Valentine's Day, also known as St. Valentine's Day or St. Valentine's Day (St. Valentine's Day), that is, February 14 every year, is one of the traditional Western holidays. Men and women send each other chocolates, greeting cards and flowers on this day to express their love or friendship, which has now become a favorite holiday for young people in Europe and the United States. There are probably as many interpretations of the origin of Valentine's Day as there are lovers in the world. Just as the Chinese are now celebrating Christmas with almost fervent enthusiasm, Valentine's Day has also quietly penetrated the hearts and minds of countless young people, becoming another important holiday in addition to the traditional Chinese festival.
Legend One
The silence of dawn was broken by a cacophony of voices as two soldiers shoved a good-looking young man toward the iron gates of the prison. The man's brow was locked in a frown, his eyes were radiating undisguised wisdom and piety, and his neat clothes looked out of proportion to his status as a prisoner. The soldiers escorted him to the warden's house for interrogation. The warden was an aged man, and beside him sat a young girl. The girl was slender, rosy-cheeked, wearing a long white dress, exuding youthful charm all around, the beauty of her eyes was that they looked as if they had been carved out of marble and were gray, so it was obvious that she was a blind person.
"Name?" The warden began the interrogation. He spoke his name calmly.
"Do you plead guilty?" "No, I am not guilty. I just did what I was supposed to do." His magnetic voice filled the interrogation room, echoing for a long time. The girl, intrigued by the sound, suddenly asked, "Do you like flowers, sir?" This strange interrogation phrase made him freeze for a moment, following which, he changed his tone to a gentle one and answered, "Yes, I love flowers, Miss. I love nature and people."
The warden grew a little impatient and ordered the soldiers to take him into the cell. He walked out calmly, and before he left, he bowed to the girl, "Thank you for your question, miss." Later, he learned that the girl was the beloved daughter of the prison warden, who had been blind since she was a child, and that the warden treated her as if she were the apple of his eye, and loved her dearly.
At supper time the girl came to the cell with the jailer and brought him a sumptuous supper. To him she said, "I know you are a good man, I would like to talk to you more in the future, I have never seen the outside world, can you tell me some of it?" He was a little surprised, but happily agreed.
After the meal that day, the two began to walk and chat together, and together they talked about the outside world, about life, and about love ......
Gradually, a kind of hazy sentiment arose in the hearts of the two.
Until the prison warden found out about it, he was furious and accused him of seducing his daughter. He immediately confessed his feelings for the girl to the warden, and his piety impressed the old man, who had to agree to let them continue their relationship.
His feelings for the girl grew so strong that he almost forgot he was in prison.
One day, on his way for a walk, he found a herb that could heal the girl's eyes, and he was ecstatic with his slight knowledge of medicine. From then on he concentrated on boiling the herb every day. But before the girl could wait for the light, he waited for the verdict - death!
The day finally came, and he was escorted out of his cell towards the execution ground, where the executioner gave his final order. In these last moments of his life, a miracle occurred, the girl's eyes regained their sight, and she was stumbling towards the execution ground, calling out his name all the way, his eyes moist.
The girl rushed to him and looked at the lover he had seen for the first and last time, tears rolling down her face. They hugged each other tightly, neither of them wanting to let go. They both knew what they would lose if they let go, and how they wished that time could stay forever in this mesmerizing moment.
But time could not stop it, and he lost his life. Soon after, the girl also died of depression.
This is a poignant love story that I heard at a very early age. This young man was Valentine, a famous friar of his time, who met with misfortune because he had violated a very absurd law of his time by officiating at the wedding of a couple in a church, and he died on a February 14th day in the 3rd century. The day of his death was a February 14th in the 3rd century. Later, in his honor, the Church designated this day as "Valentine's Day", or "Valentine's Day".
It is said that the first instance of roses and heart-shaped candies were given at a grand banquet of the French royal family on a later February 14th. Valentine's Day has since taken shape as the "anniversary of love," and France has become the "capital of romance" for couples. On this day, young men would offer roses, the symbol of love, to their favorite girls, while the girls would prepare heart-shaped candies for their sweethearts.
