Facts About St. Patrick’s Day to Celebrate at Home

Everybody loves St. Patrick’s Day. I mean, how can you not love a fun festival about drinking beer, wearing green, and getting together with family and friends? It is the ultimate celebration of Irish culture. And with millions of people around the world sharing Irish roots, it truly has become a worldwide celebration.

Fun Facts about St. Patrick’s Day

After visiting Ireland multiple times we have been lucky enough to be part of our share of Irish celebrations. There is a reason that St Patrick’s day is one of the most fun celebrations around the world. So, head out to the Beer Store (all you Canadians) and grab your cans of Guinness, put on your green shirt, and let’s get celebrating!

1. Saint Patrick was Not Irish

Saint Patrick, a patron Saint of Ireland was actually English. More accurately, he is believed to have been from Wales or Scotland. He was brought to Ireland as a slave around 432 AD. but escaped and after hanging out in Ireland working as a shepherd for a few years, he returned to England to become a priest. He then later returned to Ireland as a Christian missionary.

2. The Feast of St. Patrick

After St. Patrick’s death, Ireland dedicated a day to him known as the Feast of St. Patrick. The date of March 17 was chosen because that was his death day. St. Patrick died on March 17, in Downpatrick Ireland. Back then, death days were more important than birthdays. Nobody really knew what day they were born, but if they became somebody, everyone knew their date of death.

Thus the Feast of St. Patrick was celebrated every year on the death day of the patron saint. It was a day of feasts and religious ceremonies. So, when St. Patrick’s Day rolls around this year, let’s make it a feast day too!

3. No Beer!

Since it was known as the Feast of St. Patrick, St. Patrick’s day was originally a dry holiday. No beer was to be found. Instead, St. Patrick’s Day was a day of religious ceremonies and feasts. In fact, it wasn’t until recently that Ireland started celebrating St. Patrick’s day with the same alcoholic vigor as the United States.

It has only been more recently that beer and hearty celebrations have become more popular in Ireland. Some have said that it was in 2016 when celebrating 100 years of Irish independence that St. Patrick’s Day really started to take off in Ireland. But from what I can tell, it’s been going strong in Dublin for decades.

4. Four Leaf Clover

Contrary to popular belief, the four-leaf…