Bryan Zandberg of The Tyee has a fun piece on Valentines Day with some interesting history and current statistics.

Valentine’s Day is named after two Christian martyrs who, in fact, had nothing whatsoever to do with romance.

In France, in the middle ages — when courtly love was invented — people concocted stories about the martyrs for Saint Valentine’s Day, February 14th, which became the day the courts heard cases involving love contracts, betrayals and violence against women. In time, that day somehow also became a celebration of love and romance.

The tradition turned into big business when transposed to North America. In 1847, Esther Howland, whose father owned a stationary company in Massachusetts, made the first mass-produced “valentines” out of embossed paper lace. These days, the Greeting Card Association estimates that 1.8 billion valentines are sent each year worldwide (not including packaged children’s valentines in classrooms), making the day the second largest card-sending holiday of the year behind Christmas.

While people mean well, what is given isn’t always what is wanted. 82 percent of Canadians participate in Valentines day, spending an average of $93.20.

Dave Walker: We Blog CartoonsWhat Valentine Day participants give and receive:

• 40% of men will give flowers, 15% of women want flowers
• 31% of men are thinking of giving candy, 9% of women want candy
• 12% of men will not be giving presents, 23% of women will not be giving presents
• 29% of women most want restaurant meals, 17% want spa visits, 15% want flowers
• 43% of Canadians think gift cards are lazy and impersonal