Far from being the day one wears green lest they want to get pinched, or the VeggieTales episode other than Larryboy that I watched the most (see St. Patrick’s Day VeggieTales for the whole experience), St. Patrick’s Day is more than it seems. While the holiday is widely recognized, its meaning is almost as elusive as the fabled pot of gold at the end of a rainbow. I would like to unpack the holiday with you, from the folklore to the facts.
FOLKLORE
While leprechauns have been incorporated into the United States through the sugary (and questionable) cereal known as Lucky Charms, they were initially an aspect of Irish folklore. They were known as mischievous little creatures who “stockpiled their profits in pots and hid them at the end of rainbows or scattered them around forests, mountains, or rocks.” They are related to Saint Patrick’s in that “they are both symbols of Ireland.”
FACTS
Saint Patrick, whose birth name was Maewyn Succat, grew up in Britain with his father, a church deacon. After a turn of events, Succat was uprooted from his English home by Irish raiders and taken to Ireland when he was 16. There, “he spent six bleak years there as a herdsman, during which time he turned with fervor to his faith.” Later, he fled his enslavers and was reunited with his family. Despite his successful escape, he returned to Ireland to preach the Gospel to the inhabitants. He adopted the name Saint Patrick, which means “father figure,” after he became a priest. He is credited for bringing Christianity to Ireland and is the nation’s patron saint. St. Patrick’s Day, which takes place on March 17, recognizes the day he died (March 17, 461 AD) and remembers him for the light he brought to Ireland nearly 1,600 years ago.
LINKS
For further information about leprechauns, visit WorldAtlas’ “What Do Leprechauns Have To Do With St. Patrick’s Day?”
To learn more about Saint Patrick, visit Britannica’s St. Patrick page.
