St. Patrick’s Day Traditions

 

How to Celebrate St. Patrick's Day

St. Patrick's Day is a cultural and religious holiday celebrated on the 17th of March, and named in honor of the patron saint of Ireland. The festival commemorates the arrival of Christianity in Ireland, as well as celebrating Irish heritage and culture. St. Patrick's Day is now celebrated by many people throughout the world, Irish and non-Irish alike, with food, drink and all things green. Here are some guidelines on how to celebrate St. Patrick's Day Irish-style!

Get Ready to Celebrate

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   Go green. Unless you want to, you don't have to wear a sweater with a giant shamrock on it. (Though that would certainly help you stand out.) The great thing about this holiday is you are free to go as subtle or as wild as you like. St. Patrick's Day t-shirts have been a common article of clothing to wear proudly. Consider the following suggestions when picking out something to wear:

   • An all green t-shirt with optional Irish-related sayings, for example, "Kiss me, I'm Irish!" Note that no real Irish person over the age of ten would be caught dead in one of these. T-shirts with Irish beer monikers such as Harp or Guinness are more acceptable
   • For those who are feeling particularly festive, try buying or making a leprechaun costume, replete with white stockings, green top hat and fake (or real!) red beard.
   • If you're working on March 17th, you can still get into the festive spirit by incorporating a little green into your work attire. Try a green-striped polo or collared shirt, a green or shamrock-dotted tie, or green socks and undies for the closet St.Paddy's Day fans.

   
   

   6 essential St. Patrick's Day traditions, myths and more

   Who was Saint Patrick? Why do people wear green on St. Patrick's Day, and who decided pinching was the appropriate reaction if you aren't?

    

   Many St. Patrick's Day traditions are rooted in history, while others have evolved over time. We decided to break down the traditions, myths and other lore associated with the holiday.
   

   Who was Saint Patrick?

   Every March 17, we celebrate St. Patrick's Day. But who was he and why did he get an entire holiday named after him?
   Patrick was born in 387 in a British village. He was born to into a wealthy Christian family. Despite his family's devout faith, Patrick didn't get involved in Christianity. At around 16 years old, Irish raiders kidnapped him and brought him to Ireland, where he spent years working as a slave. Patrick tended and herded sheep for years. In his memoir, Patrick wrote that he turned to God to get through the ordeal. After six years in captivity, Patrick said he heard the voice of God tell him to walk 200 miles to the Irish coast. He escaped and walked 200 miles to the coast where he found a ship that eventually took him back home.
   Patrick might have left Ireland, but his connection to the people never faded. He said an angel spoke to him in a dream telling him to go back there and become a missionary in the mostly Pagan country. He became ordained and many years later traveled back to Ireland.
   Patrick is said to have arrived in Ireland in 433 and started working first to convert chiefs of druid tribes.
   There is a legend that he one of the chiefs tried to kill Patrick. After an intervention from God, Patrick converted the chief.
   Patrick traveled the country for 40 years converting Ireland to Christianity. He reportedly died in Saul, where he had built his first church in Ireland, on March 17, 461. He is believed to be buried in Down Cathedral in Downpatrick.
   Saint Patrick is known as the patron saint of Ireland and a feast and celebration is held every March 17 to celebrate him. For many years, it was only celebrated in Ireland.
   In the 1700s, the Irish immigrants held the first Irish parade in New York City.
   

   Myths

   One of the most popular myths involving Saint Patrick was that he drove the snakes of Ireland into the sea. He was said to have chased them to the see after they attacked him amid a 40-day fast he was doing on top of a hill.
   It is a fascinating story, but not true.
   Nigel Monaghan, keeper of natural history at the National Museum of Ireland in Dublin, told National Geographic that Patrick had nothing to do with there being no snakes in Ireland.
   Scientists believe snakes never reached Ireland due to the Ice Age, which make the island too cold for reptiles, according to National Geographic.
   Scholars have said the story is an allegory withe serpents being symbols of evil and linked to heathen practices. So, Patrick banishing the snakes could really just mean he was banishing "evil" from the area.
   

St. Patrick’s Day Traditions

 

St. Patrick’s Day is a holiday known for parades, shamrocks and all things Irish. From leprechauns to the color green, find out how symbols we now associate with St. Patrick’s Day came to be, and learn about a few that are purely American invention.

The Shamrock

The shamrock, which was also called the “seamroy” by the Celts, was a sacred plant in ancient Ireland because it symbolized the rebirth of spring. By the seventeenth century, the shamrock had become a symbol of emerging Irish nationalism. As the English began to seize Irish land and make laws against the use of the Irish language and the practice of Catholicism, many Irish began to wear the shamrock as a symbol of their pride in their heritage and their displeasure with English rule.

The color traditionally associated with St. Patrick was blue, not green.

