On March 17th, everyone is a little Irish. Even though Saint Patrick's Day is only a public holiday in a handful of places - the Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland, Newfoundland, Labrador, and Montserrat - St. Patrick's Day is celebrated all over the world. We have gathered 10 fun facts about Saint Patrick's Day to help awaken the Irishman or Irishwoman within you.
Once upon a time
Saint Patrick is one of Ireland's most famous patron saints: according to legend, he brought Christianity to the island, popularized the shamrock, and freed Ireland from snakes. This holiday marks the death of Saint Patrick and has been considered a religious holiday in Ireland for over 1500 years.
Thank you for the holiday!
Ireland officially began celebrating this day in 1903. As the Emerald Isle is predominantly Catholic and Saint Patrick's Day usually falls during Lent, it was a rather quiet and religious day – until the 1960s, when a law allowed pubs to open on St. Paddy's Day.
The patron saint formerly known as Maewyn
Saint Patrick is not the name of an Irishman named Patrick: born Maewyn Succat, the Irish patron saint was actually British. According to legend, he was sold as a slave in Ireland as a teenager and became religious before escaping and returning to England. He then became a priest named Patrick and started converting all the Irish Celtic pagans to Christianity.
The snake banisher
According to legend, Saint Patrick banished snakes from Ireland. According to biologists, there have never been snakes in Ireland. The diplomatic explanation is that the snakes are actually a metaphor representing paganism, which was "banished" by Saint Patrick.
The popularity of shamrocks
The story goes that Saint Patrick used shamrocks to explain the Holy Trinity (God, Son, and Holy Spirit) to the Irish. The Celts believed that each leaf of the shamrock represented something, so using the shamrock as a teaching tool was successful: Saint Patrick established several churches, schools, and monasteries and made the shamrock popular in the country.
Going green
Everything is green as far as the eye can see – hair, clothes, and even food. We're not talking about spinach but bagels, pancakes, and even beer – basically, if you can put green dye in it, it will be served on Saint Patrick's Day. But the coloring fun doesn't stop there: rivers, monuments, and even ski resorts turn green for the occasion.
Green became the new blue
Even though everyone goes green, Patrick preferred blue, and just look at an old Irish flag for proof. During the Irish rebellion...
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