Since 1992
Print and digital marketing
By Barbara McAllister
Word of the Day: Valentine
February is the month of love, thanks to St. Valentine and his feast day. A sweetheart or a card expressing love is called a valentine because of Valentine’s association with love. The name we associate with romantic love comes from the Latin word valentinus, meaning powerful or strong. It was a popular male name in early Rome, resulting in many St. Valentines and even a Pope Valentine. The St. Valentine we celebrate on Feb. 14 is recognized by the Catholic Church as St. Valentine of Rome, who died around 270 A.D and was thought to have been beheaded for helping Christian couples wed. Much of the
history is vague, but according to one story, St. Valentine defied the emperor’s orders and secretly married couples to spare the husbands from going to war. It is for this reason that his feast day became associated with love.
Although Valentine’s Day can be traced to ancient Rome, it was the Victorians who popularized it as a holiday for romance. While the U.S. tradition of exchanging valentines didn’t really catch on until after the Civil War, the valentine craze in England began around 1840, when Britain’s Uniform Penny Post postal reform went into effect. It allowed anyone in England to send mail for a penny. By the following year, nearly a half million valentines were sent through the Royal Mail. Sending cards became such a popular craze, postal carriers received special meal allowances to keep themselves going during the frenzy. This period also saw the creation of vinegar valentines. These cards had unkind messages like, “Tis a lemon that I hand you and bid you now adieu. Because I love another, there is no chance for you.” By some estimations, nearly half of the cards sent were of the vinegar variety. Some were meant as humorous, but many were mocking and mean-spirited. So much for romance.
Although valentine cards often depict Cupid, the Roman god of love, it’s the Christian St. Valentine’s feast day that we celebrate. This versatile saint is not only the patron saint of lovers, he’s also the patron saint of beekeepers, epilepsy, the plague, fainting and traveling.