Irish Music

Music is often associated with St. Patrick’s Day—and Irish culture in general. From ancient days of the Celts, music has always been an important part of Irish life. The Celts had an oral culture, where religion, legend and history were passed from one generation to the next by way of stories and songs. After being conquered by the English, and forbidden to speak their own language, the Irish, like other oppressed peoples, turned to music to help them remember important events and hold on to their heritage and history. As it often stirred emotion and helped to galvanize people, music was outlawed by the English. During her reign, Queen Elizabeth I even decreed that all artists and pipers were to be arrested and hanged on the spot.
Today, traditional Irish bands like The Chieftains, the Clancy Brothers and Tommy Makem are gaining worldwide popularity. Their music is produced with instruments that have been used for centuries, including the fiddle, the uilleann pipes (a sort of elaborate bagpipe), the tin whistle (a sort of flute that is actually made of nickel-silver, brass or aluminum) and the bodhran (an ancient type of framedrum that was traditionally used in warfare rather than music).

The Snake

It has long been recounted that, during his mission in Ireland, St. Patrick once stood on a hilltop (which is now called Croagh Patrick), and with only a wooden staff by his side, banished all the snakes from Ireland.
In fact, the island nation was never home to any snakes. The “banishing of the snakes” was really a metaphor for the eradication of pagan ideology from Ireland and the triumph of Christianity. Within 200 years of Patrick’s arrival, Ireland was completely Christianized.

Corned Beef

Each year, thousands of Irish Americans gather with their loved ones on St. Patrick’s Day to share a “traditional” meal of corned beef and cabbage.
Though cabbage has long been an Irish food, corned beef only began to be associated with St. Patrick’s Day at the turn of the century.
Irish immigrants living on New York City’s Lower East Side substituted corned beef for their traditional dish of Irish bacon to save money. They learned about the cheaper alternative from their Jewish neighbors.

The Leprechaun

The original Irish name for these figures of folklore is “lobaircin,” meaning “small-bodied fellow.”
Belief in leprechauns probably stems from Celtic belief in fairies, tiny men and women who could use their magical powers to serve good or evil. In Celtic folktales, leprechauns were cranky souls, responsible for mending the shoes of the other fairies. Though only minor figures in Celtic folklore, leprechauns were known for their trickery, which they often used to protect their much-fabled treasure.

St Patrick’s Day Celebrations & Traditions 

 

St Patrick’s day is celebrated on March 17, the date of his death. The day is celebrated by millions all over the world and has become one of the most popular cultural events worldwide.
So who was St Patrick? As he was the Patron Saint of Ireland his feast day was important in Ireland’s religious calendar. Popular belief is that he introduced Christianity to Ireland, banished snakes from our island, and used the 3 leaf Shamrock to teach the Holy Trinity. However, these are actually untrue and can be simply classed as Irish folklore.

Typical Traditions & Customs of St Patrick’s Day

There are a number of traditions to consider that are associated with St Patrick’s Day. Some are associated with religious traditions when others relate to people celebrating being Irish for the day, even for those who have no connections with Ireland.

The wearing of the green on St Patrick’s Day

Many people wear something green on St Patrick ’s Day that has become known by many as the wearing of the green to celebrate their Irish heritage.
In Ireland people wear a small bunch of Shamrocks on their right breast rather than wear green clothing to signify their Irishness and its traditional connection with St Patrick. The Shamrocks are blessed at Church ceremonies all over Ireland by either the local priests or Bishops, this is known as Blessing of the Shamrock.
As popularity of St Patrick’s Day grew in the United States so did the tradition of wearing something green. From green hats to shamrock sun glasses everyone today celebrates the Irish culture by wearing something green, even those who have no connections to Ireland.

Saint Patrick's Day Traditions

SAINT PATRICK'S DAY TRADITIONS

THE WEARING OF THE GREEN

The tradition of wearing Shamrock to celebrate Saint Patrick seems to date from the seventeenth or eighteenth century. This was a very turbulent time in Irish history. The suppression of the Gaelic way of life by the ruling British invaders resulted in many aspects of the Catholic religion in Ireland being forced underground. Strict laws were enforced which prevented the Catholic population from attending schools so 'hedge-schools' were operated in secret.



These were schools run outdoors in secluded places (sometimes literally 'under a hedge!). The teaching of religion was also forbidden so it is only to be expected that teachers would use naturally available resources to inform their pupils. Thus the Shamrock plant was used to illustrate the message of the Christian Holy Trinity.

Saint Patrick was credited with using the Shamrock in such a manner so the wearing of the Shamrock by the oppressed Catholic population became a means of demonstrating their defiance to the ruling British class. It also imbued a sense of kinship among the native Gaelic people, differentiating them from their oppressors.

Wearing a clump of Shamrock is now a firmly established tradition throughout the world to celebrate not just Saint Patrick but Ireland itself. The Shamrock symbol is widely used by businesses seeking to associate with Ireland and, along with the Harp, is perhaps the single most recognisable symbol of Ireland. It is a shame though that the Shamrock is not a blue plant as the color originally associated with Saint Patrick was blue!