Valentine’s Day also has pagan roots alongside its connection to St. Valentine. It may have originated in Lupercalia, a festival of fertility celebrated on February 15 in ancient Rome. Lupercalia was dedicated to the Roman god of agriculture, Faunus, and the founders of Rome, Romulus and Remus. It was celebrated with animal sacrifices and gently slapping women and crop fields with goat hides dipped in blood, which was thought to help fertility.