View source for Saint Patrick's Day

{{Short description|Cultural and religious celebration on 17 March}}
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{{Other uses}}
{{Use Hiberno-English|date=March 2022}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2024}}
{{Infobox holiday
| holiday_name  = Saint Patrick's Day
| type          = Christian
| longtype      = Ethnic, national, Christian
| image         = Kilbennan St. Benin's Church Window St. Patrick Detail 2010 09 16.jpg
| alt           = A stained glass window depicts Saint Patrick dressed in a green robe with a halo about his head, holding a sham rock in his right hand and a staff in his left. <!-- The split between "sham" and "rock" is intentional. Certain screen readers enunciate "shamrock" more intelligibly when the word is split. -->
| caption       = Saint Patrick depicted in a [[stained-glass window]] at [[Benignus of Armagh|Saint Benin]]'s Church, Ireland
| official_name = Saint Patrick's Day
| nickname      = * Feast of Saint Patrick
* {{lang|ga|Lá Fhéile Pádraig}}
* Patrick's Day
* (St.) Paddy's Day
* (St.) Patty's Day (chiefly North America)<ref>{{cite news |title=One Irish creative agency is leading the charge against 'St. Patty's Day' |first=Doug |last=Bolton |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/news/st-patricks-day-2016-pattys-day-name-google-chrome-extension-a6935141.html |work=The Independent |quote=That's the thinking behind the No More Patty Google Chrome extension, created by Dublin-based creative agency in the Company of Huskies.  The extension can be installed in a few clicks, and automatically replaces every online mention of the "very wrong" 'Patty' with the "absolutely right" 'Paddy'. |date=16 March 2016 |access-date=12 March 2018 |archive-date=12 March 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180312211704/https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/gadgets-and-tech/news/st-patricks-day-2016-pattys-day-name-google-chrome-extension-a6935141.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Why Some Irish People Don't Want You to Call It St. Patty's Day |first=Aric |last=Jenkins |url=https://time.com/4703066/st-patricks-day-paddys-pattys-dublin-ireland/ |magazine=Time |date=15 March 2017 |access-date=26 November 2019 |archive-date=10 May 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190510120240/http://time.com/4703066/st-patricks-day-paddys-pattys-dublin-ireland/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Is It "St. Patrick's Day" Or "St. Patricks Day"? |work=dictionary.com |date=17 March 2021 |url=https://www.dictionary.com/e/st-patricks-day-apostrophe/ |access-date=28 March 2020 |archive-date=18 March 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200318055949/https://www.dictionary.com/e/st-patricks-day-apostrophe/ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Dublin Airport would like to remind you it's St. Paddy's Day, not St. Patty's Day |author=Jordan Valinsky. |url=https://theweek.com/speedreads/456377/dublin-airport-like-remind-st-paddys-day-not-st-pattys-day |work=The Week |date=8 January 2015 |access-date=28 March 2020 |archive-date=28 March 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200328154635/https://theweek.com/speedreads/456377/dublin-airport-like-remind-st-paddys-day-not-st-pattys-day |url-status=live }}</ref>
| observedby    = {{Plainlist|
* [[Irish people]] and people of [[Irish diaspora|Irish descent]]
* [[Catholic Church]] (see [[General Roman Calendar|calendar]])
* [[Anglican Communion]] (see [[List of Anglican Church calendars|calendars]])
* [[Eastern Orthodox Church]] (see [[Eastern Orthodox liturgical calendar|calendar]])
* [[Lutheranism|Lutheran Church]] (see [[Calendar of saints (Lutheran)|calendar]])
}}
| duration      = 1 day
| frequency     = Annual
| scheduling    = Same day each year
| date          = 17 March
| observances   = [[Christian procession]]s; attending [[Mass (liturgy)|Mass]] or [[Church service|service]] 
| celebrations  = {{Flatlist|
* Attending parades and a [[céilí]]
* Wearing green and [[Shamrock#Symbol of Ireland|shamrocks]]
* Eating [[Irish cuisine|Irish food]]
* Drinking [[Beer in Ireland|Irish beer]] and [[Irish whiskey]]
}}
| relatedto     = 
| significance  = [[Feast day]] of [[Saint Patrick]],<br />commemoration of the arrival of [[Christianity in Ireland]]<ref name="RitschelMichallon2022">{{cite web |last1=Ritschel |first1=Chelsea |last2=Michallon |first2=Clémence |title=What is the meaning behind St Patrick's Day? |url=https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/st-patricks-day-ireland-history-b2037858.html |work=[[The Independent]] |access-date=17 March 2022 |language=English |date=17 March 2022 |quote=The day of celebration, which marks the day of St Patrick’s death, is a religious holiday meant to celebrate the arrival of Christianity in Ireland, and made official by the Catholic Church in the early 17th century. Observed by the Catholic Church, the Anglican Communion, the Eastern Orthodox Church, and the Lutheran Church, the day was typically observed with services, feasts and alcohol.}}</ref><ref name="Ariel2018">{{cite book |last1=Ariel |first1=Shlomo |title=Multi-Dimensional Therapy with Families, Children and Adults: The Diamond Model |year= 2018 |publisher=[[Routledge]] |isbn=978-1-351-58794-5 |language=English |quote=In many culture, identity perception is supported by constitutive myths, traditions and rituals (e.g. the Jewish Passover, the myth of the foundation of Rome [the tale of Romulus and Remus] and St. Patrick's Day, which commemorates the arrival of Christianity to Ireland and celebrates the heritage and culture of the Irish in general).}}</ref>
}} 
'''Saint Patrick's Day''', or the '''Feast of Saint Patrick''' ({{langx|ga|Lá Fhéile Pádraig|lit=the Day of the Festival of Patrick}}), is a religious and cultural [[holiday]] held on 17 March, the traditional death date of [[Saint Patrick]] ({{circa|385|461}}), the foremost [[patron saint]] of [[Ireland]].

