¡Feliz Día de San Valentín!
Saint Valentine’s Day, also called “The Day of Love and Friendship” or “El Día del Amor y la Amistad” in some Latin American countries, is a date that encourages people to pursue important values such as: friendship (la amistad), solidarity (la solidaridad), company (la compañía), respect (el respeto) and of course the love we feel for all those who are close to us, like a partner, our family, colleagues and classmates.
Without a doubt, festivals are a great opportunity to promote cultural capital across the school and to bring exciting activities and resources to the classroom. Therefore, it is vital that we, as languages teachers, take every opportunity to use festivals when teaching a second language as this is a great way to bring the language into a real context.
In this blog article I would like to briefly explain who Saint Valentine was. Having some knowledge about his background will help us to discuss more productively this festival with students.
Who was Saint Valentine?
Looking back to history around the III century, when Christianity was expanding, we find not only one but three Saint Valentines that were decapitated by the Roman Empire. They wanted to end this new faith that appeared to be threatening the stability of the Empire.
Of these three martyrs, some sources point to Saint Valentine of Terni as the true Saint Valentine. Others speak of a certain Valentino who received martyrdom in Africa, but perhaps the most romantic legend is that of Saint Valentine of Rome who was a priest and from this story also appear several versions.
One version says that he was a priest who, despite the fact that the Roman authorities prohibited young soldiers from marrying, considering that they would be better combatants if they had no family ties, dedicated himself to marrying couples secretly according to the Catholic rite. When he was discovered, Valentine was subjected to martyrdom and eventually beheaded. This was done by emperor Claudio II on the 14th of February 270.
A less credible version says that the priest was imprisoned and fell in love with his jailer’s daughter, to whom he dedicated a passionate love letter that he signed as “from your Valentine”, which would become the origin of the tradition of sending love letters and postcards that lovers exchange every February 14.
Cupid, the God of Love
Cupid, the God of love is often portrayed on Valentine’s Day cards. He is a naked cherub launching arrows of love at unsuspecting lovers. The Roman God, Cupid has his roots in Greek mythology. The Greek God of love, Eros, was a handsome immortal who played with the emotions of Gods and men, using golden arrows to incite love and lead ones to sow aversion.
Valentine’s Day has only recently been celebrated as the day of love. In addition to the United States, Saint Valentine’s Day is widely celebrated in western countries every year. Here is a videoclip for students to learn the historical context of the festival [CLICK HERE] and a quiz [CLICK HERE] to ensure understanding of content and to promote further discussion.
St Valentine’s Day promotes love and friendship. One of the typical questions that many teachers ask students in their speaking exams is to talk about their best friend. These two songs are relevant to talk about best friends as well as to revise for exams: Mi mejor amigo [CLICK HERE] and Mi mejor amiga [CLICK HERE] as well as Mis amigos [CLICK HERE] to be as inclusive as we can. FREE Teaching resources can be found in TES [CLICK HERE].
To cater to students from different contexts I have created a PowerPoint presentation where I have included key vocabulary in Spanish related to the festival. This FREE resource can also be found in TES by clicking [HERE].
Some relevant vocabulary related to Sint Valentine include:
Enjoy Saint Valentine’s Day and I hope you can find my resources useful. ¡Feliz Día de San Valentín para todos! Happy Saint Valentine’ Day.
Bibliography:
· History.com. "History of Valentine’s Day." Available at: https://www.history.com/topics/valentines-day/history-of-valentines-day-2
· Historic UK. "St Valentine’s Day." Available at: https://www.historic-uk.com/CultureUK/St-Valentines-Day/
· Britannica. "Valentine's Day." Available at: https://www.britannica.com/topic/Valentines-Day
· National Geographic Historia. "El Origen Histórico del Día de San Valentín." Available at: https://historia.nationalgeographic.com.es/a/origen-historico-dia-san-valentin_15084
· El Mundo. (2023) "San Valentín: Origen y por Qué lo Celebramos." Available at: https://www.elmundo.es/como/2023/02/14/63ea0671e4d4d86c0b8b4592.html
· AD Magazine. "San Valentín: Origen y por Qué lo Celebramos." Available at: https://www.admagazine.com/articulos/san-valentin-origen-y-por-que-lo-celebramos
· YouTube. "History of Valentine’s Day." Available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IaYsrU9Acgo