Do you celebrate St. Patrick’s Day or do you just brush it off?
St. Patrick’s Day is also known as the Feast of Saint Patrick is a religious and cultural holiday that takes place on March 17. The traditional death date of Saint Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland. St. Patrick’s Day falls on the Christian season of Lent.
For over 1,000 years, this holiday had been observed as commemoration of the arrival of Christianity in Ireland. Irish families would traditionally attend church in the morning then celebrate in the afternoon. This holiday is recognized by shamrocks, leprechauns, parades, and all things green. Originally celebrated in Irish culture, it’s tradition here in the United States, people wear green because it is associated with Ireland and linked with the national symbol of shamrock. We also wear green because of an old myth that says wearing green makes you invisible to leprechauns, which is why we wear green to avoid getting pinched by others.
For those who don’t know who Saint Patrick is. He lived in the 5th century. He was a patron saint of Ireland and its national apostle. He was born in Roman Britain but was kidnapped and brought to Ireland as a slave at 16 years old. He later escaped but returned to Ireland and was credited with bringing Christianity to its people in Ireland. He is believed to have died on March 17, 461.
Since the 9th or 10th century, people in Ireland have been observing the Roman Catholic feast day of St. Patrick on March 17. The first St. Patrick’s Day parade took place in America. Records reveal that it was held on March 17, 1601, in a Spanish colony that is now St. Augustine, Florida. Over a century later, homesick Irish soldiers serving in the English military marched in New York City on March 17, 1772, to honor Saint Patrick. In 1848, several New York Irish Aid societies decided to unite their parades to form one big New York City St. Patrick’s Day Parade. Later, into the 19th century when Irish Americans in the cities took to the streets on St. Patrick’s Day to celebrate. Newspapers had portrayed them in cartoons as drunk, violent monkeys. The Irish Americans began to realize what they have been viewed as but their large numbers endowed them with a political power that hadn’t been stopped yet. The people started to organize and their voting block called the Green Machine became an important swing vote for political hopefuls. As a result, annual St. Patrick’s Day parades became a symbol of strength for Irish Americans. In 1948, President Truman had attended New York City’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade.
St. Patrick’s Day holds a number of events throughout the world. The oldest parade in the nation is the St. Patrick’s Day parade in Savannah, Georgia. Another event is the annual dyeing of the Chicago River green. The practice began in 1962 when city pollution control workers used dyes to track illegal sewage discharges. They then realized that the green dye might provide a unique way to celebrate the holiday. During that year, they had released 100 pounds of green dye into the river, which had kept it green for a week. Although, in order to minimize the environmental damage, it’s now only 40 pounds they dump. Some other traditions for the holiday is eating corned beef and cabbage as an Irish-American meal. People gather to watch parades of traditional Irish dancers and musicians.
Fun fact, did you know that Irish laws mandated that pubs stay closed on March 17th until the 1970s?
Enjoy the holiday and remember to wear green!
