The most Irish day of the year
Once a year the world is Irish for a day. St. Patrick's Day (Irish: Lá Fhéile Pádraig), the Irish national festival takes place on 17th of March, is quite possibly the mostly celebrated national holiday in the world. On the one hand, it is due to the Irish diaspora around the globe but on the other hand the holiday appears to bring people together of all nationalities in celebration of Irish culture.
For most people St. Patrick's Day is about putting everything in green, slapping on some cheap shamrock and leprechaun decorations as well as the Irish flag and getting drunk. Needless to say, alcohol is a big part of Irish culture. Among other things the Emerald Island is known for its whiskey, cider and obviously the famous dry stout Guinness. Fun fact, the Celtic harp that is the emblem of Ireland was actually trademarked by Guinness first.
But what is at the root of Ireland's national holiday? Like many things in this country St. Patrick's Day can be easily traced back to the church and the strong influence it had and still has on the country's culture.
Patrick, who is believed to have lived as the son of a British deacon in the 5th century, was captured by Irish pirates as a young man and spent six years being a prisoner working as a shepherd. During this time he supposedly found God, who told him to flee to the shore, where a ship would await to take him home. Back in Britain, Patrick went on to become a priest and finally returned to Ireland after a vision made him believe that he was to evangelise the Irish pagans.
Having returned to Ireland, Patrick started baptising the Irish and ordaining priests. According to the legend Patrick used the shamrock, the three-leaved version of the clover, to explain to the newly baptised the Holy Trinity. The shamrock later turned into a widely known symbol of Ireland.
Patrick became the first bishop of Ireland, where he resided until his death, of which the actual date is unknown. The 17th of March, his feast day, has become known as the ceremonial death day of the saint, who was never canonised by a Pope but continues to be celebrated as the saint patron of Ireland.
In Ireland his feast day is largely celebrated, there is a parade in all major cities and even small towns often participate in this custom. In the town of Downpatrick, where the saint's remains are said to be buried, a religious parade takes place while in most other cities around the country parades and festivals are more likely to be of a party nature that involves typically Irish music, wearing of green and as said before copious amounts of alcohol. The shortest parade in Ireland takes place in Dripsey, County Cork, where the participants travel between the town's two pubs. In recent years St. Patrick's Day has become an opportunity to promote other aspects of the Irish culture. The week of St. Patrick's Day, for example, is known as Seachtain na Gaeilge or “Irish Language Week“ prompting Irish speakers to use the language more actively.
St. Patrick's Day is very popular around the world, a lot of people travel to Ireland to have an authentic Irish experience while others may simply visit the local Irish Pub for a pint or two and many go out to witness their city's celebrations. In the United States, where the first non-religious parades took place in the late 18th century, Chicago and New York are especially known for the celebrations. This is largely due to the big Irish population in these areas. Chicago even dyes the Chicago River green in honour of Ireland's national holiday.
As you can see, despite being just a small island nation, Ireland has left its mark on this world. It is green and possibly in the shape of shamrock. And now, cheers! Or as the Irish say sláinte!
Jule von Scheidt
