St. Patrick’s Day Fun Facts

St. Patrick’s Day was originally a religious holiday commemorating the patron saint of Ireland.

The first St. Patrick’s Day parade was held in New York City in 1762.

The original color associated with St. Patrick’s Day was blue, not green.

The shamrock is a symbol of St. Patrick’s Day because St. Patrick used it to explain the concept of the Holy Trinity.

St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated on March 17th, the anniversary of St. Patrick’s death.

Corned beef and cabbage is a traditional St. Patrick’s Day dish in the United States, but it is not commonly eaten in Ireland.

The Chicago River is dyed green every St. Patrick’s Day.

St. Patrick’s Day is a public holiday in Ireland, but it is not a national holiday in the United States.

St. Patrick is said to have used a three-leafed shamrock to explain the Christian concept of the Holy Trinity.

The Cliffs of Moher in Ireland are often lit up in green on St. Patrick’s Day.

St. Patrick’s Day is believed to bring good luck, and wearing green is thought to keep leprechauns away.

Ireland’s St. Patrick’s Cathedral is one of the oldest Christian sites in Dublin.

The average person consumes about four pints of Guinness on St. Patrick’s Day.

The first St. Patrick’s Day parade in Ireland was held in Waterford in 1903.

St. Patrick’s Day is a public holiday in Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada.

St. Patrick’s Day Fun Facts part 2

Over 100 US monuments, landmarks, and buildings around the world are illuminated green on St. Patrick’s Day.

The oldest St. Patrick’s Day parade in Ireland is held in Dingle, County Kerry.

St. Patrick’s Day parades can be found in countries all over the world, including Russia, Japan, and Brazil.

St. Patrick is not actually Irish; he was born in Britain around the year 385.

The largest St. Patrick’s Day parade in the world takes place in New York City.

St. Patrick’s Day is also known as the Feast of St. Patrick.

The phrase “the luck of the Irish” is actually an American phrase and was originally used to mock Irish immigrants.

The first St. Patrick’s Day parade in Dublin was held in 1931 and had 500,000 participants.

St. Patrick’s Day is a popular time for people to dye their hair green.

The longest St. Patrick’s Day parade in the world is held in Montreal, Canada, and lasts for over three hours.

In Ireland, it is traditional to wear a bunch of shamrocks in your cap or on your clothing on St. Patrick’s Day.

St. Patrick’s Day was made an official Christian feast day in the early 17th century.

St. Patrick used the three-leafed shamrock to explain the concept of the Holy Trinity to the Irish pagans.

The term leprechaun means small-bodied, and they are believed to be mischievous fairies in Irish folklore.

The first Irish flag was introduced by Thomas Francis Meagher in 1848, incorporating the green, white, and orange colors.

The Great Potato Famine, also known as the Irish Potato Famine, took place in Ireland from 1845 to 1849.

The flag of St. Patrick is a white saltire (diagonal cross) on a blue field.

Despite his association with Ireland, St. Patrick was never officially canonized by the Catholic Church.

It is said that St. Patrick banished all snakes from Ireland; however, there were no snakes in Ireland in the first place.

In 2010, the Sydney Opera House turned green for St. Patrick’s Day.

The shortest St. Patrick’s Day parade in the world takes place in Dripsey, Ireland, and is just 100 yards long.

St. Patrick’s Day celebrations include traditional Irish music and dance performances.

The largest collection of Irish pubs outside of Ireland can be found in Boston, Massachusetts.

A traditional St. Patrick’s Day greeting is Erin go Bragh, which means Ireland forever.

St. Patrick’s Day parades often include marching bands, bagpipers, and cultural floats.

In Ireland, St. Patrick’s Day was considered a dry holiday until 1970, meaning that all pubs were closed.

St. Patrick is said to have spent six years in captivity in Ireland before escaping and returning to Britain.

St. Patrick’s Day is a popular day for Irish-Americans to connect with their Irish heritage.

The New York St. Patrick’s Day parade is the world’s oldest civilian parade and attracts over two million spectators each year.

Some people believe that finding a four-leaf clover on St. Patrick’s Day will bring even more luck.