OnFebruary14，peoplelookforwardtogettingcardsfromfriends-cardsthatsay，"WillyoubemyValentine？"Didyoueverwonderwhy？Andwhatdoesthatevenmean？Asitturnsout，peoplehavebeencelebratingValentine'sDayforcen
On February 14，people look forward to getting cards from friends-cards that say，"Will you be my Valentine？"Did you ever wonder why？And what does that even mean？
As it turns out，people have been celebrating Valentine's Day for centuries，in one form or another．In fact，historians say it may begin with a Roman holiday that goes back more than 2，000years．They say Valentine's Day has its roots in an agricultural festival called the Feast of Lupercalia-a festival that was celebrated every year on February 14，just as Valentine's Day is today．
Around 500A．D．，a Roman Catholic Pope named Gelasius decided to replace the Feast of Lupercalia with a Christian festival．So February 14became a day to honor Saint Valentine．Why？
According to legend，Saint Valentine had been thrown in prison several centuries earlier for disobeying a Roman emperor．The legend says that while Saint Valentine was in prison，he fell in love with the jailor's daughter and sent her a note he signed，"From your valentine．"
That's supposedly where the tradition of sending Valentines began．The Saint Valentine's Day celebration eventually spread to France，England and other countries．
At first，people used to exchange hand-written notes with their Valentines．But in the 1840s，a woman named Esther Howland created the first commercially produced Valentine's Day greeting cards in the United States．Nowadays，according to one report，more people send cards to friends around Valentine's Day than on any other holiday except Christmas．Today，Valentine's Day is no longer a religious holiday．It's just a day to show your friends you appreciate them．Chocolate and flowers are among the most common ways people show that appreciation．In fact，the people who keep track of chocolate sales say that more than 1billionworthissoldaroundValentine'sDay．AndaccordingtotheNationalRetailFederation，peoplewillspend2.1billion this year on flowers．But you don't have to buy anything fo