MissM

Mother's day and valentine's day are the two biggest occasions on which flowers are given,

Numerous early Christian martyrs were named Valentine.


In Finland Valentine's Day is called Ystävänpäivä which translates into "Friend's day".


In Slovenia, a proverb says that "St Valentine brings the keys of roots", so on February 14, plants and flowers start to grow.


In some Latin American countries Valentine's Day is known as "Día del Amor y la Amistad" (Day of Love and Friendship).


In Korea, if you do not receive any gift on Valentine's day then all the singles go to Korean restaurants and eat black noodles to mourn their single status.

Every year around 1 billion Valentine cards are sent across. After Christmas it's a single largest seasonal card-sending occasion.

Teachers receive the most Valentine's Day cards, followed by children, mothers, wives, and then, sweethearts. Children between ages 6 to 10 exchange more than 650 million Valentine's cards with teachers, classmates, and family members.


Of the 73% of people who buy Valentine's Day flowers are men, while only 27 percent are women.

A single perfect red rose framed with baby's breath is named by some florists as a "signature rose," and is the preferred choice for most for giving on Valentine's Day, anniversaries and birthdays.

The red rose was the favorite flower of Venus, the Roman goddess of love.

The color red stands for strong romantic feelings making the red rose the flower of love.

Cupid is a symbol of Valentine's Day. Cupid was associated with Valentine's Day because he was the son of Venus, the Roman god of love and beauty. Cupid often appears on Valentine cards and gift tokens holding a bow and arrows as he is believed to use magical arrows to arouse feelings of love.

Verona, the Italian city where Shakespeare's play lovers Romeo and Juliet lived, receives about 1,000 letters every year sent to Juliet on Valentine's Day.

The oldest surviving love poem till date is written in a clay tablet from the times of the Sumerians, inventors of writing, around 3500 B.

In the Middle Ages young men and women drew the names from a bowl to see who would be their Valentine. They would wear this name pinned on their sleeves for one week. This was done so that it becomes easy for other people to know your true feelings. This was known as "to wear your heart on your sleeve".

On February 14th wooden love spoons were carved and given as gifts on Valentine's Day in Wales. Hearts, keys and keyholes were favorite. Valentine decorations on the wooden spoons. This Valentine decoration meant, "You unlock my heart!"

The most beautiful and incredible gift of love is the monument Taj Mahal in India. Built by Mughal Emperor Shahjahan as a memorial to his wife it stands as the emblem of the eternal love story. Work on the Taj Mahal began in 1634 and continued for almost 22 years and required the labor of 20,000 workers from all over India and Central Asia.

In America, the pilgrims used to sent confections, such as sugar wafers, marzipan, sweetmeats and sugar plums, to their affianced. Lot of value was placed on these gifts because they included what was then a rare product, sugar. After the late 1800's, beet sugar became widely used and more available, and sweet gifts continued to be cherished and enjoyed.

Amongst the earliest Valentine's Day gifts were candies. The most common were chocolates in heart shaped boxes.

The heart is associated to Valentine's Day as it is considered the source of all human emotions. The custom of drawing a heart shape is supposed to have come from early attempts to draw an organ that no one had seen. The symbol came on to become as a sign of love.

The heart has been the most common figure of romantic love over the decades. Ancient cultures believed the human soul lived in the heart. The heart may be linked with love because the ancient Greeks believed it was the goal of Eros, known as Cupid to the Romans. Anyone shot in the heart by one of Cupid's arrows would fall hopelessly in love. Because the heart is also closely linked to love, its red color is considered as most romantic.

Lovebirds are often associated with Valentine's Day. These lovebirds found in Africa, are brightly colored and sit very close together with their mates, earning them their name.

Doves are also part of the Valentine tradition. These birds are symbols of love and loyalty because they mate for life. A pair of doves will also share the care of all their babies.

In olden times some people used to believe that if a woman saw a robin flying overhead on the Valentine's Day, it meant she would marry a sailor. If she saw a sparrow, she would marry a poor man and be very happy. If she saw a goldfinch, she would marry a millionaire. A love knot is a symbol of undying love, as its twisting loops have no beginnings or ends. In olden times, they were made of ribbon or drawn on paper to prove ones eternal love.

GagaSmith

I work in a flower shop and believe me, I know it is the single busiest day of the year. I spent 10 hours on my feet Monday and Tuesday both. We sold very few single roses; all the guys wanted a dozen.