Many people think that Feb. 14 is the day of love. On that special day, we shower our loved ones with gifts and tokens of gratitude. However, the holiday we celebrate today has changed drastically over time. It was not a holiday created by card companies, nor is it an original American holiday, despite the misconceptions of many.

While many people use this day as a celebration of their love, Valentine’s Day started off as something much different than what we know it to be today.

There are several theories as to why Valentine’s Day is what it is today. While no expert can say 100 percent that one theory is more accurate than another, there are some that are more accepted than others.

One such theory is that Valentine’s Day was originally a pagan festival that would start off with an animal sacrifice.  Women, in an attempt to be fertile for the upcoming year, would allow the men to beat them with the skin and blood of the animal for ritual purposes. The women selected would become the men’s sex slaves for the year.

In an effort to Christianize the holiday, Pope Gelasius declared February 14 as Valentine’s Day.  He changed the tradition and forced men to select saints instead of young girls.  It was believed that people would imitate the saints for the rest of the year, instead of using them as sex slaves.  These matches would typically end in marriage.

Another theory that builds upon the first one is that Valentine’s Day was based on a defiant Roman priest who lived in the 3rd century AD.  His name was Father Valentine.  The ruler at that time was Claudius II.  Claudius was a vicious ruler whose battles required for the men to leave behind their young families for long periods of time. 

This resulted in a military that was full of half-hearted men.  In order to keep this army focused on war and destruction, he banished marriage all together.  Father Valentine found this unjust and continued to marry young couples in secrecy. 

Eventually he was discovered and put in prison and sentenced to death by Claudius II.  However, young couples that he had secretly wed passed his cell and handed him flowers and notes through the bars as symbols of their gratitude. 

The story continues and says that Father Valentine fell in love with the jailer’s daughter and on February 14, the day he was executed, he passed the young girl a note and signed it “From Your Valentine”.  This is believed to be where the tradition of giving gifts and cards as symbols of love come from.

Although this may or may not be the complete origins to the holiday, many people have shown that the origins will not effect their Valentine’s Day.

Jamin Guinyard, a sophomore GCS: Printing and Publishing major, said “I find the history interesting, however it will not stop me from celebrating it the same way I always have.”However, not everyone seems to be unaffected by the origins of Valentine’s Day.

Taylor Martin, a sophomore professional theatre major, felt that “the history shows that the holiday was actually founded on true love and marriage instead of gifts. That gives me a whole new outlook on it.”

As previously stated, no expert is 100 percent sure to where the idea came from. However, the holiday has undeniably changed over the years.

• TRUMAINE MCCASKILL