Valentine’s Week 2023: History, importance of Valentine Week celebration in India

Valentine’s Week Days List 2023: Commonly known as Valentine’s day, February 14 every year is touted to be the celebration of love. The entire Valentine’s Week makes for a special celebration of affection, love, care and more. Valentine’s which derives its name from a mysterious saint, is believed to mark his death anniversary. It is said that Saint Valentine was a priest, who defied emperors’ orders and secretly married couples to spare husbands from war. He was reportedly beheaded by Emperor Claudius II Gothicus in 270 AD.

The seven-day festival of love also finds its origins in “Lupercalia”, a Roman festival for fertility. It is beelieved that the day was celebrated as an attempt by the Church to add a religious twist to the Lupercalia festival. Legend has it that the festival was dedicated to Faunus, the god of agriculture, and Romulus and Remus, the founders of Rome. During the celebrations, men and women were paired based on a lottery system, and most of them eventually ended in marriage. At the end of the fifth century, Pope Gelasius I decided the time of Lupercalia celebrations as the date to celebrate the saint.

According to Britannica.com, Valentines commonly depicts Cupid, the Roman god of love, along with hearts. Since it was believed that the avian mating season begins in mid-February, birds also became a symbol of the day. Traditional gifts include candy and flowers, particularly red roses, a symbol of beauty and love.

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Just like many other countries in the world, celebrations of Valentine’s week begin with Rose Day when people express their love by giving roses to each other. It is followed by Propose Day when lovers pop the question. Then comes Chocolate Day followed by Teddy Day when chocolates and teddy bears are exchanged as a symbol of love. The next two days are celebrated as Hug Day and Kiss Day before Valentine’s Day on February 14.

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