On the 14th of February every year, we give those we love or like a lot gifts (like popcorn and flowers) to celebrate Valentine's Day.
The origin of the celebration is a little contentious, but the most common story is that of Saint Valentine, a priest who lived during the rule of Emperor Claudius - or Claudius the Cruel as he has come to be known. During this conflict-filled time, marriage had been banned so that Claudius could fill his army with single, unwed men. Enter Saint Valentine. He, along with Saint Marius, decided that this wasn't a fair practice and, in a direct act of rebellion, started to marry in-love Christians. As a result of his disobedience, Claudius had Valentine executed on February the fourteenth. Just before his death, Valentine is said to have written a note to the jailer's daughter, with whom he'd become close, and signed off with, "From Your Valentine."
Years later, in the Middle Ages, young people in Britain would celebrate the death of the martyr by putting their names into a bowl and drawing out the name of their valentine. This tradition too, had its origins in Rome:
"On the eve of the festival of Lupercalia the names of Roman girls were written on slips of paper and placed into jars. Each young man would draw a girl's name from the jar and would then be partners for the duration of the festival with the girl whom he chose. Sometimes the pairing of the children lasted an entire year, and often, they would fall in love and would later marry."
