What is St. Patrick's Day? Why do we celebrate it? Is it religious?

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St. Patrick’s Day in America may be seen as some as a pot of gold on the calendar – a chance to don green while swigging jade beer and searching for an ounce of Irish ancestry with the same tenacity as you would a four-leaf clover.

But as the experts tell it, the day that originated in America is a prideful one for Irish and Irish Americans, one where their heritage is celebrated.

To get the scoop on the holiday, USA TODAY has turned to Elizabeth Stack, executive director of Albany’s Irish American Heritage Museum, and Brian Witt, the cultural exhibits coordinator for Milwaukee Irish Fest.

Here’s how they answered questions that you may have:

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Table of Contents

Who was St. Patrick and why do we celebrate?

St. Patrick is the patron saint of Ireland, brought to the Emerald Isle when he was kidnapped and enslaved. Though he eventually escaped, he returned and advanced Christianity throughout the island. He is celebrated on March 17, the day he is believed to have died.

Witt says the day gives Irish and Irish Americans the opportunity to “celebrate their heritage,” and Stack agrees that the parades in places like the states and England convey “that the Irish people have made a contribution to the society – that they were sort of welcomed, that they were accepted as citizens.”

Is St. Patrick’s Day a religious holiday?

It is and it isn’t, Witt says, noting some parades in the U.S. are preceded by Catholic masses. He believes, “Most people have no idea of any religious significance.”

Stack says the day is a religious holiday in Ireland, mentioning the island’s high Catholic population.

“It’s a holy day of obligation for Catholics (in Ireland), which means they are supposed to attend mass,” she says.

Was St. Patrick Irish?

No, St. Patrick is believed to have been born in Britain in 386.

When he was 16, he was captured by pirates and brought to Ireland, where he was sold as a slave, Stack previously told USA TODAY.

He escaped to France in 408, and he was ordained as a bishop in 432. He was then sent by Pope Celestine I to Ireland to support Christians there and spread the religion.

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How did St. Patrick’s Day become a drinking holiday?

Stack says alcohol was “really not much not part” of St. Patrick’s Day celebrations in Ireland until recently.

“It was kind of a family day that you’d celebrate, but no alcohol was available. … Because it was a holiday in Lent, you could not buy alcohol on that day,” she says. (Some websites state that the ban was repealed in the 1960s, while others say it wasn’t until the following decade.)

Stack is perplexed as to how the day became associated with drinking, as she feels “The Irish community, in particular, has been very careful about the image that they portrayed on this day.” She notes the Irish “are kind of famous” for their “socializing culture, but it’s a little bit of a pity, that (the day) has been overshadowed.”

Witt says “people have always associated the Irish with drinking.” Still, he stresses “not every stereotype is completely true.”

He believes the abundance of bars in places with large Irish populations, like New York City, Boston and Milwaukee, may be the answer.

Is St. Patrick’s Day big in Ireland?

Stack says the occasion is a big deal and is a family day.

“Now it’s a bank holiday so everybody gets the day off school and most of the businesses are closed.”

Why do we wear green on St. Patrick’s Day?

Fun fact: St. Patrick is tied to the color blue. So why do people cloak themselves in green?

“The Irish Americans would wear the green as a reminder that they were nationalists first and foremost,” explains Witt. “The colors of the Irish flag are green, white and orange, the green symbolizing the Irish nationalism, the orange symbolizing the Orangemen of the north and the white symbolizing peace.”

Stack mentions the mythical belief that green is to be worn to “make you invisible to leprechauns,” which she says originated in America.

What do real Irish people eat on St. Patrick’s Day?

“We eat bacon and cabbage, not corned beef and cabbage,” says Stack. “The corned beef comes from America when the immigrants came over.” She says griddle potato farls and soda bread (likely without raisins) may also be a part of the spread.

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