It’s Valentine’s Day!

Red heart–shaped balloons seem to pop up everywhere. Chocolates and flowers sell like hotcakes. There are stuffed toys everywhere. The world is in love once again!

Every year, millions of people struck by Cupid’s arrow embrace this day by making it one of the biggest commercial events of the year. Retailers all over the world couldn’t be happier as they see a huge rise in profits in the days leading up to the big day. Red roses are sold at exorbitant prices as love-struck lovers try to better their friends and colleagues. A couple of decades ago, Valentine’s Day was probably celebrated on a much smaller scale, mainly among couples involved in serious relationships. Today, everyone seems to have hopped onto the bandwagon. The exchange of a flower or chocolates between two people symbolizes the friendship that exists between them, so it is not uncommon to see anyone or everyone with some token of love in their possession on Valentine’s Day.

In Malaysia, Valentine’s Day is celebrated on a grand scale, with people spending up to a thousand dollars for a big bouquet of red roses which would have otherwise cost them less then a tenth of the price on any regular day. However, Valentine’s Day is celebrated differently in other parts of the world.
In South Korea, for instance, Valentine’s Day’s popularity has pretty much become the product of a vast marketing effort. On this day, women, and less commonly, men, give chocolate or flowers to people they like. In workplaces, it’s the women who distribute gifts to all male co–workers. A special chocolate known as giri–choko which means ‘chocolate’ is sold widely on this day. However, in a more intimate or strong relationship, the honmei–choko is presented. The tomo–choko , where tomo means friends, is exchanged between best friends.

The reciprocal of Valentine’s day is called White Day, and this falls on March 14 where men present gifts to all those who gave them presents on Valentine’s Day. Most men, however, have perceived the idea differently, and only offer more personal gifts to their girlfriends such as clothes and lingerie. The reason why it is called White Day is because the returned gifts are usually marshmallows and white chocolate. They also have another day for the men who did not receive any gifts on Valentine’s Day. This is called Black Day and it falls on April 14th. The men sit together and eat Jajangmyun, a Chinese–style noodle in black sauce.

In China, there is a similar counterpart of the Valentine’s Day. It is called ‘The Night of the Sevens’ and it falls on the 7th month of the lunar calendar; the last one being August 30, 2006. There is another Chinese version of Valentine's Day on the 15th day of the 1st month of the lunar calendar which is probably more well-known among everyone. It is the last day of the Chinese New Year where girls traditionally write their name and address on a mandarin orange, (now, of course, it is e-mail and cell phone numbers) and throw it in a river to seek a future lover. Boys will seek these oranges to find their future lover. This tradition is still kept today.

In the Persian culture, i.e. Iran, this popular date is discreetly celebrated by most lovers despite the disapproval of the hardline Islamic government as a copycat of the West. According to Jewish tradition, the 15th day of the month of Av - Tu B'Av (usually late August) is the festival of love (hag haahava). In ancient times girls would wear white dresses and dance in the vineyards, where the boys would be waiting for them. In modern Israeli culture this is a popular day to pronounce love, propose marriage and give gifts like cards or flowers.

In Brazil, there is no Valentine's Day. Instead, "Dia dos Namorados" (literally "Day of the enamored", or "Boyfriend's/Girlfriend's Day") is celebrated on June 12, when couples exchange gifts such as lingerie, chocolates, cards and usually a bouquet of flowers. This day is chosen probably because it is the day before Saint Anthony's day, known there as the Marriage Saint, when many single women perform popular rituals in order to find a good husband (or nowadays, a boyfriend).

In Colombia, the "Día del amor y la amistad" (literally "Love and Friendship Day") is celebrated on the third Friday and Saturday in September, because of commercial issues. In this country the Amigo secreto ("Secret friend") tradition is quite popular, which consists of randomly assigning to each participant a recipient who is to be given an anonymous gift (similar to the Christmas tradition of Secret Santa).

In Mexico, the "Día del amor y la amistad" is celebrated similar to Colombia but this one falls on February 14.

In Finland, Valentine's Day is called "Ystävänpäivä" which translates into Friend's day. As the name suggests, the day is more about remembering your friends than your loved ones of spring.

The traditional holiday for lovers in Romania is Dragobete, which is celebrated on February 24. It is named after a character from Romanian folklore who was supposed to be the son of Baba Dochia. Part of his name is the word "drag" (dear), which can also be found in the word "dragoste" (love). In recent years, Romania has also started celebrating Valentine's Day, despite already having Dragobete as a traditional holiday.

Valentines Day is known as "Valentinsdagen", in Norway. It is not celebrated to a large extent, but some people take time to be romantic with their partner, or send a card to a secret love.Valentines Day also has regional traditions in the UK.

In Norfolk a character called 'Jack' Valentine knocks on the rear door of houses leaving sweets and presents for children. Although he left treats, many children were scared of this mystical person!

In parts of India, youth celebrate Valentine's day, possibly influenced by western media and corporations. Because of the fact that this is a celebration that involves considerable interaction between young men and women, and because it is perceived as a western celebration that is trying to destroy Indian culture, fundamentalist organizations are known to have expressed their anger by various means on the day.

With all that said and done, Valentine’s Day has come a long way, and it remains a big event. Although it has evolved into a huge commercialized occasion, it will always remain a day to remember and to express our love and friendship to our friends and loved ones. Happy Valentine’s Day, everyone!