How do you spend your Valentine’s Day? Do you plan to exchange heart-shaped cards, thoughtful gifts of flowers and chocolates, or do you simply enjoy spending time with your loved one, perhaps posting a cute couple selfie on Instagram? Seeing as we are all spending so much time at home lately maybe you will be cooking a special meal or treating yourselves to champagne and a take away! Or maybe you are planning something extra special this year – like popping the question?!!!
Like most celebrations, Valentine’s Day means different things to different people. But whatever you typically do on February 14th you might have wondered where the word Valentine comes from and how St. Valentine’s Day came to be the day of love. We thought we’d take a look at how Valentine’s Day came about and how we celebrate now.
Where did Valentine’s Day originate from?
The first Valentine’s Day is believed to have been in the year 496 and is thought to originate from a Roman Festival. It’s thought that as part of the festival celebrations, boys drew names of girls from a box. They would then become boyfriend and girlfriend during the festival and sometimes they would go on to get married!
And how did Valentine’s Day get its’ name?
The day gets its name from a famous saint and as time has gone on there are several stories about who he was. The most popular belief is that St Valentine was a priest from Rome in the third century AD. At the time the Emperor Claudius II had banned marriage – he thought married men were bad soldiers! The priest Valentine felt this was unfair so he arranged marriages in secret. When Claudius found out, Valentine was thrown in jail and sentenced to death. In the time he spend in jail he fell in love with a jailer’s daughter. When he was taken to be killed on 14th February he sent her a love letter signed “from your Valentine”.
What about the saying ‘wear your heart on your sleeve?’
This stems from a tradition from the Middle Ages, where names on pieces of paper would be drawn from a bowl and the men and women would then wear the name pinned on their sleeve for the week. Awwww!
How many love notes do we send to our Valentines?
A billion Valentine’s cards are exchanged across the world each year, making it the second busiest time of the year for postal workers.
Have you ever wondered why red roses are given traditionally on Valentine’s Day?
It is thought that the red rose was the favourite flower of Venus – the Roman Goddess of Love. It is estimated that around 50 million red roses are received on Valentine’s Day worldwide!
Why is red the colour of St. Valentine’s Day?
Red is a strong colour believed to conjure up passionate love – as we all know the red heart is often the symbol of love! ❤️
How many couples get engaged on Valentine’s Day?
Valentine’s Day one of the most popular dates to get engaged topped only by Christmas Day! A 2017 study by diamond retailer, James Allen, found that 43% of millennials chose Valentine’s Day as their favourite choice to propose or be proposed to!
If you are planning to propose this Valentine’s Day, we are already excited for you! We’d love to hear all about your proposal story and to invite you to South Farm – our stunning barn wedding venue in Cambridgeshire countryside.
Our team are experts in hosting small weddings and large celebrations and we have a great choice of indoor and outdoor ceremony and reception options perfect for your dream wedding day.
Whether you’re looking for an outdoor wedding in the Spring or Summer or a cosy Autumn or Winter wedding our beautiful country wedding venue in Cambridgeshire is perfect all year round and exclusively yours on your special day.
Filled to the brim with charming touches guests can meet our gorgeous farm animals and celebrate your day in our stunning gardens and barns. Talk to us about your dream day, we think South Farm is the perfect setting.
But don’t just take our word for it – take a look at our Hertfordshire wedding venue to get a feel for our venue for yourself!
To make an appointment with our team for a virtual showround or to discuss your wedding plans please contact us here or call us on 01223 207581