Saint Patrick's Day was made an official Christian [[feast day]] in the early 17th century and is observed by the [[Catholic Church]], the [[Anglican Communion]] (especially the [[Church of Ireland]]),<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ireland.anglican.org/index.php?do=news&newsid=3496 |title=St Patrick's Day celebrations |website=Church of Ireland |publisher=The Irish Times |via=ireland.anglican.org |date=12 March 2011 |access-date=17 March 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110515055936/http://www.ireland.anglican.org/index.php?do=news&newsid=3496 |archive-date=15 May 2011}}</ref> the [[Eastern Orthodox Church]], and the [[Lutheranism|Lutheran Church]]. The day commemorates Saint Patrick and the arrival of [[Christianity in Ireland]], and, by extension, celebrates the [[Culture of Ireland|heritage and culture of the Irish]] in general.<ref name="RitschelMichallon2022"/><ref name="Irish Culture 1">{{Cite book |title=Circles of Tradition: Folk Arts in Minnesota |publisher=Minnesota Historical Society Press |url=https://archive.org/details/circlesoftraditi00moor |url-access=registration |author=Willard Burgess Moore |year=1989 |page=[https://archive.org/details/circlesoftraditi00moor/page/52 52] |isbn=9780873512398 |quote=In nineteenth-century America it became a celebration of Irishness, more than a religious occasion, though attending Mass continues as an essential part of the day.|access-date=13 November 2010}}</ref> Celebrations generally involve public parades and festivals, [[céilithe]], and the wearing of green attire or [[shamrock]]s.<ref name="Irish Culture 2">{{Cite book |title=Circles of Tradition: Folk Arts in Minnesota |publisher=Minnesota Historical Society Press |url=https://archive.org/details/circlesoftraditi00moor |url-access=registration |author=Willard Burgess Moore |year=1989 |page=[https://archive.org/details/circlesoftraditi00moor/page/52 52] |isbn=9780873512398 |quote=The religious occasion did involve the wearing of shamrocks, an Irish symbol of the Holy Trinity, and the lifting of Lenten restrictions on drinking. |access-date=13 November 2010}}</ref> Christians who belong to liturgical denominations also attend [[church service]]s.<ref name="Irish Culture 1" /><ref name="Irish Culture 5">{{Cite book |title=Shamrocks, Harps, and Shillelaghs: The Story of the St. Patrick's Day Symbols |publisher=Sandpiper |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=7FleEqDJZD8C&pg=PA7 |first=Edna |last=Barth |year=2001 |page=7 |isbn=0618096515 |quote=For most Irish-Americans, this holiday (from holy day) is partially religious but overwhelmingly festive. For most Irish people in Ireland the day has little to do with religion at all and St. Patrick's Day church services are followed by parades and parties, the latter being the best attended. The festivities are marked by Irish music, songs, and dances. |access-date=13 November 2010 |archive-date=21 November 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151121192012/https://books.google.com/books?id=7FleEqDJZD8C&pg=PA7 |url-status=live }}</ref> Historically, the [[Lenten]] restrictions [[Christian fasting|on fasting]] and [[Christianity and alcohol|drinking alcohol]] were lifted for the day, which has encouraged the holiday's tradition of revelry.<ref name="Irish Culture 1" /><ref name="Irish Culture 2" /><ref name="Irish Culture 3">{{Cite book |title=Multiculturalism's Double-Bind |first=John |last=Nagle |publisher=[[Ashgate Publishing]] |year=2009 |isbn=978-0-754-67607-2 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=f-HhnQEACAAJ |quote=Like many other forms of carnival, St. Patrick's Day is a feast day, a break from Lent in which adherents are allowed to temporarily abandon rigorous fasting by indulging the forbidden. Since alcohol is often proscribed during Lent the copious consumption of alcohol is seen as an integral part of St. Patrick's day. |access-date=13 November 2010 |archive-date=19 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200819064358/https://books.google.com/books?id=f-HhnQEACAAJ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Irish Culture 4">{{Cite book |title=Communion of Immigrants: A History of Catholics in America |author=James Terence Fisher |date=2007 |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |isbn=9780199842254 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=voeg2IjM4YAC&pg=PA88 |quote=The 40-day period (not counting Sundays) prior to Easter is known as Lent, a time of prayer and fasting. Pastors of Irish-American parishes often supplied "dispensations" for St. Patrick s Day, enabling parishioners to forego Lenten sacrifices in order to celebrate the feast of their patron saint. |access-date=13 November 2010 |archive-date=6 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151006103354/https://books.google.com/books?id=voeg2IjM4YAC&pg=PA88 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Saint Patrick's Day is a [[public holiday]] in the [[Republic of Ireland]],<ref>{{cite web |title=Public holidays in Ireland |publisher=Citizens Information Board |quote=There is only one place outside of Ireland that celebrates St. Patrick's Day as a national public holiday: the island of Montserrat. The small pear-shaped island is about 40 square miles and is located just south of Antigua. It's known as the Emerald Isle of the Caribbean. |url=http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/employment/employment_rights_and_conditions/leave_and_holidays/public_holidays_in_ireland.html |access-date=13 November 2010 |archive-date=17 November 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101117072632/http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/employment/employment_rights_and_conditions/leave_and_holidays/public_holidays_in_ireland.html |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Northern Ireland]],<ref>{{cite web|title=Bank holidays |publisher=NI Direct |url=http://www.nidirect.gov.uk/index/government-citizens-and-rights/living-in-northern-ireland/bank-holidays.htm |access-date=13 November 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101122114013/http://www.nidirect.gov.uk/index/government-citizens-and-rights/living-in-northern-ireland/bank-holidays.htm |archive-date=22 November 2010 }}</ref> the Canadian province of [[Newfoundland and Labrador]] (for provincial government employees), and the British Overseas Territory of [[Montserrat]]. It is also widely celebrated in places with a large [[Irish diaspora]] community, such as [[Great Britain]],<ref>{{cite web | last=Ritschel | first=Chelsea | title=St Patrick's Day 2019: When is it and where can I celebrate? | website=The Independent | date=17 March 2019 | url=https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/st-patricks-day-2019-when-where-events-history-fancy-dress-costume-a8818061.html | access-date=26 November 2019 | archive-date=23 April 2019 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190423230741/https://www.independent.co.uk/life-style/st-patricks-day-2019-when-where-events-history-fancy-dress-costume-a8818061.html | url-status=live }}</ref> [[Canada]], the [[United States]], [[Australia]], [[New Zealand]], and [[South Africa]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.dfa.ie/irish-embassy/south-africa/our-role/irish-community/st-patricks-day/|title=St Patrick's Day – Department of Foreign Affairs|website=www.dfa.ie}}</ref> Saint Patrick's Day is celebrated in more countries than any other [[National Day|national festival]].{{sfnp|Cronin|Adair|2002 |p=242|ps=[https://books.google.com/books?id=5TYHqrao2PwC&pg=SL26-PA42]}} Modern celebrations have been greatly influenced by those of the Irish diaspora, particularly those that developed in North America. However, there has been criticism of Saint Patrick's Day celebrations for having become too commercialised, for their connections to [[drinking culture]], and for fostering negative stereotypes of the Irish people.<ref>{{cite web | last=Varin | first=Andra | title=The Americanization of St. Patrick's Day | work=ABC News | url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=91823 | access-date=17 March 2020 | archive-date=17 April 2020 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200417133943/https://abcnews.go.com/US/story?id=91823 | url-status=live }}</ref>
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==Saint Patrick==
{{Main|Saint Patrick}}

