this day? Let's talk about the origin of the holiday, what myths and legends are associated with this day.

Valentine's Day the origin of the holiday: Legends and myths

The Catholic Church venerates three holy martyrs named Valentine, but there is almost no reliable information about their lives. It is only known that Valentine of Rome was a priest and was martyred during the persecution of Christians in the 3rd century AD. e. Another Valentin was the bishop of Interamna (now the city of Terni, Italy). He was executed for his faith on February 14, 270, and was buried near Rome. The saint is revered by both Catholics and Orthodox. About the third Valentine, we only know that he died in Carthage.

More detailed information about the martyrs appeared already in the era of the Mature Middle Ages (in the XI-XIV centuries). But at first, they also lacked any romantic color. It is likely that the legends are talking about another saint or even different ascetics with the name Valentine.

Valentine's Day the origin of the holiday: "The Golden Legend"

According to legend, the Roman emperor Claudius II could not recruit enough soldiers to his army. Then he decided that it was wives who would not let their husbands go to war, and forbade young men to marry.

Saint Valentine was a healer and preacher of Christianity. He not only prayed for the sick, but also secretly married lovers, despite the prohibition of Tsar Claudius. Once a prison guard turned to him for help. He asked to heal his daughter Julia from blindness. The priest gave the girl an eye ointment and told her to come back later.

However, rumors of secret weddings reached the emperor, and Saint Valentine was imprisoned. Knowing that he would soon be executed, Valentin wrote a suicide note to the blind Julia with a declaration of love and gave it to her through his father.

Valentine was executed on the same day, February 14. When the girl opened the note, inside it was saffron and the signature "Your Valentine". Julia took the saffron in her hands, and her vision was miraculously restored.

Subsequently, as a Christian martyr who suffered for the faith, Valentin Interamnsky was canonized by the Catholic Church. And in 496, Pope Gelasius declared February 14 as Valentine's Day.

This story can be called an invention, if only because at the time of St. Valentine (in the 3rd century) there was no special church wedding ceremony at the time of marriage. In addition, the Christian religion in pagan Rome was despised and persecuted, and it is unlikely that the emperor Claudius attached great importance to this rite.

Valentine's Day Holiday Origins: Pagan Roots

According to another version, Valentine's Day was needed by the church to supplant the pagan holiday. The Romans believed that the founders of their city - the brothers Romulus and Remus - were fed by a she-wolf with her milk. In honor of this animal, they celebrated "lupercalia" (from lupus - wolf). A goat (food for wolves) and a dog (an animal most hated by a wolf) were sacrificed. Then the slaughtered animals were skinned and narrow belts were cut from their skins. Two naked youths took these belts and began a ritual run, during which they lashed everyone who came in their way with belts. Women and girls deliberately substituted various parts of the body for blows, since it was believed that this helped to get pregnant and give birth easily.

The sacred belts were called "febrois", from this word came the name of the month, in the middle of which they celebrated the lupercalia - "februarium" (February).

Valentine's Day the origin of the holiday: Traditions

Valentine's Day began to gain widespread popularity only in the 19th century in Great Britain. Later, the holiday began to be celebrated in the United States. On this day, young people had to pull from the bowl notes with the names of familiar girls. The resulting couples were "Valentines" for a year and accepted signs of attention and courting of each other.

In the middle of the 19th century, businessmen took up the promotion of the holiday. On February 14, lovers arrange romantic dates for each other, buy cards in the shape of a heart - "valentines" - and other cute gifts: plush toys, perfume, bouquets of flowers, sweets, etc.

V different countries have developed their own traditions of celebrating Valentine's Day. So, in Japan it is customary to give chocolate. On this day, a Japanese woman can, without hesitation, confess her love to a man.

In England, on February 14, girls wondered about their betrothed. There was such a belief: if you see a robin on that day, it means your husband will be a sailor, a sparrow - you will marry a poor man, the goldfinch you meet foreshadowed a rich husband.

At the beginning of the 19th century in America, it was customary to give marzipans to brides - a rather expensive delicacy for those times. Now women are given chocolate, candy and caramel of red and white flowers symbolizing love and purity.

The French give jewelry and jewelry to their chosen ones.

Many believe that if you propose on February 14 or get married on that day, your marriage will be happy and strong.

At the same time, they rarely remember the most holy Valentine and the religious origins of the holiday.

