With roots in the traditions in ancient Rome, Lupercalia (the precursor to Valentine’s Day) was born.

Lupercalia was a fertility celebration on February 15 to the Roman God Lupa (the God of shepherds) but was also meant to bring fertility to women. Pope Gelasius I changed the celebration around 496 and dedicated it to St. Valentine to the day we know today: February 14.

St. Valentine was a priest who disliked Pope Claudius II around 270. According to legend, Pope Claudius II banned young men from marrying claiming that bachelors made better soldiers.  St. Valentine secretly married young couples! St. Valentine was imprisoned by Pope Claudius II and according to legend, fell in love with the Pope’s jailer. Also according to legend, on the day of his execution, he allegedly sent a letter to her signing it from “Your Valentine”; nowadays, a common saying around Valentine’s Day. St. Valentine was martyred for his non-renouncement of his religion.

It was not until the 1300s that Valentine’s Day became associated with love. Scholars believe that Chaucer is the man behind the action, when he wrote a poem titled “The Parliament of Fowls” saying, “For this was on St. Valentine’s Day, When every fowl cometh there to choose his mate.”, for the marriage of Richard II and Anne of Bohemia, he linked the spirit of Valentine’s Day to the birds’ mating season.

Valentine’s Day cards were popular throughout Europe since the beginning of the 1700s, but did not gain popularity here in the United States until the 1850s, when Esther A. Howland started to mass produce them, which helped the cards gain economic success.

In the present day, 2017, according to the Greeting Card Association, 25% of all cards sent each year are valentines. Also, according to the Greeting Card Association, an estimated 1 billion Valentine’s Day cards are sent each year, making Valentine’s Day the second largest card sending holiday of the year!