Saint Patrick was a 5th-century Christian missionary and bishop in Ireland. Much of what is known about Saint Patrick comes from the ''Declaration'', which was allegedly written by Patrick himself. It is believed that he was born in [[Roman Britain]] in the fourth century, into a wealthy [[Romano-British culture|Romano-British]] family. His father was a Christian [[deacon]] and his grandfather a [[priest]]. According to the ''Declaration'', at the age of sixteen, he was kidnapped by Irish raiders and taken as a slave to [[Gaelic Ireland]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ccel.org/ccel/patrick/confession.ii.html |title=Confession of St. Patrick |publisher=Christian Classics Ethereal Library at Calvin College |access-date=10 March 2010 |archive-date=16 December 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091216091245/http://www.ccel.org/ccel/patrick/confession.ii.html |url-status=live }}</ref> It says that he spent six years there working as a shepherd and that during this time he [[religious conversion|found God]]. The ''Declaration'' says that God told Patrick to flee to the coast, where a ship would be waiting to take him home. After making his way home, Patrick went on to become a priest.<ref>{{cite book |editor1-last=Bridgwater |editor1-first=William |editor2-last=Kurtz |editor2-first=Seymour |year=1963 |chapter=Saint Patrick |title=The Columbia Encyclopedia |edition=3rd |location=New York |publisher=Columbia University Press |pages=1611–12}}</ref>

According to tradition, Patrick returned to Ireland to convert the [[Celtic polytheism|pagan]] Irish to Christianity. The ''Declaration'' says that he spent many years evangelising in the northern half of Ireland and converted thousands.

Tradition holds that he died on 17 March and was buried at [[Downpatrick]]. Over the following centuries, many legends grew up around Patrick and he became Ireland's foremost saint.

==Celebration and traditions==
[[File:Traditional-irish-stipatricksidayibadges.jpg|thumb|Traditional Saint Patrick's Day badges from the early 20th century, [[Museum of Country Life]] in [[County Mayo]]]]
[[File:Irish clover.jpg|thumb|upright|According to legend, Saint Patrick used the three-leaved [[shamrock]] to explain the [[Holy Trinity]] to [[Ancient Celtic religion|Irish pagans]].]]
[[File:Sydney Opera House on St. Patrick's Day (41260243671).jpg|thumb|Sydney Opera House lit up green in honour of Saint Patrick in [[Sydney]], Australia]]

Present day Saint Patrick's Day celebrations have been greatly influenced by those that developed among the Irish diaspora, especially in North America. Until the late 20th century, Saint Patrick's Day was often a bigger celebration among the diaspora than it was in Ireland.{{sfnp|Cronin|Adair|2002 |p=242|ps=[https://books.google.com/books?id=5TYHqrao2PwC&pg=SL26-PA42]}}

Celebrations generally involve public parades and festivals, Irish traditional music sessions ([[céilidh|céilithe]]), and the wearing of green attire or shamrocks.<ref name="Irish Culture 2"/> There are also formal gatherings such as banquets and dances, although these were more common in the past. Saint Patrick's Day parades began in North America in the 18th century but did not spread to Ireland until the 20th century.{{sfnp|Cronin|Adair|2002 |p=xxiii}} The participants generally include marching bands, the military, fire brigades, cultural organisations, charitable organisations, [[voluntary association]]s, [[Youth organization|youth groups]], [[Fraternity|fraternities]], and so on. However, over time, many of the parades have become more akin to a [[carnival]]. More effort is made to use the [[Irish language]], especially in Ireland, where 1 March to St Patrick's Day on 17 March is Seachtain na Gaeilge ("[[Seachtain na Gaeilge|Irish language week]]").<ref>{{Cite web|title=Seachtain na Gaeilge – 1 – 17 MARCH 2021|url=https://snag.ie/|access-date=17 March 2021|language=Irish|archive-date=10 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210310110330/https://snag.ie/|url-status=live}}</ref>

Since 2010, famous landmarks have been lit up in green on Saint Patrick's Day as part of [[Tourism Ireland]]'s "Global Greening Initiative" or "Going Green for St Patrick's Day".<ref>St Patrick's Day: Globe Goes Green. (17 March 2018). [[BBC News]]. Retrieved 8 January 2019.</ref><ref>The World Goes Green for St Patrick's Day. (16 March 2018) [[RTE News]]. Retrieved 8 January 2019</ref> The [[Sydney Opera House]] and the [[Sky Tower (Auckland)|Sky Tower]] in [[Auckland]] were the first landmarks to participate and since then over 300 landmarks in fifty countries across the globe have gone green for Saint Patrick's Day.<ref>Global Greening Campaign 2018. (2018) [[Tourism Ireland]]. Retrieved 8 January 2019</ref><ref>Ó Conghaile, Pól. (16 March 2018). Green Lights: See the Landmarks Going Green for St Patrick's Day!. [[Independent.ie]] Retrieved 8 January 2019</ref>