Valentine's Day the origin of the holiday: the Orthodox and Catholics

Saint Valentine is revered by both the Catholic and Orthodox churches. In the Catholic liturgical calendar on February 14, the memory of Saints Cyril and Methodius is celebrated.

Hieromartyr Valentine remained on the lists of the church, but only as a locally revered saint, since historical information about his deeds is extremely scarce. Thus, this holiday is not obligatory for either Catholics or Orthodox Christians.

Valentine's Day came to Russia relatively recently. It began to gain popularity only in the early 1990s.

On January 15, 2003, the bishop of the Italian city of Terni - Vincenzo Paglia - donated to His Holiness Patriarch Alexy the relics of the Holy Martyr Valentine, which have since been kept in the Cathedral of Christ the Savior.

The Orthodox Church has own days commemoration of the two Martyrs Valentine. Valentine the Roman - presbyter - is venerated on July 19, and the Holy Martyr Valentine, Bishop of Interamna - on August 12.

In the Orthodox tradition, Saints Peter and Fevronia have been considered the patrons of family and marriage since ancient times. In 2008, the Federation Council of Russia approved the initiative to establish on the day of their memory (July 8 of the new style, which corresponds to June 25 of the old style) "Day of conjugal love and family happiness."

Based on materials from http://www.aif.ru/

Valentine's Day is celebrated annually on February 14 in most countries of the world: for more than one and a half thousand years, millions of people on this day confess their love to each other. Sputnik tells the most interesting stories the emergence of Valentine's Day.

Ancient Roman Lupercalia

One of the versions of the origin of Valentine's Day says that it was transformed from the feast of Lupercalia, dedicated to fertility and named after the patron saint of herds, the god Faun (also known as Luperk). It was celebrated every year on February 15th.

According to tradition, men on this day sacrificed animals, made original whips from their skins, stripped naked and ran around the city, hitting every woman they met on the way. Women, however, willingly substituted themselves for blows: it was believed that a blow with a whip on this day would give fertility. The ritual was extremely common in Rome: there is evidence that even members of noble families participated in it.

Later, it became so popular that it survived many pagan traditions that disappeared with the advent of Christianity. It is worth noting that many historians deny the connection between the Roman "festival" and the later Christian celebration and consider it nothing more than a guess.

The golden legend of the patron saint of all lovers

The most romantic story about Saint Valentine is connected with the prohibition of the imperious Roman emperor Claudius II to marry: he believed that men who were not burdened with family would fight with great zeal on the battlefield.

Saint Valentine was a priest and, according to some sources, a doctor. Out of pity for the unfortunate lovers, he secretly crowned them (and also reconciled those who quarreled and helped the not eloquent write love letters).

When the emperor found out about his activities, the priest was imprisoned and sentenced to death. There Valentine met the beautiful daughter of a prison guard, who fell in love with him. Some legends contain information that because of the accepted vow of celibacy, the priest was unable to respond to her feelings, but on the eve of the execution (February 13) he wrote a love letter to the girl, signing "Your Valentine".

Another legend about Saint Valentine

Another version says that Valentine was a noble Roman patrician and secret Christian who converted his servants to the new faith. Once he performed a wedding ceremony for lovers, but all three were detained by the guards.

As a member of the upper class, Valentine could avoid execution, but chose to give his life for the newlyweds. He wrote letters to fellow believers in the form of red hearts, symbolizing Christian love. The last letter, consecrated by faith and kindness, just before the execution, Valentine gave to the blind girl, who regained her sight and became a beauty. From here may originate modern tradition giving valentines.

By the way, Valentine was canonized, but in the second half of the twentieth century, the celebration of the day of his memory as a general church saint was stopped, and, transforming the calendar of saints, the Roman Catholic Church removed his name from there, without finding any exact information about the martyr.

History of the Valentine's card

The creation of the very first Valentine is also credited to the Duke of Orleans, who wrote love letters from a London dungeon to his wife.

They gained popularity already in the 18th century, especially in England: there they exchanged postcards made of multi-colored paper signed in colorful ink as gifts.

From open sources

The whole world, and with it Ukraine, today, on February 14, celebrates Valentine's Day or Valentine's Day. This holiday came to us relatively recently, about 15-20 years ago, and is now celebrated everywhere, without reference to religion, but rather as an additional reason to tell your soulmate about feelings and arrange something especially romantic, but its history is more ancient and shrouded in many legends. So, for example, one of the main questions to this day remains: did Saint Valentine exist at all and did he really give his beloved a romantic valentine for the first time ?!

history of the holiday

The Catholic Church recognizes at least three different saints named Valentine who have been killed.