Legend Two
Historians prefer to get to the bottom of the matter, and their rendition of Valentine's Day seems convincing. In fact, far earlier than 270 A.D., when the foundations of the city of Rome had just been laid, the surrounding area was still a wilderness with packs of wolves roaming around. Among the gods worshipped by the Romans, Lupercus, the god of animal husbandry, was in charge of the protection of shepherds and flocks. Every year in mid-February, the Romans would celebrate the Pastoral Festival with great ceremony. At that time, the calendar was slightly later compared to today, so the festival was actually a celebration of the coming spring. Others say the festival celebrated the god Faunus, which was similar to the ancient Greek god Pan, who was a goat-footed man with horns on his head, and was in charge of animal husbandry and agriculture.
The origins of the festival are too ancient to be confirmed by scholars of the first century BC. But the importance of this festival is indisputable.
For example, history records that it was on this festival in 44 B.C. that Antony conferred the crown on Julius Caesar.
Every year on February 15, friars would gather in the city of Rome by a cave on the hill of Baronetine, where the founder of the ancient city of Rome was said to have been raised by a she-wolf. Among the festivities of the festival was the running through the streets of the young nobles, armed with sheepskin whips. Young women would gather on both sides of the street and pray for the whip to strike them on the head. It was believed that this would make it easier for them to have children. In Latin, the sheepskin whip was called februa and the lash was called fabruatio, both of which actually mean "purity". This is where the word February comes from.
As Roman power expanded across Europe, the custom of shepherding was brought to what is now France and Britain. One of the most enjoyable festivities was similar to the color lottery. The names of young women were placed in a box and young men came forward to draw them. The drawn pair became lovers for a year or more.
The rise of Christianity caused the custom of honoring the gods to fade. Not wanting people to give up the joys of the festival, the clergy changed the pastoral festival (Lupercalia) to Valladin and moved it to February 14th. In this way, the legend of Friar Valentine and the ancient festival were naturally combined. This festival was most popular in medieval England. After the names of unmarried men and women were drawn, they would exchange gifts with each other, and the woman would become the man's Valentine for the year. The woman's name would be embroidered on the man's sleeve, and it would then become the man's sacred duty to care for and protect that woman.
The Pope declared February 14th Valentine's Day in about 498 AD. This Roman form of marriage was considered illegitimate by Christians. During the Middle Ages, in England and France, it was commonly believed that February 14 was the season for mating birds. Thus an addition was made to this day that it should be a day of romance. The earliest Valentine's Day gift was a poem written by the Duke of Orleans, Charles, to his wife from his prison in the Tower of London. For he had been captured at the Battle of Agincourt. Now this blessing, written in 1415, is in the British Museum in London. A few years later, King Henry V hired John Lydgate to write a tune for Catherine of Valois as a Valentine's Day gift.
Legend #3
St. Valentine's Day is the phonetic translation of Valentine's Day, which I'm sure you all know is actually the anniversary of a monk named St. Valentine.
Around the third century A.D. in Rome, the tyrant Claudius was in power. At that time, there were frequent wars both inside and outside of Rome, and the people were suffering. In order to replenish the army and carry the war to its end, Claudius ordered that all men within a certain age range must enter the Roman army and serve their country with their lives. Since then, husbands have left their wives and teenagers have left their lovers. Thus the whole of Rome was shrouded in a long period of lovesickness. The tyrant was furious at this. In order to achieve his goal, he went so far as to forbid the people of the country to hold marriage ceremonies, and even asked those who were already married to break their marriage contracts.
However, love cannot be banned by tyranny. In the very capital of the tyrant lived a highly respected monk, St. Valentine. Unable to bear to see a pair of partners part in this way, he secretly officiated at God's marriage ceremony for couples who came to ask for help. In time, the exciting news spread throughout the land, and more couples secretly came to ask for the monk's help.
But the matter soon became known to the tyrant anyway, and once again he showed his brutal face - beating the friar into a large prison and eventually torturing him to death. The day of the friar's death was February 14th, in the year 270 AD.
People gradually made February 14 a holiday in honor of the man who dared to fight the tyrant. Many centuries passed, and the name of Claudius was forgotten, and his scepter and sword could no longer be remembered, but the memory of St. Valentine was still remembered as St. Valentine's Day, which evolved into what is now known as Western Valentine's Day.