Christians may also attend [[church service]]s,<ref name="Irish Culture 1" /><ref name="Irish Culture 5"/> and the [[Lenten]] restrictions [[Christian fasting|on eating]] and [[Christianity and alcohol|drinking alcohol]] are lifted for the day. Perhaps because of this, drinking alcohol – particularly Irish whiskey, beer, or cider – has become an integral part of the celebrations.<ref name="Irish Culture 1" /><ref name="Irish Culture 2" /><ref name="Irish Culture 3" /><ref name="Irish Culture 4"/> In Ireland, this relaxation of fasting rules is notably marked by the consumption of stout, a dark ale beer that is a key part of the celebration, with breweries preparing months in advance for the demand.<ref>{{Cite web |title=How is St. Patrick's Day Celebrated in Ireland in 2024? |url=https://www.travellertoday.com/best-places-celebrate-st-patricks-day/ |author=Lucy Price |date=18 January 2024 |access-date=19 January 2024 |website=www.travellertoday.com |language=en}}</ref> The Saint Patrick's Day custom of "drowning the shamrock" or "wetting the shamrock" was historically popular. At the end of the celebrations, especially in Ireland, a shamrock is put into the bottom of a cup, which is then filled with whiskey, beer, or cider. It is then drunk as a [[Toast (honor)|toast]] to Saint Patrick, Ireland, or those present. The shamrock would either be swallowed with the drink or taken out and tossed over the shoulder for good luck.{{Sfnp|Cronin|Adair|2002 |p=26}}<ref>{{cite book|last=Santino|first=Jack|title=All Around the Year: Holidays and Celebrations in American Life |year=1995|publisher=University of Illinois Press|page=82}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |first=Donal |last=Hickey |url=http://www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/outdoors/donal-hickey/the-facts-about-shamrock-262195.html |title=The facts about shamrock |work=[[Irish Examiner]] |date=17 March 2014 |access-date=11 March 2016 |archive-date=12 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160312072313/http://www.irishexaminer.com/lifestyle/outdoors/donal-hickey/the-facts-about-shamrock-262195.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

Irish Government ministers travel abroad on official visits to various countries around Saint Patrick's Day to promote Ireland.<ref>[https://www.economist.com/the-economist-explains/2018/03/09/how-st-patricks-day-celebrations-went-global How St Patrick's Day Celebrations Went Global] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190109011907/https://www.economist.com/the-economist-explains/2018/03/09/how-st-patricks-day-celebrations-went-global |date=9 January 2019 }} (9 March 2018) [[The Economist]] Retrieved 8 January 2019</ref><ref>Doyle, Kevin. (16 January 2018). [https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/politics/st-patricks-day-exodus-to-see-ministers-travel-to-35-countries-36495240.html St Patrick's Day Exodus to See Ministers Travel to 35 Countries] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190108202901/https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/politics/st-patricks-day-exodus-to-see-ministers-travel-to-35-countries-36495240.html |date=8 January 2019 }}. [[Irish Independent]]. Retrieved 8 January 2019</ref>

===Wearing green and shamrocks===
[[File:"The Wearing of the Green.".jpg|thumb|upright|A Saint Patrick's Day greeting card from 1907]]
On Saint Patrick's Day, it is customary to wear [[shamrock]]s, green clothing or green accessories. Saint Patrick is said to have used the shamrock, a three-leaved plant, to explain the [[Holy Trinity]] to the [[Celtic polytheism|pagan Irish]].<ref name="natgeo">{{cite web |first=Jennifer |last=Vernon |date=15 March 2004 |url=http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2004/03/0312_040312_stpatrick_2.html |title=St. Patrick's Day: Fact vs. Fiction |website=National Geographic News |page=2 |access-date=31 March 2009 |archive-date=2 December 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081202063415/http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2004/03/0312_040312_stpatrick_2.html |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |first=Jill |last=Newell |url=http://www.csulb.edu/~d49er/spring00/news/v7n91-holiday.html |title=Holiday has history |work=Daily Forty-Niner |date=16 March 2000 |volume=7 |issue=91 |access-date=21 March 2009 |archive-date=16 March 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090316052428/http://www.csulb.edu/~d49er/spring00/news/v7n91-holiday.html |url-status=live }}</ref> This story first appears in writing in 1726, though it may be older. In pagan Ireland, three was a significant number and the Irish had many [[triple deity|triple deities]], which may have aided St Patrick in his [[evangelism|evangelisation]] efforts.<ref name="Monaghan2009">{{cite book|last=Monaghan|first=Patricia|title=The Encyclopedia of Celtic Mythology and Folklore|date=1 January 2009|publisher=Infobase Publishing |isbn=978-1-438-11037-0 |quote=There is no evidence that the clover or wood sorrel (both of which are called shamrocks) were sacred to the Celts in any way. However, the Celts had a philosophical and cosmological vision of triplicity, with many of their divinities appearing in three. Thus when St Patrick, attempting to convert the Druids on Beltane, held up a shamrock and discoursed on the Christian Trinity, the three-in-one god, he was doing more than finding a homely symbol for a complex religious concept. He was indicating knowledge of the significance of three in the Celtic realm, a knowledge that probably made his mission far easier and more successful than if he had been unaware of that number's meaning.}}</ref><ref name="Hegarty2012">{{cite book|last=Hegarty|first=Neil|title=Story of Ireland|date=24 April 2012|publisher=Ebury Publishing |isbn=978-1-448-14039-8 |quote=In some ways, though, the Christian mission resonated: pre-Christian devotion was characterized by, for example, the worship of gods in groups of three, by sayings collected in threes (triads), and so on – from all of which the concept of the Holy Trinity was not so very far removed. Against this backdrop the myth of Patrick and his three-leafed shamrock fits quite neatly.}}</ref> Roger Homan writes, "We can perhaps see St Patrick drawing upon the visual concept of the ''[[Triple spiral|triskele]]'' when he uses the shamrock to explain the Trinity".<ref>{{cite book|last=Homan|first=Roger|title=The Art of the Sublime: Principles of Christian Art and Architecture|year=2006|publisher=Ashgate Publishing|page=37}}</ref> [[Patricia Monaghan]] says there is no evidence the shamrock was sacred to the pagan Irish.<ref name="Monaghan2009" /> [[Jack Santino]] speculates that it may have represented the regenerative powers of nature, and was recast in a Christian context{{nsmdns}}[[icon]]s of Saint Patrick often depict the saint "with a [[Christian cross|cross]] in one hand and a sprig of shamrocks in the other".<ref name="Santino1995">{{cite book|last=Santino|first=Jack|title=All Around the Year: Holidays and Celebrations in American Life|year=1995|publisher=University of Illinois Press|isbn=978-0-252-06516-3|page=[https://archive.org/details/allaroundyear00jack/page/80 80]|url=https://archive.org/details/allaroundyear00jack/page/80}}</ref>

