(Feb. 14, 2011) St. Valentine's Day, commonly shortened to Valentine's Day, is an annual commemoration held on Feb. 14 celebrating love and affection between intimate companions. The day is named after one or more early Christian martyrs, St. Valentine, and was established by Pope Gelasius I in 496 AD. It was deleted from the Roman calendar of saints in 1969 by Pope Paul VI, but its religious observance is still permitted. It is traditionally a day on which lovers express their love for each other by presenting flowers, offering confectionery, and sending greeting cards (known as "valentines"). The day first became associated with romantic love in the circle of Geoffrey Chaucer in the High Middle Ages, when the tradition of courtly love flourished.
Modern Valentine's Day symbols include the heart-shaped outline, doves and the figure of the winged Cupid. Since the 19th century, handwritten valentines have given way to mass-produced greeting cards. They can be sent to any loved one.
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