Western Valentine's Day customs
Valentine's Day, also known as St. Valentine's Day, which falls on Feb. 14 each year, is a day to be cautious -- for singles and romantics alike. This is especially true for singles and romantics. "As soon as you wake up on Valentine's Day, you should peek through the keyhole. According to legend, if the first person you saw was walking alone, you would be celibate that year; if you saw two or more people walking together, you were sure to find a lover that year; and if you saw a rooster and a hen, you would be married by Christmas. But nowadays there are few roosters and hens in the courtyards of the houses and no chickens in the open spaces of the city, so a pair of pigeons or a pair of sparrows would have the same effect.
Bachelors pay special attention to the first person they meet on the morning of Valentine's Day, because if you're unmarried and looking for a partner, you're destined to marry the first person you see on February 14, or at least the first person who will play a significant role in your life. If you're not shy, you can call your intended early in the morning and ask for a ride to work. Or closing the door and going out until noon would be a good response.
Valentine's Day is one of the oldest holidays, dating back to before Christianity, but St. Valentine's Day is more recent. According to legend, St. Valentine was one of two bishops of the same name in ancient Rome, both of whom were killed in 270 AD. The last thing they did before they were killed was to write a love letter to their wives (priests were allowed to get married at that time), and since then, the name "St. Valentine's Day" has been applied to early religious ceremonies. According to the same legend, on St. Valentine's Day, birds were paired up, bees flew in pairs, and so did people.
Different times, "Valentine's Day" when the prediction of marriage, the way to attract lovers is also different. From ancient Rome to the Victorian era, people used two half-open flowers to predict the state of marriage. Unmarried men and women planted two half-open flowers, and the first letter of the flower's name should be the same as the first letter of their respective names. If the two flowers bloomed together, it was a sign that the couple would be happy for life; if the two flowers bloomed opposite each other, it was a sign that the couple would go their separate ways; if the flowers bloomed, it was a sign that the future family would be prosperous; and if one of the flowers wilted or died, it was a sign that one of the couples would die prematurely before the other.
If you don't want to leave it to fate, you can try an old method from Buckinghamshire, England: that is, on the night of St. Valentine's Day, light a candle and stick two needles in the bottom to make sure the needles go through the wick, and while sticking them in the bottom, you can say, "I am not only sticking the candle in the bottom, but also penetrating xxxxx's heart, no matter whether he is sleeping or awake. sleeping or awake, I want him to come and talk to me, but be careful, you choose the dream lover to be practical, do not wish for the unattainable characters. It is said that when the candle is burning to the needle, your lover will push open the door and run to you. The second way is to put the sock of your right foot on your left foot every night for a week before "Valentine's Day", while saying under your breath: "Dreaming of a living person, not a dead ghost, this is the young man I want to marry. After speaking keep silent until you wake up the next day. A third way is to tie the sock of the left foot around the neck before going to bed. Be careful not to tighten it too much, for if you strangle yourself, it will be a mistake.
Unmarried women believe that if they place their shoes in a T-shape under their beds with the window open, they are sure to dream of their sweetheart or find him standing in front of their beds. This was more successful in the countryside because her suitor could peer through the window and see the specially placed shoes.
Although Valentine's Day has been in decline for more than 100 years since the Victorian era, today the holiday is growing in popularity. Today, however, the holiday is growing in popularity. "St. Valentine's Day is all about love, romance, flowers, chocolates and greeting cards, which are precious to our hearts.
Valentine's Day has been celebrated differently in different eras. One of the most unique Valentine's Day customs from 1837 to 1901, during the time of Queen Victoria of England: on February 14, pairs of lovers, transplanted a spring branch with two budding buds in a special pot. The first letter of the flower's name must match the first letter of the couple's name. A few days later, if the spring branch on the two buds blossom, interplay, it is a sign of the lovers together; if the two buds are divided into the west and east, north and north spitting stamens, this pair of lovers, people will eventually be separated; if the flowers bloomed large, brilliant, said that after the children and grandchildren, the whole family; if a flower withered and faded, one of the lovers have the risk of an early death. In Buckinghamshire was also prevalent in the night of Valentine's Day prayer custom: light a candle, insert two fine needles, from the bottom of the candle into the heart of the candle, recite the name of their loved ones, praying for love always, to be burned to the candle to the tip of the needle, it is said that the loved one will be in time to knock to the door. There is also a Valentine's Day custom: in the week before Valentine's Day, for seven consecutive nights, will be the left foot socks off to wear to the right foot, repeated wishes: "May my heart love children can enter the dream tonight." It is said that this is when the old man under the moon throws down a big red thread of auspiciousness. There are also socks that are taken off and wrapped around the neck to pray for love.
