Hello and Happy St. Patrick’s Day to Everyone who celebrates it 🙂
This year, I am thinking of adding a section for culture to my blog and sharing stories from the places I have lived and am currently living.
As I am currently in Ireland, the first one will be for St. Patrick’s Day.
As some of you may know, the 17th of March is dedicated to celebrating St. Patrick’s life legacy and the influence he had on Irish people and on Irish culture.
Who was St. Patrick and what hed did to be revered by the Irish?
There are not too many details about his life, but from the known information, he was a fifth-century Christian priest.
The story tells that when he was a teenager, he was kidnapped by Irish pirates and brought to Ireland, where he was a slave on a farm. Here, he was introduced to Irish culture and language. During his time on the island, his faith has grown and become stronger. He stayed in Ireland for about six years before managing to escape back to his family in Britain. It is said that he had a dream in which he was told that it was time to escape, and a ship was ready.
After going back to Britain, he became a clerk and studied Christianity. It is said that he received another dream in which he was told to go back to Ireland and help spread Christianity. So he ded that.
His journey, described in what is believed to be his diary” Confessio,” was said not to be an easy one, but a successful one. His effort to spread Christianity led to the establishment of many churches, monasteries, and schools.
Towards the end of his life, he was living in Soil, a village in Northern Ireland, where his first church was built and where he died.
Irish Clover:
St. Patrick used the three-leafed shamrock to explain the Holy Trinity to the Celtic tribes.
Legend:
One of many legends about St. Patrick is that he drove the snakes out of Ireland to the sea.
St. Patrick’s Parade:
At first, St. Patrick’s was celebrated as a religious feast, but Irish immigrants in the United States transformed it into a bigger celebration of Irish culture and heritage, more than just a religious celebration.
The first parade celebrations were in Boston and New York in the 18th century, but in Ireland, this tradition was adopted later on in the 20th century and today attracts thousands of people each year.
Nevertheless, today St. Patrick’s is celebrated on the 17th of March all over the world as a celebration of Irish culture and heritage, and since 2010, a lot of landmarks have been lit in green – the London Eye, Sidney Opera House, Eiffel Tower, and many others.
Traditions:
As green is the color associated with St. Patrick, people wear green clothes and a shamrock on the lapel.
To wish someone a happy St Patrick’s Day in Irish, you say:
“Lá fhéile Pádraig sona dhuit!”
Resources:
- “Saint Patrick’s Day” Wikipedia
- “St. Patrick”- Britannica
- “What is St Patrick’s Day?” Ireland.ie
Pettite Two a Pret 
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