Valentine’s Day started as the feast day of Saint Valentine. A priest (or bishop, based on some accounts) who lived in the third century C.E. and was killed in 270 under the Roman persecution of Christians. Some legends say that he signed a letter “from your valentine” to his jailer’s daughter, and that’s where we get the phrase from. St. Valentine does not contribute much to the holiday beyond a name and a phrase, since the romantic connotations of Valentine’s Day would not appear until the 14th century. 

Valentine’s Day was celebrated in the medieval period by giving flowers and small gifts to one’s lover. People in the medieval period also believed that birds chose their mates on Feb 14.

Vinegar Valentines were Valentine’s cards deliberately made to be rude. They were a trend from roughly the 1850s to the 1950s. They commonly took the form of an image occupied by a poem.  Some were relatively tame, like insulting someone’s character or singing ability; others were a lot more rude, insulting appearance or body type. A few really didn’t age well and now come off as slightly racist.

However you choose to celebrate it, you have just a few weeks to make your preparations. Happy Valentine’s Day from AnchorNews.