After the Victorian era, the custom of Valentine's Day gradually faded, and in the 1930s and 1940s, with the prevalence of greeting cards, Valentine's Day was rekindled. In some countries, Valentine's Day has evolved into a trend of women expressing their love for men, so March 14 has become a "return to the plot", that is, the man to the woman gifts to show that "return to love".
Valentine's Day is a day belonging to friends, a day belonging to family and a day belonging to lovers. In the West, Valentine's Day is not only the best time to express affection, but also the best time to propose to one's beloved. In this regard, Valentine's Day reflects, is not it the ancient Romans designed this holiday intention?
Paris, France: Originally known as the "city of romance", Valentine's Day, whether it is the square under the Eiffel Tower or near the Sacré-Coeur Cathedral, couples snuggled up to each other everywhere in the figure, they are like no one else to embrace kissing, and enjoy the happiness of Valentine's Day.
Rome, Italy: In recent years, Rome has begun to popularize a special Valentine's Day ritual, that is, on Valentine's Day, couples have to go to Rome's famous Ponte dei Milvio and hang a lock symbolizing the sealing of hearts on the lamp post on the bridge. Afterward, the couples throw the key into the river under the bridge to signify that they will never be separated for the rest of their lives.
New York, USA: Many couples choose to get away from the hustle and bustle of the world on Valentine's Day and take a horse-drawn carriage ride through New York's famous Central Park.
RIO DE JANEIRO, BRAZIL: Couples head to the famous Copacabana Beach on Valentine's Day. According to locals, many of the couples who come to Copacabana Beach to celebrate Valentine's Day in the past few years have come from abroad.
Singapore: Taking Valentine's Day as a good opportunity to promote dating and marriage among young people, Singapore has been organizing the "Romantic Singapore" event since 2002 in February every year. This year's event included a movie marathon, an all-night shopping spree, a treasure hunt and a date on the 165-meter-high Ferris wheel.
India: Couples visit the famous Taj Mahal near the northern city of Agra on Valentine's Day because, in the eyes of the locals, it's the best testament to fidelity.
Western Valentine's Day Gifts
Often on Valentine's Day, a red rose is given to express the feelings between lovers. A half-open red rose is lined with a beautiful green leaf, and then packed in a transparent plastic bag with a single flower, and a beautiful bow is tied on the lower part of the flower stalk with a colorful ribbon, forming a small bouquet of beautiful flowers, which is the best gift for Valentine's Day. Roses are one of the world's leading gift flowers, signifying devotion, emotion and vigor. Roses generally come in deep red, pink, yellow and white colors. Famous varieties include Queen Elizabeth (red) and First Love (yellow). Red roses are most commonly given on Valentine's Day. How many roses should I send to my lover? Of course, the more the better. One rose for love, three roses for "I love you". Sending 6 or 8 roses represents an auspicious number, while sending 11 roses is to give 10 roses to your favorite person and another one to represent yourself. As for sending 24 branches is the international norm, 12 branches for a dozen, representing the 12 months of the year, the pursuit of perfection, year after year, month after month, the meaning of love.
Valentine's Day chocolate is also indispensable. Since its birth, chocolate has been inextricably linked to love. People who love each other use sweet chocolate to express their love for their loved ones.
In the United States in the 1980s, diamond dealers began to do jewelry promotions for Valentine's Day, making the type of Valentine's Day gift from the two categories of chocolates and flowers, and more jewelry jewelry this category.
In the West, Valentine's day is Valentine's Day. Valentine's Day is not only the best time to express your love, but also the best time to propose to your beloved one.
