St. Patrick's Day: What Nobody Told You and How to Actually Celebrate It

The Man Behind the Holiday Was Not Irish

St. Patrick was born around 386 A.D. in Roman Britain — likely what is now Wales or Scotland. His real name was not even Patrick. He was born Maewyn Succat and later adopted the Latinized name Patricius when he entered the Church.

At age 16, he was kidnapped by Irish raiders and sold into slavery. He spent six years as a shepherd in Ireland before escaping after reportedly hearing a voice in a dream telling him to flee. He eventually returned to Ireland as a missionary, spending the rest of his life converting the Irish to Christianity. He was never officially canonized — the formal canonization process did not exist until centuries after his death.

And the snakes? Ireland has never had snakes. The island has been surrounded by water since the last ice age. Scholars believe the famous story of Patrick "driving out the snakes" was a metaphor for replacing pagan beliefs with Christianity.

Why Green? It Was Originally Blue

The earliest depictions of St. Patrick show him in blue robes. A 13th-century manuscript called the Legenda Aurea contains the oldest known image of Patrick — dressed in blue. The shade became known as "St. Patrick's Blue" and was used when King George III created the Order of St. Patrick in 1783.

Green took over through Irish rebellion. In the 1790s, the revolutionary Society of United Irishmen adopted green as their color. After the failed Irish Rebellion of 1798, the British actually outlawed wearing green. Irish newspapers reported that wearing green ribbons could "subject a man to imprisonment, transportation, the rope or the bayonet." A famous street ballad called "The Wearing of the Green" lamented the crackdown. Green became an act of defiance — and permanently fused with Irish identity.

Corned Beef Is Not Irish — Here Is What They Actually Eat

If you went to Ireland on St. Patrick's Day and ordered corned beef and cabbage, people would look at you sideways. The dish was invented in America by Irish immigrants in the 1800s.

Here is how it happened: Irish immigrants arriving after the Great Famine settled in crowded tenements alongside Jewish and Italian immigrants in cities like New York. In Ireland, the traditional dish was bacon and cabbage — but Irish bacon was too expensive in America. At Jewish delis on the Lower East Side, Irish immigrants discovered corned beef brisket, noticed its similarity to their bacon back home, and paired it with the cheapest vegetable they could find: cabbage. The tradition stuck in America but never crossed the Atlantic back to Ireland.

What Irish people actually eat on March 17:

• Roast leg of lamb with mint sauce and roast potatoes — the most common St. Patrick's Day meal in Ireland
• Bacon and cabbage — the original dish that corned beef replaced. Irish bacon is a lean cut from the back of the pig, boiled until tender
• Irish stew — slow-cooked lamb or beef with potatoes, onions, and carrots. A cornerstone of Irish cooking since the 1700s
• Colcannon — creamy mashed potatoes folded with cooked cabbage or kale, butter, and scallions. Nearly every Irish family has their own version
• Irish soda bread — just four ingredients: flour, baking soda, buttermilk, and salt. No yeast, no rising time. The cross cut into the top was believed to "let the fairies out." And the authentic version does not have raisins — that is an American addition

Pubs Were Closed on St. Patrick's Day Until the 1970s

This shocks most Americans. Until the early 1970s, Irish law required every pub in the country to close on March 17. The reason: because St. Patrick's Day falls during Lent, it was treated as a solemn religious observance. Authorities feared open pubs would lead to "a disrespectful amount of drunkenness" during the sacred season.

Before the law was repealed, the only place in Dublin where you could legally get a drink on St. Patrick's Day was at the annual Royal Dublin Society Dog Show. So if you wanted a pint on March 17, you had to go look at dogs first.

Here is the irony: the reason St. Patrick's Day became associated with drinking in the first place is that it was the one day during Lent when Catholics were traditionally allowed to break their fast. It was a sanctioned feast day in the middle of six weeks of austerity — which made it feel like a celebration by contrast.

The First Parade Was in America, Not Ireland

On March 17, 1762 — fourteen years before the Declaration of Independence — homesick Irish soldiers serving in the British Army in New York City organized the first recorded St. Patrick's Day parade. They marched through the streets speaking Irish, wearing green (which was banned back home), singing Irish songs, and playing pipes. It was a celebration of a freedom they did not have in Ireland.

Ireland did not hold its first St. Patrick's Day parade until 1903 in Waterford. The large secular parades Ireland has today are actually a "reverse migration" — inspired by and modeled after the American parades, not the other way around. Ireland's government did not create the St. Patrick's Festival until 1996, borrowing heavily from the American model to boost tourism.

