What is Valentine's Day

The symbols of Valentine, hearts, doves, love and love notes.
American postcard, circa 1900.

Day or Valentine's Day Valentine's Day is a festival celebrated on February 14. In the West, it is the date on which lovers express their love for each other by sending cards Valentine, presenting flowers, or offering confectionery. The holiday is named after two among the numerous Early Christian martyrs named Valentine. The day was associated with romantic love in the circle of Geoffrey Chaucer in High Middle Ages, when the tradition of courtly love flourished.

The day is most closely associated with the mutual exchange of love notes in the form of "valentines." Modern Valentine symbols heart-shaped outline, doves, and the figure of the winged Cupid. Since the 19th century, handwritten notes have largely given way to mass production of greeting cards. The sending of Valentine was a fashion in the nineteenth century in Britain and, in 1847, Esther Howland developed a thriving business in Worcester, Massachusetts home with Valentine made the Hand cards based on British models. The popularity of cards Valentine in the 19th century, America was a harbinger of the future commercialization of holidays in the United States

The U.S. Greeting Card Association estimates that nearly one billion valentines are sent each year worldwide, making the day of the second largest card holiday of the year behind Christmas. The association estimates that women purchase approximately 85 percent of all valentines