In the custom of Valentine's Day, flowers and chocolates are essential for the celebration. So do you know the instructions and meaning of this?
Roses are known to represent love, but different colors and numbers of roses have different meanings!
Chocolate
Chocolate: the most traditional Valentine's gift.
Chocolate love story
Valentine's Day gift of choice is of course chocolate and flowers. In addition to the different flowers have different meanings, chocolate is also the same "long-winded". What "variety" of chocolate you receive reflects your value in your lover's mind, which is a subconscious reflex; on the other hand, what kind of chocolate you send to your lover will tell you how important your lover is to you, and what improvements you would like to see in your lover.
Culture of Valentine's Day
The Valentine's Day dinner date usually represents the key to the development of a couple's relationship.
Culture by country:
USA: A man saying "Happy Valentine's Day" to his female friend on this day has evolved into a form of public greeting. But men are less likely to do so to another man in public.
England: Valentine's Day became common from the 17th century.
Japan: A woman sends chocolates to a man she likes, and the man returns the favor a month later on White Day, the result of a hype by Japanese businessmen in 1965.
China: After the reform and opening up of China, with the development of commercial speculation, many young men and women also began to celebrate this holiday. Because of the different understanding of the word "lover" (in Chinese, "lover" sometimes includes "mistress", "lover In Chinese, the word "lover" is sometimes used to mean "mistress", "lover", or "lover", i.e., a relationship between a man and a woman outside of a legal marriage, and has been the subject of much criticism. On the other hand, the festival has often been rejected and boycotted by conservatives due to the fear of the influx of Western traditions into the culture of China, which would dilute the celebrations of the traditional festivals. Until now, this time of year still has similar comments in the media.
Hong Kong: Valentine's Day has been celebrated for years under the long-term influence of Western culture. Men and women give each other gifts, with the standard gifts from men to women usually flowers, chocolates and jewelry, and from women to men usually watches, ties and other men's clothing items, and often go to a restaurant for a candlelight dinner.
Macao: On Valentine's Day, men give women flowers and women give men chocolates. Both male and female couples attach great importance to this holiday.
Taiwan: This holiday is also celebrated in Taiwan, where young men and women who are not in a relationship often confess their love for their sweethearts and couples go on dates on this day.
12 Valentine's Days in a year
It is not clear whether it is due to people's belief in the fidelity of love or commercial hype that there are now 12 different Valentine's Days on the 14th of each month of the year, along with the traditional St. Valentine's Day.
Diary Valentine's Day (diary day)
January 14th. On this day, couples give each other journals large enough to record an entire year's worth of love affairs, symbolizing the year ahead and the memories they will make together.
And single girls, at the start of this new year, have confessions and plans for the person they like, write them down in their diaries and sow the seeds of love in their hearts.
White Valentine's Day (White Day)
March 14 is White Valentine's Day. You should also be familiar with the popular interpretation that says that if a boy receives a gift from a girl on 2-14, he should have an answer on White Valentine's Day a month later. White Valentine's Day is popular in Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and other regions, is the continuation of the Western Valentine's Day as we know it, is also the earliest "non-mainstream" Valentine's Day, but also other "non-mainstream" Valentine's Day is the forerunner. In fact, the birth of White Valentine's Day is a true "commercial conspiracy".
White Valentine's Day was first celebrated in 1977 by Ishimura Manseido, a sweets maker in Hakata-ku, Fukuoka City, Japan, as a way to promote sweets by encouraging those who receive them to return the favor, and the holiday was first called "Candy Giving Day. Since 1980, the holiday has been called "White Valentine's Day" because of the white color of the sugar used in the candy.
Not long after, chocolate makers realized that they could also profit from this holiday, so they also began to promote white chocolates, and now, when gifts are to be returned on this day, they include a variety of other gifts in addition to candies and white chocolates.
Currently, there is no longer any conclusion as to whether it is the man who gives the first gift or the woman who gives the first gift on Valentine's Day and White Valentine's Day. The point is that such festivals give men and women who are in love with each other a chance to play and express their own feelings, and the businessmen involved can certainly take advantage of the opportunity to make a big profit.
