How is Valentine’s Day Celebrated around the World?

• by CrafterFox
• in Thoughts
• posted February 7, 2022

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Believe it or not, the Valentine’s Day we know from the movies is not celebrated equally around the world. Some countries don’t celebrate it at all, while others contribute to it with their own unique traditions. Since Valentine’s Day is just around the corner, I thought I’d share with you some of the most interesting traditions from around the globe, as well as a couple of my downloadable Valentine’s Day Greeting cards and Love Coupons! So, let’s see how Valentine’s Day is celebrated!

I’m sure you probably already know all about St. Valentine, the Roman priest who actually had little to do with how this special day is celebrated today, but did you know that South Koreans celebrate love on the 14th of each month? These days are all dedicated to couples and the love that they share and they each have their own unique name. Just to give you a few examples, Yellow Day or Rose Day is for May 14th, Kiss Day for June 14th and Black Day for April 14th, when singles eat black noodles as a way of mourning the fact that they are alone on that day. Yea, that one is actually quite depressing. But December 14th is Hug Day and OMG, how cute is that?!

Let’s be honest, we all love to indulge in a little self-pampering and love it when we can stuff our faces with delicious snacks without feeling guilty. Valentine’s Day is just as much about chocolate as it is about love (if not more, if you ask me…). Well, in this respect, Ghanaians know how to get down to business, as February 14th is National Chocolate Day in Ghana! And since they are one of the largest cocoa-producing countries in the world, I’m sure chocolate there is beyond anything we can imagine. Man, I’d love to be there right now!

Who doesn’t love a good wine on Valentine’s Day (it goes perfectly with the Ghanaian chocolate)? Or any other day, for that matter? Well, Bulgarians celebrate the day of wine-makers on the 14th of February and on this occasion, couples share a lovely glass of local wine. I wouldn’t say no to a piece of Ghanaian chocolate and a glass of Bulgarian wine, would you?

As far as cute traditions go, Slovenia has one of the best! They believe February 14th to be the day when plants start to regenerate and when birds start singing their beautiful love songs to each other. If you want to see these wonderful creatures “propose” to one another, you have to walk barefoot through a field that is (for obvious reasons) often still frozen. This is adorable, but I’ll probably never witness a bird proposal, to be honest.

Some countries have had their own ‘lover’s day’ even before the commercialization of Valentine’s Day. Romanians, for example celebrate ‘Dragobete’ on February 24th. Dragobete is believed to be the Guardian of Lovers and it is believed that on this day, similarily to the Slovenian belief, birds get betrothed. Also, girls used to collect snow, melt it and later use it in their magic potions that would keep them healthy throughout the year. While the customs differ from region to region, on Dragobete, boys and girls usually collect flowers and sing together.

In Hungary, Valentines Day isn’t the most romantic day of all. The weather on February 14th was considered to be able to foretell the future quality of the crop in that year. Dry weather meant a good harvest, so men started pruning fruit trees at this time. Of course, love traditions related to this day also exist. According to one such tradition, if a girl eats an apple that has nine seeds and hides the nine seeds in the pocket of the chosen boy, then the boy will definitely fall in love with her. The number nine appears to be very special. According to another tradition, if one draws water from nine different wells and offers the water to the chosen boy or girl, true love will be sure to follow.

As you can see, Valentine’s Day is celebrated in many different ways around the world, each tradition just as beautiful as the next. Which did you like best? Which country would you like to visit on Valentine’s Day?

What other interesting traditions do you have in your country?

Also, which one of the Valentine’s card did you like best?

Let me know in the comments below!

As always, thank you for reading! 🧡