Valentine's Day in Canada

Valentines Day festival is celebrated with much enthusiasm in Canada. Valentine's Day balls and parties are organized all over the country where people express love for their spouses and sweethearts and enjoy to the hilt. Roses, chocolates, candies and cards are the most popular gifts for the romantic occasion.

As a tradition, children in Canada exchange Valentine's Day gifts with their friends. In several schools, classroom Valentine's Day Parties are organized where children put all the valentines in a decorated box. Later, teacher or a child distributes the cards. Kids are encouraged to prepare handmade valentine. Many children also gift fancy Valentines Day card to parents and teachers. Songs, skits, plays and concerts are also organized by schools and societies to celebrate Valentine's Day. Students in senior school hold Valentine's Day dance parties to cherish the joyful festival.

Valentines Day in Australia

Valentine's Day is a much-celebrated festival in Australia and its popularity is said to be increasing by the year. About 90 per cent of the people in the age group of 18-24 and 45 per cent of people above 50 are said to celebrate the day. People in Australia utilize Valentine's Day festival as an opportunity to strengthen bonds of love with family, friends, colleagues and neighbors with simple acts of love.

Valentines Day Celebrations in History

Valentine's Day Festival has a history of extravagant celebrations in Australia. It is said that during the Australian gold rush period miners became extremely rich due to the new wealth found from the Ballarat Mines. These miners ordered extravagant Valentines amounting to thousands of pounds at a time. Some of the most lavish Valentines were made of a satin cushion and were perfumed and ornately decorated with flowers and colored shells. Some were even adorned with taxidermied humming bird or bird of paradise. This valuable treasure used to be kept in a neatly decorated box.

Valentines Day Tradition in Australia

Just as in several other countries, people in Australia celebrate Valentine's Day by presenting cards and flowers to loved ones. While exchanging paper cards is a common way of greeting Valentine's Day these days more and more people are using SMS and e-mail medium to express their love for loved ones. Surveys reveal that men in Australia are more romantic and open about expressing their love as compared to Australian women. Men in Australia buy more cards than women do.

Valentine's Day in US

Valentine's Day is an extremely popular festival in United States of America. People in US observe a holiday on this day to honor St Valentine and to express love to dear ones. Taking opportunity of the festival people express gratitude and love for sweethearts, spouse, teachers, parents or any other person close to them.

Valentine's Day History in US

Valentine's Day is said to have imported to North America in the 19th century by British settlers. First mass-produced Valentine's Day card with embossed paper lace are said to have produced in United States shortly after 1847 by Esther Howland (1828-1904) of Worcester, Massachusetts.

In the second half of the 20th century, the practice of giving gifts along with cards became popular. Roses and chocolates were the most commonly exchanged Valentine's Day Gifts and were usually given by man to the woman. Around 1980's diamond industry began to promote Valentine's Day as an occasion to gift fine jewelry. Today, the day has come to be associated with a generic platonic greeting of "Happy Valentine's Day."

Valentine's Day Celebration in US

Valentine's Day festival has been commercialized to a great extent in US. It is estimated that Valentine's Day is the major card and gift giving festival in US. Days before the festival markets wear a festive look to lure consumers. Popular gifts exchanged on the day include cards, fresh flowers- mainly rose, chocolates and candies. These days, people also complement these with other gifts of love to express affection and love.

Valentine's Day dinner and dance parties are organized all over the country to celebrate the occasion. Many couples hold private celebrations in homes or restaurants. Another interesting part of Valentine's Day in US is the celebrations organized by kids. Several schools organize Valentine's Day programmes where children perform songs, dance, skits and plays. Children also gift handmade gifts and cards to their friends and teachers.

To those staying in different cities, Valentine's Day greetings are exchanged with the help of e-cards and by sending gifts through online Valentines Day gift shopping sites.

Valentines Day Around the World

Romantic Festival of Valentine's Day is celebrated with joy and verve in several countries around the world. Every year on February 14, those in love take opportunity of the occasion to reaffirm their love for sweethearts. Many people also express gratitude and love for teachers, friends, parents, siblings or any other person who is dear to them. Most popular Valentine's Day gifts exchanged between loved ones across the globe are cards, fresh flowers and chocolates.

All over the world people celebrate Valentine's Day by expressing love to sweethearts, spouses and special ones. However, customs and traditions of celebrating the festival vary in different countries due to social and cultural differences. Click on the links given below to find out how Valentine's Day is celebrated in countries around the world.

» Valentine's Day in US

» Valentine's Day in Canada

» Valentines Day in Australia

» Valentine's Day in Britain

» Valentines Day in Japan

» Valentines Day in France

» Valentines Day in Italy

» Valentines Day in India

» Chinese Valentines Day

» Valentines Day in Denmark

» Valentines Day in Scotland

» Valentine's Day in South Africa

Valentines Day Lace

Laces and ribbons are a delicate Valentine's Day symbol. Their association with love and romance can be traced to ancient times. At that time when kings and knights went to battles their ladylove presented laces to them.

There is yet another reason attributed to popularity of Laces as Valentine's Day symbol. Hundreds of years ago ladies used to carry lace handkerchief. If at times a lady accidentally dropped her hanky, courtesy demanded that the man standing near the lady pick up the handkerchief for her. Sometimes, ladies used to drop their handkerchiefs deliberately in front of the man they liked and wanted to meet. Lace therefore became a tool in the hands of ladies to encourage romance. Gradually, people began to associate lace with romance and started using paper lace to decorate chocolate boxes and Valentine cards. Even in present times laces are used in Valentine's Day Decoration and Cards.

Love Knots

Love knot is yet another symbol of Valentine's Day. Representing love that will last forever, love knots are actually a series of winding and intertwining loops that have neither a beginning nor an end.

Valentine's Day symbol of Love Knots traces its origin to early Arab traditions. Young Muslim women living in strict orthodox households used to express love to young men through secret messages woven through the knots of a carpet. Lovers read the messages by turning the knot around and around. The tradition of sending messages through the knots gave birth to the concept of love knots that exist even to this day.

Some people believe the custom of love knots began with the sailors several years ago. This is because sailors were skilled at making fishnets and so making intricate knots was their forte.

Lovebirds & Doves

Lovebirds and Doves are an endearing and prominent Valentine's Day symbols. The symbol traces its origin from a belief in the olden times that birds found their mate on February 14. Interestingly, lovers across the world till date hold on to this belief.

Reason why doves and lovebirds are considered strongly as a symbol of Valentine's Day is that while doves signify purity, innocence and humbleness picture of lovebirds conjures up the vision of couple in love.

About Lovebirds

It is said that blue colored lovebirds got their names because they sit closely to each other just like people who are in love do. People say that lovebirds can't think of their lives without their mates. Besides, lovebirds are known to keeping in pairs and keeping to themselves just as the young lovers want to live in privacy. Nowadays, lovebirds that are depicted on Valentine's Day are tiny parrots in bright colors. This is because lovebirds are genetically from parrot family.

About Doves

A special characteristic of doves and pigeons is their extreme loyalty to their mates. Unlike most other animals that go from partner to partner, doves remain with one partner all through their life. This is why, doves are recognized as a symbol of love and loyalty on Valentine's Day.

According to a myth, Roman Goddess Venus considered dove as sacred because of its fidelity towards mate. Cooing sound made by birds is linked to “love sound” attributed to lovers. For this reason, when lovers talk in flowery and sugary language to each other they are said to be 'cooing'.