Everyone is Irish on St. Patrick’s Day
March 17 is celebrated not only in Ireland, but also throughout the world by Irish and non-irish alike. St. Paddy’s Day is known for parades, ancestry, traditions, shamrocks, leprechauns and the “wearin’ o’ the green.”
Interestingly enough, many of the modern Saint Patrick’s Day traditions were invented by the Irish in America.
In the United States, St. Patrick’s Day celebrations can include imbibing green beer, eating corned beef and cabbage or Irish stew or dancing an Irish jig.
It’s hard to miss the signs of St. Patrick’s Day with shamrocks, leprechauns, green cookies, green cupcakes and green milkshakes nearly everywhere you look.
Everyone’s Irish …
There is little agreement on the origins of the idiom “Everyone’s Irish on St. Patrick’s Day,” but what is known is that as many as 4.5 million Irish arrived in America between 1820 and 1930. Between 1820 and 1860, the Irish constituted more than onethird of all immigrants to the United States. In the 1840s, they comprised nearly half of all immigrants to this nation.
The first person to pass through the doors at Ellis Island was teenager Annie Moore of Ireland, whose story is somewhat told in the song Isle of Hope, Isle of Tears by Gaelic Storm.
Who was St. Patrick?
Much of what is shared about St. Patrick is based on folklore and exaggerated storytelling, according to historians. Snakes famously banished from Ireland? Snakes have never existed on the island to even be banished! Getting to the truth of St. Patrick the man takes a little digging through the fanciful tales.
Ironically, St. Patrick wasn’t Irish. St. Patrick was born to a wealthy family in modern-day Great Britain near the end of the fourth century. There is no evidence that Patrick came from a particularly religious family, and History.com says it was likely Patrick’s father became a Christian deacon because of tax incentives and not religious devotion.
Patrick only arrived in Ireland after being taken prisoner by a group of Irish raiders who attacked his family’s estate. He spent ages 16 to 22 in captivity and was likely held in County Mayo.
Much of what is known about St. Patrick comes from two works that he wrote about his life, known as “Confessio” and “Epistola.” In “Confessio,” Patrick responds to the fact that he was on trial for mysterious reasons, although he never names the crimes for which he was accused. Historians surmise that he took bribes because Patrick mentions returning or paying for gifts given to him.
While he played a role in spreading Christianity to Ireland, he did not introduce it there.
He did, however, help make the shamrock become a symbol of Irish nationalism. According to legend, he used the shamrock, also known as a three-leaf clover, as a visual guide to explain the Holy Trinity of Christianity. By the 17th century, the shamrock had become a symbol of emerging Irish nationalism, according to History.com. PHOTOS from 2022 SENSE Block Party: Top left: Craic in the Stone. Top right: Douglas Rankin, 16 months, and father Bryce in their kilts. Bottom right: Members of the Fisher-mcleod Irish School of Dance. PHOTOS BY DAN WATSON / THE SIGNAL