On March 17th, you may have walked into school noticing everyone wearing a slightly excessive amount of green, or the coins, rainbows, and leprechauns on the door. Yes, you might have known this was for St Patrick’s Day, but you also could have wondered why? What is Saint Patrick’s Day, and why do people celebrate it by pinching you for forgetting to wear green?
Firstly, we need to know why St. Patrick’s Day is a holiday. The holiday is there to honor St. Patrick, a bishop from the 5th century who spread Christianity throughout Ireland. He is honored for his missionary work and significant symbolism. The reason St. Patrick’s Day is on March 17th is because that is when St. Patrick had died.
The reason the color green is so important today is because of two reasons. The first reason is for Irish nationalism. The shamrock is Ireland’s national flower, which is completely green. The second reason is due to a popularized legend that wearing green would prevent a leprechaun’s pinch. The tradition of wearing green was so widespread that even presidents started wearing green on the 17th.
It gained popularity in America after many Irish immigrants traveled to America. They celebrated St. Patrick’s Day on the streets, while newspapers portrayed them in harmful stereotypes. They started growing in population and used their nationality for political power. In 1948, President Harry S. Truman was at a St. Patrick’s Day parade. This was a huge monument at the time.