The first association of the colour green with Ireland is from a legend in the 11th century ''[[Lebor Gabála Érenn]]'' (The Book of the Taking of Ireland). It tells of [[Goídel Glas]] (Goídel the green), the [[eponymous ancestor]] of the [[Gaels]] and creator of the [[Goidelic languages]] ([[Irish language|Irish]], [[Scottish Gaelic]], [[Manx language|Manx]]).<ref name=Koch2005/><ref name=MacKillop2005/> Goídel is bitten by a venomous snake but saved from death by [[Moses]] placing his staff on the snakebite, leaving him with a green mark. His descendants settle in Ireland, a land free of snakes.<ref name=Macalister1939/> One of the first, [[Milesians (Irish)|Íth]], visits Ireland after climbing the [[Tower of Hercules]] and being captivated by the sight of a beautiful green island in the distance.<ref name=Koch2005/><ref name=MacKillop2005/><ref name=Macalister1939/>

The colour green was further associated with Ireland from the 1640s, when the [[Flag and coat of arms of Leinster|green harp flag]] was used by the [[Confederate Ireland|Irish Catholic Confederation]]. Later, [[James Connolly]] described this flag as representing "the sacred emblem of Ireland's unconquered soul".<ref>Phelan, Rachel, (May/June 2016). [https://www.historyireland.com/volume-24/james-connollys-green-flag-ireland/ "James Connolly's ‘Green Flag of Ireland'"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201111175128/https://www.historyireland.com/volume-24/james-connollys-green-flag-ireland/ |date=11 November 2020 }} [[History Ireland]] Vol. 24 Issue 3, pp. 8–9. Retrieved from History Ireland on 26 March 2018</ref> Green ribbons and shamrocks have been worn on Saint Patrick's Day since at least the 1680s.{{sfnp|Cronin|Adair|2002}} Since then, the colour green and its association with St Patrick's Day have grown.<ref name="history.com">{{Cite video |url=http://www.history.com/topics/st-patricks-day/videos#green |title=St. Patrick: Why Green? – video |publisher=A&E Television Networks |website=History.com |access-date=17 March 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100307170353/http://www.history.com/topics/st-patricks-day/videos |archive-date=7 March 2010 }}</ref> The Friendly Brothers of St Patrick, an Irish [[fraternity]] founded in about 1750,<ref>Kelly, James. ''That Damn'd Thing Called Honour: Duelling in Ireland, 1570–1860''. Cork University Press, 1995. p.65</ref> adopted green as its colour.<ref>''The Fundamental Laws, Statutes and Constitutions of the Ancient Order of the Friendly Brothers of Saint Patrick''. 1751.</ref> The [[Order of St Patrick]], an Anglo-Irish [[chivalric order]] founded in 1783, instead adopted blue as its colour, which led to blue being [[St. Patrick's blue|associated with Saint Patrick]]. In the 1790s, the colour green was adopted by the [[United Irishmen]]. This was a [[Irish republicanism|republican]] organisation—founded mostly by Protestants but with many Catholic members—who launched a [[Irish Rebellion of 1798|rebellion in 1798]] against British rule. Ireland was first called "the Emerald Isle" in "When Erin First Rose" (1795), a poem by a co-founder of the United Irishmen, [[William Drennan]], which stresses the historical importance of green to the Irish.<ref>Drennan, William. [https://www.libraryireland.com/CIL/DrennanErin.php When Ireland First Rose] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210205154813/https://www.libraryireland.com/CIL/DrennanErin.php |date=5 February 2021 }}. in Charles A. Reed (ed.) (1884) The Cabinet of Irish Literature. Volume 2. Retrieved 2 February 2021 via Library Ireland</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Maye|first=Brian|date=3 February 2020|title=Star of the 'Emerald Isle' – An Irishman's Diary on William Drennan|url=https://www.irishtimes.com/opinion/star-of-the-emerald-isle-an-irishman-s-diary-on-william-drennan-1.4160503|newspaper=[[The Irish Times]]|access-date=2 February 2021|archive-date=5 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210205143053/https://www.irishtimes.com/opinion/star-of-the-emerald-isle-an-irishman-s-diary-on-william-drennan-1.4160503|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Langan |first=Sheila |date=13 June 2017 |title=How did Ireland come to be called the Emerald Isle? Ireland's resplendent greenery played a big part, of course, in earning it the nickname the Emerald Isle but there's more to the story. |url=https://www.irishcentral.com/roots/history/how-did-ireland-come-to-be-called-the-emerald-isle |work=IrishCentral |access-date=2 February 2021 |archive-date=8 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210208034001/https://www.irishcentral.com/roots/history/how-did-ireland-come-to-be-called-the-emerald-isle |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=16 January 2021 |title=When Erin First Rose, Irish poem |url=http://ireland-calling.com/william-drennan-when-erin-first-rose/ |access-date=5 November 2022 |archive-date=16 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210116170257/http://ireland-calling.com/william-drennan-when-erin-first-rose/ |url-status=bot: unknown }}</ref> The phrase "wearing of the green" comes from a [[The Wearing of the Green|song of the same name]] about United Irishmen being persecuted for wearing green. The [[List of flags of Ireland#Political flags|flags]] of the [[Easter Rising|1916 Easter Rising]] featured green, such as the [[Starry Plough (flag)|Starry Plough banner]] and the [[Irish Republic|Proclamation Flag of the Irish Republic]]. When the [[Irish Free State]] was founded in 1922, the government ordered all [[Pillar box#Ireland|post boxes]] be painted green, with the slogan "green paint for a green people";<ref name=Ferguson2016>{{cite book |last=Ferguson |first=Stephen |year=2016 |title=The Post Office in Ireland: An Illustrated History |page=226 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hV1mDwAAQBAJ&q=green+irish+post+box&pg=PT339 |location=Newbridge: Co Kildare |publisher=Irish Academic Press |isbn=9781911024323 |access-date=2 February 2021 |archive-date=19 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210519151109/https://books.google.com/books?id=hV1mDwAAQBAJ&q=green+irish+post+box&pg=PT339 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Harrison |first=Bernice |date=18 March 2017 |title=Design Moment: Green post box, c1922: What to do with all those bloody red Brit boxes dotting the Free State? Paint 'em green |url=https://www.irishtimes.com/life-and-style/homes-and-property/interiors/design-moment-green-post-box-c1922-1.3004436 |newspaper=[[The Irish Times]] |access-date=2 February 2021 |archive-date=12 November 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112003532/https://www.irishtimes.com/life-and-style/homes-and-property/interiors/design-moment-green-post-box-c1922-1.3004436 |url-status=live }}</ref> in 1924, the government introduced a green [[Irish passport]].<ref>{{cite news|last=Fanning|first=Mary|date=12 November 1984|title=Green Passport Goes Burgendy 1984: New Passports for European Member States Will Have a Common Look and Format|url=https://www.rte.ie/archives/2019/1024/1085411-new-european-passport/|work=[[RTÉ Libraries and Archives|RTE News Archives]]|access-date=2 February 2021|archive-date=26 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210126070731/https://www.rte.ie/archives/2019/1024/1085411-new-european-passport/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="EUED">[https://books.google.com/books?id=NU07cD6NEJQC&dq=eec+resolution+passport+burgundy+january+1985&pg=PA63 The European Union Encyclopedia and Directory] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210208032351/https://books.google.es/books?id=NU07cD6NEJQC&pg=PA63&dq=eec+resolution+passport+burgundy+january+1985&hl=es&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjG0Y3Iu_TpAhXiz4UKHSY_DNcQ6AEISDAD#v=onepage&q=eec%20resolution%20passport%20burgundy%20january%201985&f=false |date=8 February 2021 }}. (1999). 3rd Ed. p63 {{ISBN|9781857430561}}.</ref><ref 
name="EURes1981">[https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:41981X0919&from=EN Resolution of the Representatives of the Governments of the Member States of the European Communities, Meeting Within the Council of 23 June 1981] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200715155510/https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX:41981X0919&from=EN |date=15 July 2020 }}. Official Journal of the European Communities. C 241. also [https://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CELEX:41981X0919:EN:HTML EUR-Lex - 41981X0919 - EN] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190401132739/https://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CELEX:41981X0919:EN:HTML |date=1 April 2019 }}</ref>