One of the legends states that Valentine was a young priest who was also interested in natural sciences and medicine. He lived in the third century in Rome. It was when Emperor Claudius II decided that single men were better soldiers than those burdened with families and forbade soldiers to marry.

Valentine, realizing the injustice of the decree, challenged the emperor and continued to marry the lovers in secret. When Claudius found out about this, he sentenced the priest to death. But while waiting for the execution of the death sentence, Valentine in prison fell in love with the jailer's daughter, Julia.

Before the execution, the priest left her a farewell message and signed it "Your Valentine". It is with this incredible moment and manifestation of love that the appearance of Valentine's Day and the custom of giving valentines are associated.

The priest was beheaded, and later Valentine was canonized by the Catholic Church.

According to another legend, Valentine was a Roman patrician and secret Christian who converted his servants to the new faith as well. Once he performed a wedding ceremony for two of them. But on denunciation or coincidence, all three were detained by the guards.

From open sources

Valentine, as a person of the upper class, could escape death, but not his servant. Then, wanting to encourage the doomed fellow believers, Valentine wrote them letters in the form of red hearts, meaning Christian love. The message to the newlyweds was to be conveyed by a blind girl, but unexpectedly Valentine himself came to the dungeon, who persuaded the guards to release his servants in exchange for his life.

Before entering the arena of death, Valentine handed over the last letter, consecrated by faith and kindness, to a blind girl, who then regained her sight and became a beauty.

The third legend states that Valentine lived in Egypt from about 100-153. He was a valuable candidate for the office of Roman bishop (i.e., Pope) and in his sermons extolled the values ​​of marriage as the embodiment of Christian love. Almost nothing is known about the circumstances of his death.

In addition, the date of the celebration is shrouded in speculation. Some believe that Valentine's Day is celebrated in mid-February to mark the anniversary of the death or burial of the saint, others argue that the church may have decided to set Valentine's Day at this time in an attempt to "Christianize" pagan holiday Lupercalius, which was also celebrated on this day.

Lupercalia was a fertility festival dedicated to Faunus, the Roman god of agriculture, and to the founders of Rome, Romulus and Remus.

At the beginning of the feast of Lupercalia, the Roman priests gathered in the sacred cave, where the babies Romulus and Remus, the founders of Rome, were believed to have been suckled by a she-wolf. They sacrificed a goat and a dog, then cut the skin of the goat into strips, dipped them in sacrificial blood and lashed passers-by with these strips.

It was believed that the touch of the skin brings fertility, and women provide an easy delivery.

At the end of the 5th century, Pope Gelasius outlawed Lupercalia and decided to celebrate Valentine's Day on February 14. In the Middle Ages, in France and England, February 14 was considered the beginning of the mating season for birds, and over time this day became the day of lovers and romance.

In the Roman Catholic Church of St. Valentine is officially considered the patron saint not of lovers, but of people suffering from nervous diseases: icons often depict Valentine in the clothes of a priest or bishop who heals a young man from epilepsy.

According to church tradition, at the grave of St. Valentina, one young man with epilepsy prayed for a long time and recovered.

In 1969, the patron saint of lovers was removed from the calendar of saints as one whose historicity was questioned. Now, on February 14, Roman Catholics celebrate the Day of Saints Cyril and Methodius, which Pope John II proclaimed the patron saints of Europe.

Among the Christians of the Eastern rite, the memory of the three Valentine saints is honored on May 7, July 19 and August 12. As for the holiday on February 14, the attitude towards it is ambiguous: Orthodox priests warn that it is necessary to distinguish between physical and spiritual love. In the best way to prove the purity of their intentions, they consider going to the temple that day with their soul mate.

Traditions and attributes of the holiday

Traditionally, on Valentine's Day, people give each other various heart-shaped sweets, flowers and souvenirs. Valentines, pigeons and cupids remain unchanged attributes of the holiday.

From open sources

According to legends, a note sent by Duke Charles of Orleans in 1415 is considered the very first Valentine in the world. While in English captivity after the Battle of Agincourt, he allegedly sent poetic love letters from a London prison to his wife. One of the then "valentines" is now kept in the British Museum.

A few years after the first valentine, King Henry V hired a writer named John Lydgate to compose a valentine for Catherine of Valois.

