St. Patricks Day

Cienna Thorne gives an overview of the holiday celebrated with greens and gold.

Image Credit: Georgetown Hill Early School

St. Patrick’s Day, also known as the Feast of St. Patrick, is originally celebrated in Ireland for religious and cultural reasons. March 17th, 1631, was the first St. Patrick’s Day ever celebrated in Ireland, and March 17th, 1737, was the first one celebrated in America. Every Year in NYC there is a parade held every year since 1762; there are many smaller ones as well all around.

For Christians, St. Patrick's Day is to celebrate St. Patrick as well as the arrival of Christianity in Ireland. Surprisingly, St. Patrick wasn’t Irish. St. Patrick was known to wear blue and not green. He was believed to be born in Roman Britain, into a wealthy family. He was kidnapped by Irish raiders and taken as a slave to Ireland. It’s said he spent about 6 years working as a shepherd. He eventually returned to his family and Ireland.

St. Patrick's Day is celebrated by going to church, parades, events, dying rivers green, going out to bars, and wearing green. It has become very popular in cities with more Irish people in the population, especially Boston, New York, and Chicago. Whether you celebrate St. Patrick’s Day because of the culture or not, it’s a fun holiday for people to go out and enjoy others' company and the start of spring. Go out, have fun, wear green, and enjoy the day!