Happy St. Patty’s Day!
There’s a little Irish in everybody on St. Patty’s Day! While people in the United States (along with many other places like Canada, Britain, New Zealand, and more) prove year after year that you don’t HAVE TO be Irish in order to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, it’s likely that much of the purpose behind today’s celebration is a complete mystery to most of the world (including the Irish).
Feast your eyes on these informational tidbits that you probably aren’t aware of concerning St. Patrick’s Day!
First, le
t’s start with the basic history behind today. A Christian holiday, St. Patty’s was created not only to celebrate Irish culture, but to memorialize St. Patrick who brought the teachings of Christianity to Ireland. St. Patrick died over 1500 years ago, sometime in the early 6th century. By the 7th century, he was recognized as the patron saint of Ireland!
Most people would probably say that green was Ireland’s color since…ALWAYS, right?
But that’s actually wrong! Ancient flags have shown us that a light shade of blue used to be the national Irish color. Good ol’ green didn’t come around for the Irish until the very end of the 18th century! So what was it that made Ireland see their own, true color?
Well, the shamrock was used by St. Patrick while he was spreading Christianity across the land. He used the three leaves of the clover to symbolize the Holy Trinity. During the Irish Rebellion in 1798, it was used again as a symbol of patriotism. They called it the “wearing of the green” and it slowly developed into a regular custom.
It didn’t take long for the green to catch on, covering whole uniforms in the color of the clover. Not to mention that the verdant, green fields of Ireland already brought the color to mind. It seemed like an obvious switch to be made.
So whether you make some corned beef and cabbage or dress up entirely in green, it’s good to feel a little Irish today—even if you’re not!
- John