The wearing of the 'St Patrick's Day Cross' was also a popular custom in Ireland until the early 20th century. These were a [[Celtic cross|Celtic Christian cross]] made of paper that was "covered with silk or ribbon of different colours, and a bunch or rosette of green silk in the centre".{{sfnp|Cronin|Adair|2002 |pp=25–26|ps=[https://books.google.com/books?id=5TYHqrao2PwC&pg=PA25]}}

==In Ireland==
=== History ===
Saint Patrick's [[feast day]], as a kind of national day, was already being celebrated by the Irish in Europe in the ninth and tenth centuries.<ref>Liam de Paor: ''St. Patrick's World, The Christian Culture of Ireland's Apostolic Age.'' Four Courts Press, Dublin, 1993</ref> Saint Patrick's feast day was finally placed on the [[liturgical calendar]] of the Catholic Church in the early 1600s, due to the influence of [[Waterford]]-born [[Franciscan]] scholar [[Luke Wadding]].<ref>{{cite web|title=''The Catholic Encyclopedia: Luke Wadding''|access-date=15 February 2007|url=http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/15521d.htm|archive-date=17 July 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190717232455/http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/15521d.htm|url-status=live}}</ref> Saint Patrick's Day thus became a [[holy day of obligation]] for Catholics in Ireland. It is also a feast day in the [[Church of Ireland]], part of the [[Anglican Communion]]. The church calendar avoids the observance of saints' feasts during certain solemnities, moving the saint's day to a time outside those periods. Saint Patrick's Day is occasionally affected by this requirement, when 17 March falls during [[Holy Week]]. This happened in 1940, when Saint Patrick's Day was officially observed on 3 April to avoid it coinciding with [[Palm Sunday]], and again in 2008, where it was officially observed on 15 March.<ref>[https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/9917/irish-bishops-move-st-patricks-day-2008-over-conflict-with-holy-week "Irish bishops move St. Patrick's Day 2008 over conflict with Holy Week"], ''Catholic News''</ref> Saint Patrick's Day will not fall within Holy Week again until 2160.<ref>{{Cite news|title=St. Patrick's Day, Catholic Church march to different drummers|url=https://www.usatoday.com/news/religion/2008-03-05-stpatrick_N.htm|work=USA Today|access-date=11 March 2008|date=6 March 2008|first=G. Jeffrey|last=MacDonald|archive-date=10 March 2008|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080310032319/http://www.usatoday.com/news/religion/2008-03-05-stpatrick_N.htm|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.thonline.com/article.cfm?id=194136 |title=No St. Pat's Day Mass allowed in Holy Week |access-date=13 March 2008 |author=Nevans-Pederson, Mary |date=13 March 2008 |work=Dubuque Telegraph Herald |publisher=Woodward Communications, Inc. |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081016055134/http://www.thonline.com/article.cfm?id=194136 |archive-date=16 October 2008 }}</ref> However, the popular festivities may still be held on 17 March or on a weekend near to the feast day.<ref>{{cite web|title=St. Patrick's Day|publisher=[[Encyclopedia Britannica]]|date=17 March 2021|url= https://www.britannica.com/topic/Saint-Patricks-Day}}</ref>

Saint Patrick's was perceived as the middle day of [[Spring (season)|spring]] in the [[Irish calendar]]. People expected that weather would be improved following the festival, and farmers would begin planting potato.<ref name="Danaher">Danaher, Kevin (1972) ''The Year in Ireland: Irish Calendar Customs'' Dublin, Mercier. {{ISBN|1-85635-093-2}} p. 58-66</ref>

