St Patrick’s Day, or Lá Fhéile Pádraig (The Day of the Festival of Saint Patrick), is Ireland’s national holiday, a bit similar to the Dutch King’s Day; they wear their country’s colour (green) and they drink (mostly) beer.
But that’s not all there’s to the holiday, there is a deep-rooted cultural and folkloristic backstory that goes back to the early 17th century.
The 17th of March is, in the Catholic Calendar of Saints, the day of St Patrick’s death, who is Ireland’s patron saint. St Patrick is thought to be a British bishop from the fourth century, who had found his way to Ireland by being taken as a slave. After he escaped and got home he later returned to convert pagan Ireland to Christianity by driving the ‘snakes’ (an allegory for heathens) out of Ireland.
St Patrick’s Day is commonly celebrated by Irish all over the world, especially in North America, the UK, and Canada. However, recently there has been some criticism in the US about St Patrick’s Day becoming too commercialised instead of cultural and feeding into a negative stereotype of Irish people.
There is a parade and often traditional music sessions on the day of the celebrations. It is customary to go to the pub and wear green, which has been happening since around 1680. Wearing green comes from the legend of Lebor Gabala Erenn (The Book of the Taking of Ireland) in which Goidel Glas (Goidel the green, the ancestor of the Gaels) is bitten by a venomous snake which turns green after he is saved by Moses. His descendants settled in an Ireland without snakes.
Many global landmarks are often bathed in green light, like for example the Sydney Opera House. The Chicago River is also dyed green for the occasion.
In Ireland, the week of St Patrick’s Day (1st of March until the 17th of March) is Seachtain na Gaeilge (Irish language week) where there is more of an effort made to speak Irish.
Because Ireland is a Catholic country, many people follow the rules of Lent during the time of St Patrick’s Day. For this day the lent restrictions are lifted, which could be why drinking alcohol became such an integral part of the celebrations. In some communities in Ireland, it’s still tradition to ‘wet the shamrock’ by putting it at the bottom of a glass with stout or cider and drinking it. You either swallow the shamrock or throw it over your shoulder for good luck.
It is also a day to promote Ireland. Tourism Ireland came with a ‘Going Green for St Patrick’s Day’ initiative in 2010 and Irish ministers travel around the world to promote the country.
If you want to join in the local celebrations here in Groningen, the local Irish pubs offer a fantastic opportunity for you to do so.
The Northern Times also met the people running them to learn more about the appeal of Irish pubs around the world.
Image used under license from Shutterstock.com
