Valentine's Day: Curiosities and Traditions

In the United States and much of Europe, Valentine 's Day is celebrated on February 14. It is the feast of Saint Valentine, a martyr to the church who was murdered in the year 269. But Valentine is not popular in Brazil. Then, Bahian publicist João Agripino da Costa Doria (father of the current mayor of São Paulo, João Doria Junior) created the date in 1948, to increase sales at a clothing store.

He decided to relate the celebration of love to another figure, much closer to our imagination: Santo Antônio. The patron saint of weddings is celebrated on the 13th of June. Our Valentine's Day was for the day before, the 12th. After all, first you date. Then he gets married.

Around the world there are many ways to show affection for that special person.

Let's check out some romantic traditions for Valentine's Day

• Germany: the main offer among lovers is a pig. Not a real pig, of course. It can be a drawing, a photograph, a mini statue, or whatever a pig has. The Germans believe that the animal will bring them luck and lust.
• China: The Qixi Festival, which means The Night of Seven, is the equal of the famous Valentine's Day, celebrated not in February, but in early August, on the seventh day of the seventh lunar month. This tradition has its origins in an old ancestral history, which has been passed down from generation to generation.
• Japan: unlike the West, in Japan it is women who spoil their mates by offering them chocolate. Giri-choko is given to men with whom the woman is not in love but with whom she has a close relationship as parents or siblings. Cho-giri-choko, in turn, is given to men with whom you have little connection and who you don't like very much. The chocolate of true love, or homnei-choko, is the chocolate that lovers give to the better half, made by them. The tomo-choko is the chocolate that is given to the closest friends. This tradition arose because, in the 1950s, chocolate brands preyed on the international celebration to advertise their products. White Day is the day to return the gesture of the girlfriends. On March 14, men offer companions gifts such as flowers, cookies or lingerie.
• Chile: Saint Valentine is celebrated in a somewhat traditional way - the typical romantic dinner accompanied with a gift that marks the date. The dishes made on that day are typical Chilean dishes, such as pastel de choclo or cazuela. A particular tradition in Chile is the kissing contests that take place to mark the most passionate day of the year.
• Slovenia : February 14 in Slovenia is more a day for agriculture than for love. Most Slovenians celebrate Valentine's Day on March 12, St. Gregory's Day. There are also those who choose to celebrate on February 22 (St. Vincent's Day) or June 13 (Sto. António). February 14th is the celebration of the harvest season, and St. Valentine or Zdravko is the patron saint of spring. So, they consider that this is a good day to start working the land.
• Taiwan: as usual, it is expected that, on these dates, the man will offer a bouquet of flowers to his beloved. But, according to the Taiwanese tradition, the color and number of flowers are extremely important because they convey a message: red roses represent “a unique love”, 99 roses express “love forever” and 108 roses mean a marriage proposal - "Will you marry me?".
• Italy: Love Day is celebrated in a classic way, with a spring festival. The couples get together to listen to music and poetry, and exchange gifts like the “baci perugina” - a box of chocolate “kisses” fulfilled with hazelnut praline. This box will be accompanied by a romantic phrase, translated into four different languages. As tradition dictates, the first man a woman sees on Valentine's Day will be her boyfriend and they should be married in a year.
• Wales: An ancestral tradition involves offering Love spoons, or spoons of love. This tradition dates from the 17th century and involved man offering a wooden spoon made by himself to his respective beloved, as a sign of his affection. Patterns and symbols were carved on the spoons, each with a different meaning. Some examples include: horseshoes, which represent good luck; wheels, which symbolize support; keys, which symbolize the keys to a man's heart; bells, alluding to marriage, among others. Nowadays these spoons are used as a decorative material, and are also exchanged in ceremonies such as baptisms, weddings, birthdays and births.

One tradition more romantic than the other!