=== Modern era ===
[[File:WILD FOLK BY BUI BOLG FROM WEXFORD -ST. PATRICK'S DAY PARADE IN DUBLIN - 17 MARCH 2019--150353 (47413724761).jpg|thumb|Buí Bolg at the St. Patrick's Day parade in [[Dublin]]]]
[[File:ST. PATRICK'S SPIRE OF LIGHT ON O'CONNELL STREET IN DUBLIN REF-102056 (16650284488).jpg|thumb|Dublin's [[General Post Office, Dublin|General Post Office]] and the Spire on O'Connell Street on Saint Patrick's Day]]
In 1903, Saint Patrick's Day became an official public holiday in Ireland due to the [[Bank Holiday]] (Ireland) Act 1903, an act of the [[United Kingdom parliament]] introduced by Irish MP [[James O'Mara]].<ref name="omara1">{{cite web |url=http://humphrysfamilytree.com/OMara/james.html |title=James O'Mara |publisher=HumphrysFamilyTree.com |access-date=17 March 2014 |archive-date=26 March 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140326112636/http://humphrysfamilytree.com/OMara/james.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

The first Saint Patrick's Day parade in Ireland was held in [[Waterford]] in 1903, hundreds of years after the first parade in North America. The week of Saint Patrick's Day 1903 had been declared Irish Language Week by the [[Gaelic League]] and in Waterford they opted to have a procession on Sunday 15 March. The procession comprised the Mayor and members of Waterford Corporation, the Trades Hall, the various trade unions and bands who included the 'Barrack St Band' and the '[[Thomas Francis Meagher]] Band'.<ref>Munster Express, 14 March 1903 {{full citation needed|date=March 2018}}</ref> The parade began at the premises of the Gaelic League in George's St and finished in the Peoples Park, where the public were addressed by the Mayor and other dignitaries.<ref name="munster express">Munster Express, 21 March 1903, p.3{{full citation needed|date=March 2018}}</ref><ref>Waterford Chronicle, 18 March 1903{{full citation needed|date=March 2018}}</ref> On Tuesday 17 March, most Waterford businesses—including public houses—were closed and marching bands paraded as they had two days previously.<ref>Waterford News, 20 March 1903{{full citation needed|date=March 2018}}</ref>

On Saint Patrick's Day 1916, the [[Irish Volunteers]]—an Irish nationalist paramilitary organisation—held parades throughout Ireland. The authorities recorded 38 St Patrick's Day parades, involving 6,000 marchers, almost half of whom were reported to be armed.{{sfnp|Cronin|Adair|2002 |p=105}} The following month, the Irish Volunteers launched the [[Easter Rising]] against British rule. This marked the beginning of the [[Irish revolutionary period]] and led to the [[Irish War of Independence]] and [[Irish Civil War|Civil War]]. During this time, Saint Patrick's Day celebrations in Ireland were muted, although the day was sometimes chosen to hold large political rallies.{{sfnp|Cronin|Adair|2002 |p=108}}

The celebrations remained low-key after the creation of the [[Irish Free State]]; the only state-organized observance was a military procession and [[Trooping the colours|trooping of the colours]], and an Irish-language [[Mass (Catholic Church)|mass]] attended by government ministers.{{sfnp|Cronin|Adair|2002 |p=134}} In 1927, the Irish Free State government [[Prohibition|banned the selling of alcohol]] on St Patrick's Day, although it remained legal in Northern Ireland. The ban was not repealed until 1961.{{sfnp|Cronin|Adair|2002 |pp=135–136}}

The first official, state-sponsored Saint Patrick's Day parade in [[Dublin]] took place in 1931.<ref>Armao, Frederic. "The Color Green in Ireland: Ecological Mythology and the Recycling of Identity". ''Environmental Issues in Political Discourse in Britain and Ireland''. Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2013. p. 184</ref> Public St Patrick's Day festivities in Ireland have been cancelled three times, all for public health reasons.<ref>Kelly, Fiach, Wall, Martin, & Cullen, Paul (9 March 2020). [https://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/coronavirus-three-new-irish-cases-confirmed-as-st-patrick-s-day-parades-cancelled-1.4197325 Coronavirus: Three New Irish Cases Confirmed as St Patrick's Day Parades Cancelled] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200309224934/https://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/coronavirus-three-new-irish-cases-confirmed-as-st-patrick-s-day-parades-cancelled-1.4197325 |date=9 March 2020 }}. [[The Irish Times]]. Retrieved 9 March 2020.</ref><ref>[[The New York Times]]. (9 March 2020). [https://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2020/03/09/world/europe/09reuters-health-coronavirus-ireland.html Ireland Cancels St. Patrick's Day Parades, Sets Aside Coronavirus Funds]{{Dead link|date=September 2021 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}. The New York Times. Retrieved 9 March 2020. [https://nationalpost.com/pmn/health-pmn/ireland-cancels-st-patricks-day-parades-sets-aside-coronavirus-funds Alternate Link] Retrieved 17 March 2023.</ref> In 2001, celebrations were postponed to May due to the [[2001 United Kingdom foot-and-mouth outbreak|foot-and-mouth outbreak]],<ref>[[RTE News]]. (2016). [https://www.rte.ie/archives/2016/0418/782638-st-patricks-day-in-may/ St Patrick's Day In May] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191218155751/https://www.rte.ie/archives/2016/0418/782638-st-patricks-day-in-may/ |date=18 December 2019 }}. [[RTÉ Libraries and Archives|RTE Archives]]. Retrieved 9 March 2020.</ref><ref>[[CNN]]. (18 May 2001). [https://edition.cnn.com/2001/WORLD/europe/05/18/saint.patrick/index.html Late St. Patrick's Day for Ireland] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190909210528/http://edition.cnn.com/2001/WORLD/europe/05/18/saint.patrick/index.html |date=9 September 2019 }}. Retrieved 9 March 2020.</ref><ref>Reid, Lorna. (2 March 2001) [https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/st-patricks-day-parade-postponed-26092049.html St Patrick's Day Parade 'Postponed'] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200420223404/https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/st-patricks-day-parade-postponed-26092049.html |date=20 April 2020 }} [[Irish Independent]]. Retrieved 9 March 2020.</ref> while in 2020 and 2021 they were cancelled outright due to the [[COVID-19 pandemic]].<ref>BBC News. (9 March 2020). [https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-51806551 Coronavirus: Irish St Patrick's Day Parades Cancelled] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200501174913/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-51806551 |date=1 May 2020 }}. [[BBC News]]. Retrieved 9 March 2020.</ref><ref>Bain, Mark. (9 March 2020). [https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/republic-of-ireland/coronavirus-dublin-st-patricks-day-parade-cancelled-as-belfast-council-considers-own-event-39028475.html Coronavirus: Dublin St Patrick's Day Parade Cancelled as Belfast Council Considers Own Event.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200310231347/https://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/news/republic-of-ireland/coronavirus-dublin-st-patricks-day-parade-cancelled-as-belfast-council-considers-own-event-39028475.html |date=10 March 2020 }} [[Belfast Telegraph]] Retrieved 9 March 2020.</ref><ref>[[RTE News]]. (9 March 2020). [https://www.rte.ie/news/ireland/2020/0309/1121215-patricks-day-parades/ What is cancelled and what is going ahead on St Patrick's Day?] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200310211048/https://www.rte.ie/news/ireland/2020/0309/1121215-patricks-day-parades/ |date=10 March 2020 }}. RTE News. Retrieved 9 March 2020.</ref><ref>O'Loughlin, Ciara. (20 January 2021). [https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/national-st-patricks-day-parade-cancelled-for-second-year-in-a-row-39989631.html National St Patrick's Day parade cancelled for second year in a row] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210121102022/https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/national-st-patricks-day-parade-cancelled-for-second-year-in-a-row-39989631.html |date=21 January 2021 }} [[Irish Independent]]. Retrieved 2 February 2021.</ref><ref>[[RTE News]]. (20 January 2021). [https://www.rte.ie/news/2021/0120/1190884-st-patricks-festival/ St Patrick's Festival Dublin parade cancelled for second year] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210204215509/https://www.rte.ie/news/2021/0120/1190884-st-patricks-festival/ |date=4 February 2021 }} RTE News. Retrieved 2 February 2021.</ref><ref>Bowers, Shauna. (20 January 2021). [https://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/st-patrick-s-day-parade-cancelled-for-second-year-in-a-row-due-to-covid-19-1.4463077 St Patrick's Day parade cancelled for second year in a row due to Covid-19] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210123234455/https://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/st-patrick-s-day-parade-cancelled-for-second-year-in-a-row-due-to-covid-19-1.4463077 |date=23 January 2021 }} [[The Irish Times]]. Retrieved 2 February 2021.</ref><ref>[[BBC News]] (20 January 2021). [https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-55732899 Covid-19: St Patrick's Day Dublin parade cancelled for second year] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210126124022/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-55732899 |date=26 January 2021 }}. BBC News. Retrieved 2 February 2021.</ref>

