Lupercalia

American  

[loo-per-key-lee-uh, ‑-keyl-yuh] / ˌlu pərˈkeɪ li ə, ‑ˈkeɪl jə /

noun

• Lupercalia,
  plural
• Lupercalias
  plural

1. a festival held in ancient Rome on the 15th of February to promote fertility and ward off disasters.

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Lupercalia British  

/ ˌluːpɜːˈkeɪlɪə /

noun

1. an ancient Roman festival of fertility, celebrated annually on Feb 15 See also Saint Valentine's Day

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• Lupercalian
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• Lupercalia
  plural
• Lupercalias
  plural

Etymology

Origin of Lupercalia

Latin, from Lupercālis belonging to Lupercus, a Roman god of the flocks

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

Lupercalia

Historians believe that Valentine's Day is rooted in the Roman love and fertility festival, Lupercalia, and was a move by Gelasius I to Christianise pagan traditions.

From BBC ● Apr. 28, 2025

She explained that Lupercalia was celebrated in Rome between February 13–15 to stave off evil and celebrate fertility.

From Fox News ● Feb. 14, 2020

The holiday itself dates back many centuries before then; it is apparently another pagan holiday that Christians attempted to co-opt, by transforming the Roman fertility celebration Lupercalia into St. Valentine’s Day.

From Slate ● Feb. 14, 2019

In mid-February, the Romans celebrated Lupercalia, a drunken festival that involved hitting women with the hide of a sacrificial goat in hopes of increasing their fertility.

From Washington Post ● Feb. 8, 2019

And as the Lupercalia began about the middle of February, the pastors appear to have chosen Saint Valentine's Day for the celebration of this new feast.

From Good Stories for Holidays by Frances Jenkins Olcott