This holiday honors Saint Patrick, Patron Saint of Ireland. Saint Patrick is best known for converting Ireland to Christianity. Saint Patrick's Day is a major holiday in Ireland, and widely observed in countries with large Irish populations. The holiday is widely observed by Americans and Canadians as a secular holiday. However, many Catholic and Protestant churches, who serve the Irish immigrant community, observe the Feast of Saint Patrick as a religious holiday.

In the US, the Saint Patrick's Day observance has become a celebration of Irish culture. Decorations for the holiday include anything Irish: shamrocks, four leafed clovers, shilalies (an Irish club or stick), and leprechauns. The food is Irish, the music is Irish, and the dance is Irish. Over a hundred cities in the US and Canada host Saint Patrick's Day parades. The largest is in New York City. Most businesses and schools in the US remain open on this day.

It is traditional to wear green, the color of the Irish flag, on this day. Many restaurants add Irish stew (either corned beef and cabbage, or ham and cabbage) to their menus. Some fast food chains offer green milkshakes. Saint Patrick's Day is the busiest night of the year for bars and taverns in the US. Traditional Irish Pubs are extremely popular. Most offer green beer for the occasion. Many feature traditional Irish folk music as entertainment.

Saint Patrick was born in Britain in the year 387 AD. He was the son of a British nobleman. When he was sixteen, he was captured, taken to Ireland, and sold to a Druid Chieftain as a slave. He spent six years tending sheep for his Irish master. One day while praying, an angel appeared and told him to escape. He fled, traveled over 200 miles on foot, and obtained passage on a ship out of Ireland. Once he returned to England, he joined the clergy.

In 433 AD, Patrick returned to Ireland as a missionary to convert the Druids to Christianity. Many Druids were fiercely opposed to Saint Patrick. 12 times Patrick was captured and bound by hostile chieftains. For close to 30 years, Saint Patrick traveled Ireland, making converts and performing miracles. He founded over 100 churches. On March 17, 463 AD Saint Patrick died in Ireland. The day of his death, March 17, was chosen as the day to honor this Christian Saint.

In Ireland, Saint Patrick's Day is a national holiday. Irish immigrants brought the holiday to the US and Canada where it was widely accepted. The first American celebration of Saint Patrick's Day occurred in Boston in 1737.

Note: This holiday is one of Calendar Mine's over 500 built-in observances.

See Also

Holiday Catalogue

American (USA) Observances