Valentine’s Day Around the World

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HAPPY VALENTINE’S DAY 2022!

As a romance novelist with the above tagline, the month of February and Valentine’s Day are quite important to me. Over the years, I’ve written a horde of posts about the holiday itself, history, floriography, and general themes of romance and love. A topical search on the blog sidebar will bring up a list, OR pop over to the Pemberley Library under the “Romance” section for quick links.

Valentine’s Day is not celebrated in every country of the world —it is actually banned in Saudi Arabia— but many countries do acknowledge a day to pay homage to romantic love. That special day may not always fall on February 14, however, and while flowers, cards, and sweet treats are common gifts to express love, each country has unique customs. The infographics below highlight some of the traditions found throughout the world.

The Welsh celebrate on January 25, St. Dwynwen’s Day.
Another Valentine tradition in England is for a single woman to pin 4 bay leaves onto her pillow to dream of her future husband.
The Chinese celebrate on February 14, and also on July 7th due to an ancient fairy tale when two stars representing lovers meet in the sky.
Similar to South Korea, March 14 is “White Day” when a man returns a gift to the woman who gave him a gift on February 14.
In Germany, St. Valentine is the patron saint of the mentally disabled, so people decorate asylums with red ribbons and attend a special church Mass.
In Brazil, June 12th is St. Anthony’s Day for the Patron Saint of Marriage.

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Sharon Lathan

Sharon Lathan is the best-selling author of The Darcy Saga, a ten-volume sequel series to Jane Austen’s Pride & Prejudice.

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Glynis

There are some really strange customs here! I would have preferred spring flowers rather than roses. I love the smell of Freesia!

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Sharon Lathan

Rather surprising, isn’t it? I honestly didn’t think Valentine’s Day (or a similar holiday) was observed in so many places, let alone the varied customs. It was fun to share them.

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