Over time, the custom of sending loved ones on February 14, small souvenirs and Valentine's notes, existed only in England and France. Later they learned about him thanks to emigrants in the New World (modern North and South America).

At first, the first "valentines" were created with their own hands: talented artists wrote romantic poems on sheets of paper, later in Great Britain they began to print collections of poems - lovers chose the best ones and copied them into "valentines".

From open sources

Somewhere from this time began mass production"valentines" on an industrial scale. This idea originated with the American Esther Howland. In just a year, she sold $ 5,000 worth of postcards.

In terms of the number of sales, "Valentines" take the first place, second only to Christmas cards. Most "valentines" are bought by women, men are more "specialized" in sweets, chocolates and bouquets of roses. As such, pragmatic people see Valentine's Day as a grand marketing ploy.

Different countries, different approaches

It should be noted that the approach to celebrating Valentine's Day in different countries is not the same. So, in Japan, this day is considered a holiday for men, respectively, and gifts on February 14 are most often received by the stronger sex.

Traditionally, women give gifts to men (usually confectionery, chocolate, purchased or handmade) as a token of appreciation and love. Moreover, there are two types of chocolate. The first is called giri-choco and is given to male friends, colleagues, and relatives. This gift does not carry a love connotation and is perceived by the recipients as a courtesy. The second type of chocolate, the so-called hon-mei, is bought only for beloved men: husbands or boyfriends. Often this chocolate is made individually.

From open sources

In Poland, it is customary on February 14 to visit the Poznan metropolis, where the relics of St. Valentine are resting, and his hanging over the main altar miraculous icon... Lonely people, making a pilgrimage to this metropolis, believe that Valentine will help them find a soul mate. In addition, there is a belief that you need to ask the name of the first man who meets an unmarried girl on Valentine's Day in order to find out the name of the future groom.

In Wales, before the holiday, lovers carve a spoon out of wood, decorate it with hearts, keys and keyholes and give it to each other. Such a gift literally means: "You have found a way to my heart."

In Denmark, men send unsigned valentines to their girlfriends. If the girl guesses who the sender is, then she must send him a chocolate egg in response to Easter.

In Holland it is on this day that it is not considered shameful for a woman to come up to a man first and politely say to him: "Marry me!" If the man does not appreciate this high gesture, he can blame himself, since now he must present the lady with a dress, moreover, mainly silk.

In Saudi Arabia, the celebration of Valentine's Day is prohibited under the threat of heavy fines.

February 14 in many countries of the world, and more recently in Russia, celebrate Valentine's Day, or Valentine's Day. On this holiday, lovers congratulate each other, and those who have not yet found their soul mate make wishes. Where did this holiday come from and what are its traditions, read in our section "Questions and Answers".

What holiday is it?

Valentine's Day is international holiday love, which has been celebrated in Europe since the 13th century, and in the USA since 1777. In Russia and the CIS countries, celebrations began on February 14 in the early 1990s.

On this day, it is customary to give souvenirs and gifts to your soul mate. These can be cute trinkets, candies, toys, flowers. DIY crafts are also welcome. For example, heart-shaped cards, which are also called valentines.

How did Valentine's Day come about?

There are two legends about the origin of this holiday. The first story says that Valentine was a prisoner who went to jail for healing the sick with the help of an unknown force. People did not forget their savior and carried notes to him. Once one of these notes fell into the hands of a prison guard. The overseer believed that the young man really had the talent of a doctor, and asked to heal his blind daughter. The doctor cured the girl. When the girl saw her savior, she fell in love with him. The feeling turned out to be mutual.

However, the happy ending did not work out. On February 14, the young man in love was executed. Before his death, he wrote his beloved and all his loved ones notes with confessions. It is believed that this is how the tradition of giving each other valentines was born.

The second legend tells that Valentine was a Roman priest. He served in the third century AD. Then there was a ban on the marriage of soldiers. Julius Claudius II believed that wives prevent men from fighting and defending their homeland.

The priest Valentine, contrary to the prohibition, married the soldiers in love. For this he was sentenced to death. In prison, Valentine fell in love with the warden's daughter, the girl also fell in love with the young man. But she learned about the priest's feelings only after the execution. On the night of February 14, the lover wrote a letter to the girl, where he confessed his feelings. In the morning he was executed.

How is Valentine's Day celebrated in Russia and around the world?

In America, it was customary to give marzipans on this day, which are quite expensive. In Japan, a tradition has developed to give sweets on this day. Chocolate is preferred. In the country rising sun February 14 is a holiday for men. The strong half gets more gifts than women.