Black Day
Like a spoof, April 14 is Black Day. The name might suggest that it's similar to "Hanukkah," a holiday said to have originated in South Korea.
It seems that this Valentine's Day comes from the resentment of those who don't get to celebrate Valentine's Day: although not all lovers in the world can last forever, or even have one, who says that a lonely man or woman can't celebrate Valentine's Day? "Black Valentine's Day is the Valentine's Day for single people. In the first two months they may not receive a sweet gift, no one can send chocolates, but on April 14th, everyone **** get together, encourage each other, cheer, turn grief into strength, but also very lively and very happy, so as to eliminate the loneliness of a single person.
Said so, but the single aristocrats can also be in this day to rejoice, the festival will allow themselves to live in a 100% black world, wearing black suits, black hats, black shoes, eat black beans made of noodles, drink coffee without creamer, enjoy the original flavor of the bitter black coffee, so that the love of the moment to hell with it!
Yellow and Rose Day
May 14 is also Valentine's Day, and if it's already May and things still aren't going your way, wearing a yellow shirt or yellow suit and eating yellow curry and rice on this day is a way of telling everyone, "I am still available! available!" The best hint. The yellow color is also in keeping with the seasonal mood, as May is the time of year when roses are sprouting and the weather is pleasant enough to travel, so many couples choose to go outdoors on this day, which is why May 14th is also known as "Rose Valentine's Day".
On Rose Valentine's Day, it is also the day to make an example, send red roses to someone is to confide in love; send white roses to show that you are still hesitant; if you send a bouquet of yellow roses, it is to say goodbye.
Kiss Day
June 14, of course, can not escape. Kiss Valentine's Day, this is an important holiday belonging to pairs of lovers, in this day, couples do not have to be shy, you can be generous with the kiss scale to express the depth of love for each other. Of course, before the flowers, candlelight dinner and other romantic atmosphere, a kiss is very helpful to love oh! On this day, there will be different nature of "kissing contest" held around the world.
Silver Day
July 14th is Silver Day, a great opportunity to bring your sweetheart home to your mom and dad, or introduce him to other elders you respect. Of course, all the expenses of the day will be paid by these "lovely elders", but you'd better make sure that the elders are familiar with this holiday first. Silver Valentine's Day is also a day for couples to give each other silver gifts and jewelry. Traditionally, it is customary to get engaged with a silver ring, so go ahead and buy a pair today and wear them on your hands as a testament to your sweet mood.
Green Day
August 14 is known as Green Day, which is not to say that we should be environmentally friendly or anything, but of course, Green Day has nothing to do with the luxuriant forests. On a hot summer afternoon, why not take a refreshing trip to the forest with your significant other, enjoy the outdoors, and have a healthy and enjoyable day?
Music Day & Photo Day
This long named Valentine's Day is celebrated on September 14th. Music Day is a day for socializing, dancing, and introducing your sweetheart to friends and colleagues. It is also a good opportunity to introduce your sweetheart to your friends and colleagues, and for singles, you can take this opportunity to see if there is someone you like at the event. Many couples like to take pictures of themselves in the clear blue sky on this day, so September 14 is also known as "Photo Valentine's Day".
Wine Day
October 14 is a day for lovers to sip wine and celebrate the poetry of autumn. Often young couples choose to **** dinner in a romantic and chic restaurant and talk about topics such as each other's plans for the future and **** the same goals.
Orange Valentine's Day and Movie Valentine's Day (Orange Day Movie Day)
November 14, Movie Valentine's Day day, couples can even catch two movies, perhaps the first to watch a tense and exciting action movie to vent pressure, and then come back to a touching romantic love film to wipe each other's tears. After watching the two should also be supplemented with water, to a cup of healthy 100 percent orange juice it! Single people also need to drink a glass of orange juice on this day, of course, want to drink two cups before the pain is no one's business. Seems like a holiday the juice merchants came up with.
Hug Day
On Dec. 14, you can hug your lover for as long as you want. Hugging in public declares your love to the world, and makes a cold winter day extra cozy. Especially those couples who sweetly celebrated Valentine's Day on February 14 Valentine's Day, still able to passionately embrace at the end of the year, but also witnessed the two love as in the past.