Valentine’s Day, or a similar type of day, is observed in many of the world’s countries as a time to celebrate love and lovers.

It is an ancient holiday, and its origins date so far back that historians are unsure exactly how it began. They can only rely on stories and legends to make their best guess.

Most of the more well-known the stories portray a man named Valentine as a martyr who is put to death because he performed an act of love or kindness that was against the law.

The Web site www.history.com lists a few possible legends for the origin of the story.

One says Valentine was a priest who served during the third century in Rome. When Emperor Claudius II decided that single men made better soldiers than those with wives and families, he outlawed marriage for young men for his crop of potential soldiers.

Valentine, realizing the injustice of the decree, defied Claudius and continued to perform marriages for young lovers in secret. When Valentine's actions were discovered, Claudius ordered that he be put to death.

Other stories listed on the Web site suggest that Valentine may have been killed for attempting to help Christians escape harsh Roman prisons where they were often beaten and tortured.

Yet another says Valentine sent the first valentine greeting while in prison awaiting his impending death. He sent it to a woman he had fallen in love with and signed it “From your Valentine” which is a phrase still used today.

Others say the holiday was created by the Christian Church to try to end the celebration of Roman pagan holiday of Lupercalia, celebrated every mid February.

In an article for National Geographic, University of Colorado at Boulder classics professor Noel Lenski said Lupercalia remained popular well over a century after Emperor Constantine made Christianity the official state religion.

Lenski said during the rowdy Lupercalia festivals men stripped naked, grabbed goat- or dog-skin whips, and spanked young maidens in hopes of increasing their fertility.

Instead of continuing to try to stop the pagan festival, Christians created Valentine’s Day to replace Lupercalia and eventually succeeded.

The holiday spread to other countries down through the centuries and it eventually morphed into what is celebrated today.

A Reuters report stated the National Retail Federation believes couples will spend an average of $63.34 on gifts for their significant other or spouse this year. Individuals are also expected to spend a total of $5.37 on gifts for friends.

In total, the NRF predicted a total of $14.1 billion will be spent on Valentine’s Day in the country this year.

So whether you express your love with flowers, chocolates, jewelry, greeting cards or just by spending time with your loved ones, you will be participating in a holiday that has been centuries in the making.