Happy Saint Patrick’s Day

Published 12:00 am Friday, March 11, 2011

Saint Patrick’s Day is a religious holiday celebrated internationally on March 17. It is named after Saint Patrick, the most commonly recognized of the patron saints of Ireland. It originated as a Catholic holiday and became an official feast day in the early 17th century. It has gradually become more of a secular celebration of Irish culture.

It is a public holiday in the Republic of Ireland, Northern Ireland, Newfoundland and Labrador and in Montserrat. It is also widely celebrated by the Irish diaspora, especially in places such as Great Britain, Canada, the United States, Argentina, Australia, New Zealand and Montserrat, among others.

Saint Patrick

Little is known of Patrick’s early life, though it is known that he was born in Roman Britain in the fourth century, into a wealthy Romano-British family. His father and grandfather were deacons in the Church. At the age of 16, he was kidnapped by Irish raiders and taken captive to Ireland as a slave. It is believed he was held somewhere on the west coast of Ireland, possibly Mayo, but the exact location is unknown. According to his confession, he was told by God in a dream to flee from captivity to the coast where he would board a ship and return to Britain. Upon returning, he quickly joined the Church in Auxerre in Gaul and studied to be a priest.

In 432, he again said he was called back to Ireland, though as a bishop, to Christian the Irish from their native polytheism. Irish folklore tells that one of his teaching methods included using the shamrock to explain the Christian doctrine of the Trinity to the Irish people. After nearly 30 years of evangelism, he died on March 17, 461 and according to tradition, was buried at Downpatrick. Although there were other more successful missions to Ireland from Rome, Patrick endured as the principal champion of Irish Christianity and is held in esteem in the Irish Church.

The wearing of green

Originally, the color associated with Saint Patrick was blue. Over the years the color green and its association with Saint Patrick’s day grew. Green ribbons and shamrocks were worn in celebration of St Patrick’s Day as early as the 17th century. He is said to have used the shamrock, a three-leaved plant, to explain the Holy Trinity to the pagan Irish, and the wearing and display of shamrocks and shamrock-inspired designs have become a ubiquitous feature of the day. In the 1798 rebellion, in hopes of making a political statement, Irish soldiers wore full green uniforms on March 17 in hopes of catching public attention. The phrase “the wearing of the green,” meaning to wear a shamrock on one’s clothing, derives from a song of the same name.

Customs today

In every year since 1991, March has been proclaimed Irish-American Heritage Month by the US Congress or president because of the date of St. Patrick’s Day. Today, Saint Patrick’s Day is widely celebrated in America by Irish and non-Irish alike. It is one of the leading days for consumption of alcohol in the United States and is typically one of the busiest days of the year for bars and restaurants. Many people, regardless of ethnic background, wear green clothing and items. Traditionally, those who are caught not wearing green are pinched affectionately.

Seattle and other cities paint the traffic stripe of their parade routes green. Chicago dyes its river green and has done so since 1962 when sewer workers used green dye to check for sewer discharges and had the idea to turn the river green for Saint Patrick’s Day. Originally 100 pounds of vegetable dye was used to turn the river green for a whole week but now only 40 pounds of dye is used and the color only lasts for several hours. Indianapolis also dyes its main canal green. Savannah dyes its downtown city fountains green. Missouri University of Science and Technology – St Pat’s Board Alumni paint 12 city blocks kelly green with mops before the annual parade. In Jamestown, N.Y., the Chadakoin River (a small tributary that connects Conewango Creek with its source at Chautauqua Lake) is dyed green each year.

Columbia, S.C. dyes its fountain green in the area known as Five Points (a popular collegiate location near the University of South Carolina). A two day celebration is held over St. Patrick’s Day weekend. In Boston, Evacuation Day is celebrated as a public holiday for Suffolk County. While officially commemorating the British departure from Boston, it was made an official holiday after Saint Patrick’s Day parades had been occurring in Boston for several decades and is often believed to have been popularized because of its falling on the same day as Saint Patrick’s Day.

In the Northeastern United States, peas are traditionally planted on Saint Patrick’s Day.

New Orleans

Historically the largest entry port for Irish immigrants in the U.S. South, New Orleans has maintained a large population of Irish heritage and Saint Patrick’s Day traditions going back to the 19th century, including multiple block parties and parades.

The New Orleans parades are mostly based around neighborhood and community organizations. Major parades include the Irish Channel parade, the Downtown Irish Parade starting in the Bywater neighborhood, multiple parades in the French Quarter and a combined Irish-Italian Parade celebrating both Saint Patrick’s Day and Saint Joseph’s Day. As with many parades in New Orleans, the influence of New Orleans Mardi Gras is apparent, with some of the floats being reused from local Carnival parades and beads and trinkets being thrown to those along the parade route. New Orleans Saint Patrick’s Day parades are also famous for throwing onions, carrots, cabbages, potatoes and other ingredients for making an Irish stew.

Various suburbs and surrounding communities also hold celebrations, including parades in Metairie and Slidell and an Irish Italian Isleño Parade in Chalmette.