Today, 33 million Americans claim Irish ancestry — roughly seven times the entire population of Ireland.

The Shamrock, the Leprechaun, and the Chicago River

The shamrock comes from legend: St. Patrick supposedly used the three-leaf clover to explain the Holy Trinity to a pagan audience — three leaves on one stem representing the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The tradition of wearing shamrock on the holiday dates to the early 1700s. In the evening, the custom was "drowning the shamrock" — dropping it into your last drink, finishing the glass, then throwing the shamrock over your left shoulder for good luck.

The leprechaun of Irish folklore looks nothing like the cheerful green mascot Americans know. The original leprechaun was a solitary cobbler — you could identify one by the tapping sound of his hammer on leather. They were fearful, cunning creatures descended from Lugh, one of the greatest warrior-kings in Irish mythology. As Christianity spread, Lugh's stature was literally diminished, transforming him from a hero into a tiny fairy craftsman. The jolly green suit and pot of gold are American commercial inventions, and some Irish scholars argue the image descends from derogatory 19th-century anti-Irish caricatures.

The Chicago River turns green every year, and it started with sewage. In 1955, city workers were using green fluorescent dye to trace where sewage was entering the river. A plumber named Stephen Bailey noticed the bright green stains on a worker's overalls and had an idea. In 1962, they dumped 100 pounds of dye into the river, turning it green for a full week. The original plan was to dye Lake Michigan, but the river was more practical. The dye powder is actually orange — it only turns green when it hits the water.

How to Celebrate at Home — The Real Way

Skip the green beer. Here is a dinner you can actually pull off this week:

The day before: Make Irish stew. It reheats beautifully and tastes better the next day.

Day of:

1. Irish soda bread — make it one hour before dinner. Four ingredients, no yeast, under 60 minutes start to finish
2. Colcannon — boil potatoes and cabbage, mash together with butter and scallions. 30 minutes
3. Irish stew — reheat what you made yesterday. Serve with the soda bread for dipping
4. Irish coffee — after dinner. Preheat a glass mug, add hot black coffee, dissolve brown sugar, stir in Irish whiskey, then float lightly whipped cream over the back of a spoon so it sits on top as a separate layer

Put on real Irish music: The Dubliners ("Whiskey in the Jar," "The Wild Rover"), The Chieftains, The Pogues ("Fairytale of New York"). For something modern, Hozier, The Cranberries, or Fontaines D.C.

Watch something Irish: Once (2007) — a small Dublin folk musical that won an Oscar. Derry Girls — a hilarious sitcom about teenagers in 1990s Northern Ireland. Brooklyn (2015) — Saoirse Ronan as an Irish immigrant in 1950s New York.

With kids: Cook the soda bread together (they can help with everything). Do a shamrock hunt in the yard or hide paper shamrocks around the house. Read Irish legends aloud — the Children of Lir is a good one. Learn to say "Slainte" (SLAWN-cha), the Irish toast meaning "health."

Every Deal and Freebie Worth Knowing This March 17

Now for the practical part. We tracked down every legitimate deal happening this St. Patrick's Day so you can save real money while you celebrate.

Free stuff (no catch):

• Krispy Kreme (March 15-17): Wear anything green and get a free Green O'riginal Glazed doughnut. No purchase, no app. Plus 4,000 random guests win a Golden Dozen Pass — free doughnuts every month for a year
• Burger King (March 17): Free onion rings (any size) with $1+ purchase. Royal Perks member (free)
• Paris Baguette (March 17): Free pastry with any beverage. PB Rewards member (free)

Best restaurant savings:

• Del Taco (March 17-18): BOGO Epic Fresh Guacamole Burrito — saves $7-9. Del Yeah! Rewards, order in-app
• Applebee's (through April 5): $6 Mucho cocktails with Jameson and Bacardi — usually $10-14. Dine-in
• Mountain Mike's Pizza (March 17): 20% off all orders for loyalty members
• Bad Daddy's Burger Bar (March 17): $3 Guinness pints (usually $6-8)

The deal most people miss:

• 7-Eleven 7NOW app (March 17 only): Code LUCKY for $17 off any $30+ order. That is 57% off snacks, drinks, and party supplies delivered to your door

Beyond food:

• Lenovo St. Patrick's Day Sale: 20-40% off ThinkPad, IdeaPad, Legion, and Yoga laptops. The tech deal nobody expects on this holiday
• Ulta 21 Days of Beauty (through March 26): 50% off 250+ beauty brands daily. Overlaps perfectly with the holiday