Why exactly do we celebrate on March 17? Who was St. Patrick, when was he born, and why do we care about the patron saint of Ireland in the United States? What exactly do leprechauns have to do with it all? Where did all those St. Patrick's Day traditions like parades and all things shamrock come from? There's plenty of trivia behind the holiday to explore, so read on to find all you need to know before you head out to the pub or this year's Irish festivities.
What is the history behind St. Patrick's Day?
According to Historic UK, St. Patrick's Day has been commemorated on March 17 since St. Patrick's death in the fifth century. As early as the ninth or tenth century, Christians were observing it as a religious feast day. The holiday was officially added to the Church calendar in the early 17th century. As for the first St. Patrick's Day parade, though not the raucous occasion we know today, that took place in 1601 in St. Augustine, Florida (the Spanish colony had an Irish vicar!
Because St. Patrick’s Day falls during Lent, it became a day for Christians to take a break from the abstinence practiced during the weeks leading up to Easter. By the 1700s, the holiday had started to take a decidedly more festive turn than its founders had intended.
In America, St. Patrick's Day slowly shifted from a religious observation to a secular celebration of Irish heritage thanks to Irish immigrants. And while the Irish-American population increased dramatically during the 19th century, in part due to Ireland's Potato Blight of 1845, St. Patrick's Day traditions in the U.S. stretch back a century earlier.
Keith Lance//Getty ImagesIrish-Americans in Boston held the first celebration in 1737: a dinner hosted by the newly founded Charitable Irish Society, which remains an annual tradition nearly three centuries later. In 1762, New York City held its first parade, which has become the largest and oldest St. Patrick's Day parade in the world.
The coastal city of Savannah, Georgia, has staked its claim as the St. Patrick's Day capital of the South, with celebrations dating back to 1812, while Chicago, famed for dyeing its river green since 1962, has been parading since 1843.
These American cities still offer some of the biggest celebrations dedicated to the man who allegorically drove the snakes out of Ireland. The holiday's Irish-American roots also explain why some traditional St. Patrick's Day foods, like corned beef and cabbage, are not actually Irish (the Irish prefer pork).
YANNICK TYLLEWho was St. Patrick?
Saint Patrick was born around 386 CE in Roman Britain, possibly in the area that is today known as Wales. At the age of 16, he was enslaved and taken to Ireland, where he spent six years in captivity. He then escaped, only to later return to bring Christianity to the people of Ireland—not the kind of light-hearted hijinks you might think would inspire a holiday so devoted to it.
During his life, Patrick became a priest and founded schools, churches, and monasteries throughout the Emerald Isle before his death on March 17, 461 CE. However, some are surprised to learn that the patron saint and national apostle of Ireland was never canonized as saint by the Catholic Church. This lack of official sainthood is because there was no formal canonization process in the 400s. Calling him "Saint" Patrick is likely to have caught on and stuck over time due to his popular acclaim.
Why do we wear green on St. Patrick's Day?
It's only since the Irish Rebellion of 1798 that the shade has become associated with the holiday. Blue, which adorned the ancient Irish flag, was first identified with St. Patrick's Day. But the rebels wore green to differentiate themselves from the British, who clothed themselves in red, and the color has since come to denote Ireland and the Irish to all the world.
Shamrocks, the national plant of Ireland, also add to the sea of green on March 17. Though legend holds that Saint Patrick used three-leafed shamrocks to explain the Holy Trinity, there is no historical evidence to prove it. However, the shamrock has been used as a symbol of the Emerald Isle since the late 17th/early 18th century.
While commemorating St. Patrick’s Day in the wildly celebratory way we know today is largely the invention of Irish-Americans, Irish in the homeland have taken to it as well. In 1903, St. Patrick's Day became a public holiday in Ireland, expanding the religious celebration to the secular realm. The parades followed, starting in Waterford that same year. Today, the earliest parade in Ireland famously kicks off in Dingle just before sunup! It's attended by townsfolk and tourists alike. And in Dublin, where the first St. Paddy's Day parade was held in 1931, the party has grown to a four-day festival!
St. Patrick's Day has also spread worldwide, with celebrations in England, Canada, Argentina, Australia, New Zealand, and Japan, to name a few.
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