This is why the world celebrates St. Patrick’s Day

March 17th is Ireland’s National Day, also known as Saint Patrick’s Day. It is the most celebrated national day in the world, and is celebrated in 150 countries with large parades and street events.

What is today an unparalleled world folk festival has its origins in the quieter recognition of Ireland’s patron saint. This day is celebrated in memory of Saint Patrick, who, according to legend, brought Christianity to Ireland.

Saint Patrick’s Day was established as a Christian holiday already in the 17th century, but it was a day of sacred obligations for Irish Catholics. Then there was another color, blue, that distinguished the Irish saint. The modern celebration has very few connections to its historical origins.

Today, the tradition focuses above all on wearing green clothing, preferably with a shamrock, which in Ireland is called a “shamrock”. In some pubs and bars, beer is dyed green. Many people also say that if you don’t wear green on St. Patrick’s Day, your friends are allowed to give you a pinch.

There are differing findings as to how the color green became synonymous with St. Patrick’s Day. Some believe it was a natural evolution that happened over time, due to Ireland’s nickname as the “Emerald Isle”, its green nature and its green flag. But according to time There is also a political connection, as the color green represents Catholic national traditions.

This is how it is celebrated around the world

The United States is one of the countries that celebrate St. Patrick’s Day the most. It is also the Irish diaspora, which emigrated from Ireland to the United States, that shaped above all what has become the tradition today.

In the great city of Chicago, it has become a custom to dye the entire Chicago River green. River is dyed with a vegetable dye that’s supposed to be environmentally friendly, but the recipe is a secret.

But some groups want to leave the river alone.

Dyeing the river perpetuates the idea that it can be treated as it prefers rather than protected as a precious natural resource, Margaret Frisbie, director of Friends of the Chicago River, told Euronews on St. Patrick’s Day last year.

But it’s not just Chicago that celebrates this day. Even the White House in Washington usually dyes the water in one of its fountains green. The world’s largest St. Patrick’s Day parade also takes place along Fifth Avenue in New York, a tradition that dates back to 1762.

Usually, other countries also allow their famous national landmarks to be lit green on March 13, such as the Eiffel Tower in France, the Colosseum in Italy, and the Great Wall of China.

In Dublin, the saint is celebrated for five whole days with the city’s great festival.

Also read: Criticism of dyeing the Chicago River green

Also read: Irish vote on “women’s place in the home”

Also read: American cancer patient developed ‘uncontrollable’ Irish accent