The history of Valentine's Day

It may invoke images of hearts and flowers, but the origins of Valentine's Day are more gruesome than you might think.

Tue, Feb 11, 2014 at 4:28 PM

Related Topics:

Holiday, Family Activities, Valentine's Day

Screenshot: The History of Valentine's Day/The History Channel

Why do we celebrate Valentine's Day?

 

I'll be honest — before watching this video, I thought Valentine's Day was just a made-up holiday, one invented by the card and candy industries to sell us more stuff. But as it turns out, Valentine's Day has a much richer history than I gave it credit for. While the modern version of Valentine's Day has generally become an over-commercialized shopping fest, it's interesting to note where and how the holiday got started.

 

And maybe it's worth swapping cards and sweet treats just to celebrate the fact that the day is no longer symbolized by slapping women with animal skins to increase fertility.

 

History. It's good to know.

 

Check out this video from The History Channel about the origins of this sweet February holiday:

 http://www.history.com/topics/valentines-day/history-of-valentines-day/videos/bet-you-didnt-know-valentines-day?m=528e394da93ae&s=undefined&f=1&free=false

 

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