Today we celebrate St. Patrick's day by wearing green and getting drunk.
St. Patrick was one of the patron saints of Ireland. When he was about sixteen he was captured by Irish raiders and taken as a slave to Ireland, where he lived for six years before escaping and returning to his family. He entered the church, as his father and grandfather had before him, becoming a deacon and a bishop. He later returned to Ireland as a missionary in the north and west of the island, but little is known about the places where he worked and no link can be made between Patrick and any church. By the eighth century he had become the patron saint of Ireland.
St. Patrick is believed to have driven the snakes from Ireland.
The modern secular holiday is based on the original Christian saint's feast day also thought to be the date of the saint's death. In 1737, Irish immigrants to the United States began observing the holiday publicly in Boston and held the first St. Patrick's Day Parade in New York City in 1766.
Today, the tradition continues with people from all walks and heritages by wearing green, eating Irish food, and attending parades. St. Patrick's Day is bursting with folklore; from the shamrock to the leprechaun and to pinching those that are not wearing green.
Here are a few facts about SPD:
- St. Patrick’s blue , not green, was the colour long-associated with St. Patrick.
- In Great Britain, the Queen Mother used to present bowls of shamrock flown over from Ireland to members of the Irish Guards,
- Savannah, Georgia boasts the unofficial largest attendance with 750,000 in 2006
- St. Patrick is the patron saint of engineers
- Corned beef and cabbage is the most common meal eaten in the United States for St. Patrick's Day, even though historically, corned beef and cabbage is an American (rather than a traditionally Irish) meal.
So, put on your hottest green jeans, grab a Guinness and get ready to chow down on some tasty cabbage. Oh, and have a happy St. Patty's day.
sources: wikipedia.com & history.com
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