According to Britannica St. Patrick’s Day is the feast day of St. Patrick, a patron saint of Ireland who is celebrated all over the United States and Ireland. “He was a 5th century missionary to Ireland who is credited with bringing Christianity to that country. We celebrate St. Patrick’s Day on the 17th of March because it is the supposed date of his passing in 461 CE.”
History.com states that “St. Patrick was born in Roman Britain in the Late 4th century. He was kidnapped at The age of 16 and taken to Ireland as a slave,” then escaped only to return about 432 CE to convert the Irish to Christianity by establishing monasteries, churches, and schools. Many Legends say that St. Patrick drove the snakes out of Ireland and used the shamrock to explain the Trinity.
The United States is the country that transformed St. Patrick’s Day into a hugely celebrated holiday. Irish immigrants fleeing Ireland’s potato famine settled in large U.S. cities like Boston, New York City, and Chicago, Britannica notes, and “staged the most extensive celebrations, which included elaborate parades.” For example, “Chicago every year since 1962 has colored the Chicago River green to celebrate the holiday.” According to Mental Floss, the dye the city uses is “an environmentally safe, powdered, vegetable-based dye that is actually orange and turns green when it’s mixed with water.”
Other St. Paddy’s Day traditions include wearing shamrocks (Ireland’s national plant) or other green articles. Even beer is sometimes dyed green. Corned beef and cabbage is a time-honored dish served on the holiday. The dish, which originated because corned beef was cheaper for the immigrants to buy than the ham they had been accustomed to back in Ireland, quickly became a New World favorite (Mental Floss).
