St. Patrick’s Day Fun Facts
By Chanachon “Nam” Boonphakdee
This upcoming March 17 is the annual Saint Patrick’s Day for 2018. It is held to commemorate the
death of Saint Patrick of Ireland. Yet, there may be a few things that you may not know about this widely-
celebrated holiday. Here are top 10 facts about Saint Patrick’s Day.
Fun fact #1:
Historians generally agree that Saint Patrick was bor n in Roman Britain and brought to Ireland at the age of
16 as a slave. He then later escaped back to Britain but then returned later, bringing Christianity along with
him.
Fun fact #2:
Saint Patrick often used the shamrock to illustrate the holy trinity (the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit)
during his preaching. The three leaves of the shamrock are also used to represent love, hope, and faith.
Fun fact #3:
Legend has it that once Saint Patrick arrived in Ireland, the first chieftain that he met almost killed him, but
Patrick was saved by God’s intervention. Soon, Patrick managed to convert said chieftain to Christianity, and
his entire Kingdom soon followed.
Fun fact #4:
In the early 1900s, a large amount of Irish immigrants began to make their way to the US. Over 1 million Irish
made the trip in order to avoid starvation that plagued Ireland at the time: the potato famine. Upon arriving,
they were met with fierce prejudice and discrimination. The Irish however, managed to organize themselves
and St. Patrick’s Day celebrations became a way for them to show their strength, unity and ethnic identity.
Fun fact #5:
We normally associate Saint Patrick with green. In reality, Saint Patrick actually wore blue. The green only
came afterwards to better showcase Irish strength and unity.
Fun fact #6:
Did you know that every Saint Patrick’s Day, the Chicago River is dyed green? That’s right, every year on
March 17, the city of Chicago dyes the river green in order to celebrate the event. The practice started in the
1960s when wastewater management crews found out that one of their chemicals that they used to treat
waste water gave off a green hue. Nowadays, 40 pounds of the substance is dumped into the river to give the
river a green color for a few hours (to prevent environmental damage).
Fun fact #7:
The very first St. Patrick’s Day parade held in the US actually occurred in 1762 when Irish troops in the British
Colonial infantry marched down New York Street.
Fun fact #8:
Corned beef and cabbage, a traditional Saint Patrick’s Day dish, doesn’t really have anything to do with corn
grains. Instead, the term is actually a nod to salt, historically used as a food preservative, which is also called
“corn” (don’t ask why).
Fun fact #9:
Did you know that there are no female leprechauns? Yeah, all leprechauns are male according to Irish
folktale. So if you see a girl leprechaun, you can easily call her out as a fake.
Fun fact #10:
Speaking of leprechauns, you know that pot of gold that is said to be at the end of the rainbow and that lep-
rechauns guard it? Yeah, they earned it with their sweat. According to legends, the leprechauns earn their
money through making and mending shoes. Imagine working that hard in order to get that much gold to fill
up an entire pot. So of course the leprechauns would feel territorial around their gold.
And that is it, folks! Hopefully you guys have learned something new in this top ten fun facts for Saint Pat-
rick’s Day. Hope you guys enjoyed this and I’ll see you in the next edition. See y’all then.