It is customary for the French to give jewelry on Valentine's Day. In Denmark, people send dried white flowers to each other. In Britain, unmarried girls get up before sunrise on 14 February. The young ladies look out the window at the passers-by. They believe that the first man they see is the betrothed.

In Russia, it is customary to give gifts in the shape of a heart and a valentine on this day. However, no one forbids presenting expensive gifts.

But in Saudi Arabia, this holiday is officially banned. Anyone who breaks the law and, for example, gives a valentine, faces a huge fine.

Does Russia have its own holiday of lovers?

Russia has had its own Valentine's Day for a long time. However, the holiday gained wide popularity only in last years... Since July 8, 2008, the Day of Family, Love and Fidelity has been celebrated in all cities of Russia. It is also called the Day of Peter and Fevronia. Peter and Fevronia left earthly life in one day, taking monasticism in old age, and after 300 years they were canonized. The symbol of the holiday is chamomile - a flower that is especially popular with all lovers.

Valentine's Day, which falls on February 14, is celebrated in our country relatively recently, only a couple of decades, while in Europe it has long traditions and roots dating back to the history of the ancient world.

How is Valentine's Day celebrated?

The external manifestations of this holiday are known to everyone: in a couple of weeks all the counters are full of hearts of all shapes and sizes, everyone gives each other the so-called "valentines" - cards, also made in the form of hearts. Traditionally, most of them are anonymous, and the recipient is asked to guess who the sender is on his own. However, it is believed that these cards appeared much later than the holiday itself, which is about 18 centuries old, while the first valentine was received by the wife of the Duke of Orleans in 1415... He was in prison, and decided this in an original way show your love for your legal spouse. Who would have thought that the fashion for them would go so far and last so long! Some take courage and confess their love on this day. Many, in addition to traditional souvenirs, give something more substantial, but this is different from the classic canons of the holiday.

Classic version of the origin of Valentine's Day

Today, probably only the lazy person does not know her, or the one who completely denies what is happening these days. This story happened, as the legend says, because there is no documentary evidence for all the events described below, and hardly existed, in 269 AD. Then the emperor Claudius II ruled, and Christianity was a very young religion. Then the adherents of Christianity were still persecuted by the worshipers of paganism, and Christian marriage, in the modern view, almost did not exist. However, there was a certain Christian priest Valentine, who did not just carry out the sacrament of Christian marriage - he married legionnaires to whom marriage was prohibited by the nature of service in general. As the legends say, the priest was not just a religious figure of that time, he was also engaged in science and medicine, and was also engaged in settling conflicts and quarrels between lovers. Some legends say that he was an ordinary ordinary priest, some believe that he bore the rank of bishop, be that as it may, his activities did not go unnoticed by the authorities, and he went to prison, after which he was executed. Judging by some sources, love did not pass him by either, and already in prison he learned about this feeling that the jailer's blind daughter had for the saint. She wrote him a letter, where she confessed her ardent passion, but since the priest could not take off his vow of celibacy, all actions on his part were limited to a touching letter that the girl received on the eve of his execution, on February 13. However, there is a more optimistic, but less realistic version, according to which Valentine and this girl had mutual feelings for each other. Moreover, on the night before the execution, using his knowledge in medicine, he healed his beloved from blindness, after which he went to the execution, which was carried out by cutting off the head with a sword. The priest, who accepted death for his convictions, was canonized, made into the face of saints, and from the 8th century in Western Europe the 14th day of February was considered the holiday of all lovers. In America, they began to celebrate it a little later, from 1777, and in Russia even more so: as already mentioned, we learned about it about 20 years ago.

The external attributes of the holiday remain almost unchanged throughout the time that it is celebrated: hearts, hearts and again hearts, in the form of sweets, postcards and souvenirs are made.

The meaning of the holiday has changed somewhat over time. So, in the Middle Ages in Britain, both in its English and Scottish parts, on this day they organized a kind of lottery, pulling out the name of their beloved for a year. Thus, the holiday was important not only for couples, but also for those who had not yet found happiness in love, and thus gave them hope for happiness. Saint Valentine is not recognized by the official Catholic Church today, and does not celebrate this day. The explanation is the lack of substantiated information on this issue, because all data regarding the circumstances of the case and the personality of the priest are in the nature of myths and fairy tales, and do not have documented sources. The only thing that is known is the way the priest was executed. Guided by these data, or rather their absence, the Catholic Church has excluded since 1969 this holiday of the officially approved ones, it did not support and does not support the tradition of its celebration. Today, on this day, it is fashionable to get married, it is believed that such a marriage will be strong and happy, and love in it will be eternal.

