Traditional Symbols of Valentine’s Day

Traditional Symbols of Valentine’s Day

Pleasing your love on an important day like Valentine’s is not an easy task you have to think beyond romantic rendezvous or soppy movies. This annual event is a day when people earnestly showed their love and affection for another person.

When it comes to Valentine’s Day you don’t have to break your bank to buy overpriced stuff when something simple as Valentine’s Day symbol is all needed for you to make up the mark in the matter of hearts. Valentine’s Day symbols, no matter how much trite they sound or seems to be, are a perfect symbolic expression of love they convey about this day to your love.

Valentine’s Day is best described by a very popular song.

“Love is in the air…
Everywhere you look around,
Love is in the air…
In every sight and every sound”

Suggested Read: Valentine Day quotes

A time to declare your love for each other with red-roses, a box of chocolates and precious love mementos like a dove, cupid, hearts, and love knots or a Greeting card. Most common Valentine’s symbols are:

• Cupid
• Chocolates
• Doves
• Hearts
• Love Knots
• Greeting Cards
• Roses

Suggested Read: Valentines Day Gifts Ideas

Cupid

cupid

Cupid in Latin means “Desire”. Not surprisingly Cupid is a traditional favorite love symbol for many for Valentine’s day. Though he’s thought of now as a cute, naked, chubby baby with bow and arrow, Cupid’s origins go back to Greek mythology. Cupid, the Roman god of desire and love, would pierce someone with his arrow to control their affections.

Interestingly, none of his victims can actually see the arrows they only fall in love to realize that they had been shot. While this is thought of in present-day as a romantic gesture that happens after someone has fallen in love already, that is not the case in how Cupid is depicted in history.

Suggested Read: Cupid Arrow in Atharva Veda

Chocolate

valentine
valentine

Chocolates have been associated with sexual powers and fertility since ancient times. One of the reason is eating chocolates stimulate the production of a chemical that is similar to the chemical produced when a person is in love.

Suggested Read: Valentine Day Gift for him

Doves

Dove

It is a popular belief that birds chose their mate for the year on February 14. Doves are typically white, they are seen as something innocent and pure. Dove gifts and dove bird gift sets continue to be sold not only for Valentine’s Day but also for Christmas.

Throughout time doves have moved from Greek goddess pets to symbols of love between couples, and are now even gifted amongst relatives and friends as a sign of lasting love or friendship between any two people.

Suggested Read: History of Valentine’s Day

Hearts

Valentine for him
Valentine for him

Valentine’s Day symbols were and remain very important for the holiday too. There actually is no clear explanation that can state with certainty why the heart has become a famous Valentine’s day symbol though.

We enjoy the heart shape symbolism every year for Valentine’s regardless of its exact meaning. The heart’s romanticized shape is one of the most cherished Valentine’s symbols, resembling two halves meeting at the center and combining together forever.

Suggested Read: Valentine Day Gift for her

Love Knots

Love knots

Love knots as the name suggests are a symbol of eternal love, for romantics the intertwined love hearts mean two bodies, one heart.

Greeting Cards

Valentines day card

With an estimated one billion valentine greeting cards sent out annually, Valentine’s Day is the second largest card-sending holiday of the year after Christmas and the card making company make the best use of the event.

Suggested Read: Rose Day

Roses

Red roses

We send flowers, in general, every year for Valentine’s Day because our predecessors sent flowers. The Valentines Day flower meaning has evolved over the years, but the underlying purpose has remained close to its origins. The rose, much like our other affection symbols, was featured throughout Greek art too.

In some circles, the rose flower was beloved by certain artists who then used it in their paintings. Becoming known as the flower of love explains why when courting a young lady or sending a private message, one would send flowers along with it. The color red is associated with love and strong emotions. Here are various emotions attached with various colors of roses.

Red Rose: It means love and desire.
White Rose: It generally means “a heart unacquainted with love.”
Yellow Rose: Friendship and cheer.
Pink Rose: Grace and elegance.
Blue Rose: mystery and intrigue.
Rainbow Rose: You’re everything to me
Peach Rose: modesty, sincerity, and gratitude.
Orange Rose: enthusiasm and passion.
Salmon Rise: “excitement and enthusiasm.”
Cream Rose: Passion Growers.
Purple Rose: pride and enchantment.
Dark Pink Rose: “gratitude and appreciation”.
Burgundy Rose: “unconscious beauty.”
Green Rose: “constant rejuvenation of spirit.”
Black Rose: Farewell
Red and White Rose: Unity or Engagement
Coral Rose: Desire
Mixed Rose: “I love you!”

No matter what you plan to buy for your valentine a simple symbol of love will truly make the day.

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Simmi Kamboj

Simmi Kamboj is the Founder and Administrator of Ritiriwaz, your one-stop guide to Indian Culture and Tradition. She had a passion for writing about India's lifestyle, culture, tradition, travel, and is trying to cover all Indian Cultural aspects of Daily Life.