Valentine’s day is here, and you might have already started exchanging gifts with your beloved. Starting February 7, the week first sees the Rose Day, followed by Propose Day, Chocolate Day, Promise Day, Hug Day, Kiss Day and finally Valentine’s Day. The season of Cupid and love absorbs everyone in its spirit, making people take extra efforts to make their partner feel special.

Even as you are planning to surprise your beloved with Valentine’s Day gifts, wishes, quotes, and messages did you ever try finding out the interesting facts behind the day dedicated to love? Here we are to help you with that.

1. There are two stories related to the origin of the day. While one relates Valentine’s Day to Lupercalia, a raucous Roman festival, another relates it to the death of St Valentine.

During Roman festival Lupercalia, which was celebrated on February 15, men stripped naked and spanked young maidens with hides of goats in the hopes of upping their fertility. However, the other legend says St Valentine was executed on February 14, as a punishment for performing secret marriages while they were banned by Roman emperor Claudius II.

2. You might have often heard the phrase ‘wearing your heart on your sleeve’, being used to express love. Interestingly, this is more than just a phrase.

In the Middle Ages, young men, and women used to wear the name of their Valentine pinned to their sleeve for one week to let people know about their feelings.

3. Candied-hearts have become a trend nowadays. Do you know what they were originally supposed to be? Interestingly, the idea of candies came in 1847 through Boston pharmacist Oliver Chase, who invented the machine to make lozenges. These conceptualized the ideas of candies.

4. Valentine’s Day is all about love, and Cupid is known as the angel of love. According to Roman mythology, Cupid is the son of Venus, the goddess of love and beauty. The bow and arrow of Cupid depicts piercing a heart and casting the spell of love.

5. By the way, if you are single on Valentine’s Day, don’t be sad, because you have SAD aka Singles Awareness Day, celebrated on February 15. The day serves as a complement to Valentine’s Day for singles.