St. Patrick’s Day is an occasion that is celebrated by millions of people across the globe. Celebrated all across the world, it would not be surprising if you have been a part of the festivities of St. Patrick’s Day in the past few years. Although, have you ever wondered how Ireland’s patron saint became so popular internationally?
The patron saint’s day was an actual celebration of Ireland, but it has become an occasion celebrated by people of different nationalities, even if you’re not Irish. Betway has taken the initiative to illustrate the history of St. Patrick’s Day and how it became an international festival. From traditional jigs to green hair-dyes, St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated in a variety of ways. Let us take a look at how this festival tread its path from Ireland to all across the world.
St. Patrick’s Day: A Brief History
The Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland has a combined population of just about 6.8 million which is less than 0.01 per cent of the entire world’s population. But these numbers have not stopped the Irish patron saint’s day from becoming an international occasion and festivity.
Although it must be said that when we recount the lives of historical figures, especially that dates back to such a long time ago, real incidents and apocryphal tales might often get mixed up, transforming the entire backdrop of the story. So we have not gone into the discussion about whether Saint Patrick did drive the snakes out of Ireland. But what we can be sure of is that his strong legacy is still continuing on the Emerald Isle and beyond.
Saint Patrick was originally born in England. He was primarily known for bringing Christianity to Ireland and also as one of the most prominent Christian missionaries. He died on the 17th of March, 461 AD. This day is celebrated all across the world as St. Patrick’s Day.
Surprisingly, the first recorded St. Patrick’s Day parade took place in Florida, rather than in Ireland in the year of 1601. St. Patrick’s Day was officially added to the Catholic Church calendar during the 1630s. The United States has always been a popular destination for Irish settlers. Quite naturally, 32 million Americans claimed to have Irish origins during the 2019 census.
It is therefore not a surprise that the first official St. Patrick’s Day parade took place in New York City during the year 1762. It is claimed that this parade event was organized by the Irish soldiers who were serving in the British army during those times.
The St. Patrick’s Day tradition of the green color, popular across the world, arose from the event where participants wore green to express their freedom to wear the color, which was a sign of Irish solidarity and pride during that time. It was a criminal offence to wear green in Ireland at that time.
Ever since, the day kept on growing popular across the world, as a day to celebrate and almost a week long festivity in many countries.
