FROM slave TO saint

For the week that’s in it, why not get the story behind the legend. Donal O’Donoghue on a new book about Saint Patrick

Ionce knew of a man called Paddy Patrick. I suspect it was a nickname, or maybe not. Perhaps it was following in a local patronymic tradition of calling a person after their forefathers or perhaps it was like what they say about New York: so good they named it twice. Because whether you are named Paddy or Patrick or Pat or Podge or Pádraig or any other variation thereof, having the same forename as Ireland’s patron saint is worth celebrating, especially at this time of year. And you won’t be short of a book or two if you’re curious about your name’s provenance.

Saint Patrick: Life, Legend and Legacy by Marian Broderick is the latest publication on the great man. Unsurprisingly it is green in hue, with a shamrock-tinted Colosseum on its cover, and global in its reach, kicking off with the information that there are places of worship devoted to St Patrick from California to Karachi and the author confessing that in her family tree there are 11 Patricks alone. But there is quite a bit of confusion surrounding the saint, not least his place of birth (was it Scotland, England, Wales or even France?).

Broderick gives us Saint Patrick’s life and times, Fifth Century Ireland which was steeped in pagan ritual and traditions and allegedly snakes (although this might come under the ‘legend’ banner). It is peppered with curious facts. Like did you know that until recently it was very unlucky in Ireland to get married in green? No, me neither. Or that St Patrick’s Day is a national holiday on the Caribbean island of Montserrat? There is also a chapter on the tall tales that have sprung up around the man and from the greening of Ireland we go bang up to date with the greening of the world, where famous landmarks (including the Great Wall of China) go green for the day.

• Saint Patrick by Marian Broderick is published by The O’Brien Press