Another version of the appearance of Valentine's Day

This option is not at all romantic, and therefore not popular. The origins of this version also date back to antiquity, and is associated with the fact that earlier in mid-February accounted for celebration of the Lupercalia- a holiday of female fertility, widely celebrated in ancient Rome. As part of the celebration, women stripped naked and exposed their bodies to the blows of whips, which were also handed out by naked Romans running through the streets of the city. It was believed that getting your portion of the blows was to ensure yourself high fertility and an easy course of childbirth, which was especially appreciated with the level of medicine of that time. Rome, as a state, encouraged the manifestations of this holiday in every possible way, since it was believed that as a result, even the most hopeless representatives of the human race acquired the ability to bear children. In those days, infant mortality, both in childbirth and in the first year of life, had a terrifying level, which more than once put Rome on the brink of extinction. Such a holiday dedicated to the goddess of "feverish" love "and Faun, the patron saint of herds, each year led to a surge in the birth rate, which was welcomed by the state. With the advent of Christianity on the world stage, more than one holiday has been transformed and took on a more civilized look. This custom did not bypass the Lupercalia, where pagan roots were masked by a civilized Christian veil. However, this version is not supported by all historians, many of them believe that these two holidays are connected only by the fact that they relate to love and coincide chronologically, having completely different origins and manifestations.

How Valentine's Day was celebrated at different times

Everyone knows how this day is celebrated today, but people did not come to this order right away, and in different countries it was celebrated in different ways.

England

In this country, as mentioned above, a kind of lottery was held on this day: on Valentine's Day, young people pulled out tickets with the names of companions on the next year ... Many couples created on this day later formalized their relationship; those who were unlucky received another chance the next year. This fun was the lot of the common people, and the aristocrats entertained themselves on this day by trying to outmaneuver each other with the splendor and wealth of gifts presented to their mistresses.

It was considered indecent to give presents to wives on Valentine's Day. The first valentine, however, was presented precisely in England, and precisely to the legal spouse, as already mentioned above.

In general, this holiday in Britain was so popular that servants in wealthy homes could abandon their work in anticipation of mail with heartfelt messages, and not be severely punished.

America

Until the 18th century, this country was dominated by poverty and the accompanying puritanical customs, which severely limited the number of holidays and entertainment. For a long time there they did not even celebrate Easter and Christmas, not finding in the Holy Scripture a direct permission to idle on this day. Even Thanksgiving was only a Presbyterian day, and was celebrated in a very reserved manner. Needless to say, Valentine's Day did not fit into the strict and Spartan way of those centuries at all, however, when the traditions of celebrating it with roses and postcards gradually penetrated from across the ocean, Americans liked it. By that time, a fairly good level of prosperity had already been achieved in the country, and commerce was connected to the production of hearts and other holiday accessories. Their production and sale were put on stream, and soon the celebration began to be held on a large scale.

Japan

In this country, the holiday of lovers began to be celebrated after the end of World War II, when Japan, until that time completely closed from the rest of the world, began to transfer American and European traditions into its life. However, here the celebration has its own characteristics: firstly, most of the gifts and souvenirs were made from chocolate, and secondly, historically, for the most part it was the day of men, they were mainly presented with sweet gifts... Currently, this trend has continued.

Do you know what no one will tolerate? Savings, even on little things! What is the best birthday greeting for a teacher? about this in our article. What kind of breakfast you can make for Valentine's Day if you don't know how to cook. We have prepared some simple recipes for you at the following address.

Germany

Valentine's Day also entered this country after the end of the war, and mainly its celebration was carried out in European traditions, but had its own bias. So from the beginning of the celebration it happened that this day was not just a holiday for lovers, but also for those who intended to enter into a legal marriage... On February 14, these young people were supposed to come to the bishop of the area where they lived and ask him for an official blessing for marriage procedures. It was believed that such a marriage would be more lasting and happier. At present, the custom has been preserved only for religious couples, of which, however, there are many in Germany. In conclusion, we offer you a short video in which we will also learn a little about the traditions of celebrating Valentine's Day in ancient Rome and how this is done in our time in different countries of the world. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O-GH-hvEtvY