UNTOLD ORIGINS of VALENTINES DAY! It’s not what you think!

Valentine’s Day, also known as Saint Valentine’s Day, originated as a Christian feast day in honor of Saint Valentine, a third-century Roman saint. The exact origin of the holiday is unclear, but it is believed to have been established by the Catholic Church in the 5th century. The holiday became associated with romantic love in the 14th and 15th centuries, and over time it has evolved into a popular secular holiday celebrated in many countries around the world on February 14th. The modern Valentine’s Day tradition of exchanging cards and gifts became popular in the 19th century.

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One unusual trivia about St. Valentine’s Day is that in Japan, it is customary for women to give chocolates to men on February 14th. However, there are different types of chocolate that women can give, including “giri-choco,” which is obligatory chocolate given to bosses, colleagues, or other male acquaintances, and “honmei-choco,” which is a special chocolate given to a romantic interest. Men are expected to reciprocate on March 14th, known as “White Day,” by giving gifts to the women who gave them chocolates on Valentine’s Day.

Another unusual trivia about St. Valentine’s Day is that in some parts of the world, it is believed that the first man a woman sees on Valentine’s Day is an indication of the type of man she will marry. This belief is particularly popular in parts of Europe, where it is believed that seeing a clergyman or a nun first may indicate a life of celibacy, while seeing a farmer or a shepherd first may indicate a life of wealth and prosperity. In some places, young women may even go as far as to blindfold themselves and go out looking for their future husbands on Valentine’s Day.

Another unusual trivia about St. Valentine’s Day is that in the Middle Ages, it was believed that the first bird a person saw on Valentine’s Day would predict their future spouse. For example, if a person saw a robin, they would marry a sailor, while a sparrow would indicate a happy but not wealthy marriage. It was also believed that if a person saw a goldfinch, they would marry a wealthy person, and if they saw a bluebird, they would marry a happy person. This belief may have contributed to the popularity of sending love letters with depictions of birds on Valentine’s Day.

St. Valentine is recognized as a patron saint in several countries, including Italy, where he is the patron saint of love, as well as epilepsy, beekeepers, and plague. He is also recognized as a patron saint in Romania, where he is the patron saint of happy marriages, and in Malta, where he is the patron saint of lovers. In addition, he is recognized as a patron saint in several other countries, including Spain, Portugal, and Brazil, although his patronage may vary depending on the region or locality.

1. 1778: The United States and France signed the Treaty of Alliance and the Treaty of Amity and Commerce on Valentine’s Day, formalizing their military and economic cooperation during the American Revolution.
2. 1818: The Chilean Declaration of Independence was formally issued on Valentine’s Day, marking the beginning of Chile’s independence from Spain.
3. 1876: Elisha Gray filed a patent application for the telephone on Valentine’s Day, only hours after Alexander Graham Bell filed his own patent application.
4. 1924: The Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company was renamed International Business Machines (IBM) on Valentine’s Day.
5. 1929: The Academy Awards, also known as the Oscars, were first presented on Valentine’s Day.
6. 1946: ENIAC, the first electronic general-purpose computer, was unveiled on Valentine’s Day at the University of Pennsylvania.
7. 1961: Linus Pauling, the American chemist and peace activist, presented his findings on the role of nuclear fallout in human health at a press conference on Valentine’s Day.
8. 1962: The first successful unmanned mission to the moon, launched by the Soviet Union, landed on Valentine’s Day.
9. 1990: The Voyager 1 spacecraft took a famous photograph of Earth from a record distance of about 6 billion kilometers on Valentine’s Day.
10. 1991: The United States and its allies launched a ground assault against Iraqi forces during the Gulf War on Valentine’s Day.
11. 2003: The RMS Queen Mary 2, the largest passenger ship ever built at the time, set sail on its maiden voyage from Southampton, England to Fort Lauderdale, Florida on Valentine’s Day.
12. 2005: The Kyoto Protocol, an international treaty aimed at reducing greenhouse gas emissions, went into effect on Valentine’s Day.
13. 2011: The Arab Spring protests in Libya began on Valentine’s Day, leading to the overthrow of dictator Muammar Gaddafi later that year.
14. 2011: A popular uprising began in Bahrain on Valentine’s Day, demanding greater political freedom and human rights.
15. 2013: The resignation of Pope Benedict XVI, the first papal resignation in almost 600 years, was announced on Valentine’s Day.

With a flower-crowned skull in Rome, relics in fancy boxes in Dublin and Glasgow, and unspecified parts in Missouri, there are plenty of opportunities for the romantically inclined traveler to get up close and personal with some saintly parts this Valentine’s Day. For those in the Czech Republic, the holy shoulder blade was discovered recently in a basement in Prague.

“Little is really known of the real man (or men) behind the myth. What is known (more or less) is that at least two men by the name of Valentine (Valentinus) were known in Italy and died in the late 3rd century, and a third Valentine was located in North Africa around the same time. The two Italians were buried along Via Flaminia. As a saint, Valentine first gained real notoriety in 496 when Pope Gelasius I made February 14, originally part of the Roman festival of Lupercalia, a feast day dedicated to St. Valentine. The stories of the different men seem to have merged into one over time, with most of the mythology about Valentine being a patron of lovers, helping early Christian couples to marry in secret, only dating to the 14th century and the writings of Geoffrey Chaucer.”

Prompted, Modified & Updated by : Robert Vicencio / Written by : ChatGPT