[[File:St Patricks Day Inter Church Procession, Downpatrick, March 2010 (03).JPG|thumb|A Saint Patrick's Day [[Christian procession]] in [[Downpatrick]], where Saint Patrick is said to be buried]]
In [[Northern Ireland]], the celebration of Saint Patrick's Day was affected by sectarian divisions.{{sfnp|Cronin|Adair|2002 |pp=175–177}} A majority of the population were [[Ulster Protestants|Protestant]] [[Unionism in Ireland|Ulster unionists]] who saw themselves primarily as British, while a substantial minority were Catholic Irish nationalists who saw themselves primarily as Irish. Although it was a public holiday, Northern Ireland's unionist government did not officially observe St Patrick's Day.{{sfnp|Cronin|Adair|2002 |pp=175–177}} During the conflict known as [[the Troubles]] (late 1960s–late 1990s), public St Patrick's Day celebrations were rare and tended to be associated with the Catholic community.{{sfnp|Cronin|Adair|2002 |pp=175–177}} In 1976, [[Ulster loyalism|loyalists]] [[Hillcrest Bar bombing|detonated a car bomb]] outside a pub crowded with Catholics celebrating St Patrick's Day in [[Dungannon]]; four civilians were killed and many injured. However, some Protestant unionists attempted to 're-claim' the festival, and in 1985 the [[Orange Order]] held its own Saint Patrick's Day parade.{{sfnp|Cronin|Adair|2002 |pp=175–177}} Since the end of the conflict in 1998 there have been cross-community St Patrick's Day parades in towns throughout Northern Ireland, which have attracted thousands of spectators.{{sfnp|Cronin|Adair|2002 |pp=175–177}}

In the mid-1990s the government of the [[Republic of Ireland]] began a campaign to use Saint Patrick's Day to showcase Ireland and its culture.<ref name=hist>{{cite web |url=http://www.historychannel.com/exhibits/stpatricksday/?page=history |title=The History of the Holiday |publisher=A&E Television Networks |website=The History Channel |access-date=17 March 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060807060038/http://www.historychannel.com/exhibits/stpatricksday/?page=history |archive-date=7 August 2006 }}</ref> The government set up a group called [[St. Patrick's Festival]], with the aims of creating a world-class national festival and "to project, internationally, an accurate image of Ireland as a creative, professional and sophisticated country with wide appeal".<ref name=festival>{{cite web |url=http://www.stpatricksfestival.ie/index.php/about |title=St. Patrick's Festival was established by the Government of Ireland in November 1995 |access-date=20 March 2012 |work=St. Patrick's Festival |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120312093104/http://www.stpatricksfestival.ie/index.php/about |archive-date=12 March 2012}}</ref> The first Saint Patrick's Festival was held on 17 March 1996. In 1997, it became a three-day event, and by 2006, the festival was five days long. More than 675,000 people attended the 2009 parade, and that year's festival saw almost 1&nbsp;million visitors, who took part in festivities that included concerts, outdoor theatre performances, and fireworks.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.history.com/topics/st-patricks-day-facts/videos#history-of-st-patricks-day |title=St. Patrick's Day Facts Video |publisher=A&E Television Networks |website=History.com |access-date=17 March 2013 |archive-date=8 September 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120908105026/http://www.history.com/topics/st-patricks-day-facts/videos#history-of-st-patricks-day |url-status=live }}</ref> From 2006 to 2012 the [[Skyfest]] formed the centrepiece of the Saint Patrick's Festival.<ref>Heffernan, Breda. (13 February 2008) [https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/st-patricks-skyfest-to-rock-at-cashel-26423012.html St Patrick's Skyfest to Rock at Cashel] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190108201046/https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/st-patricks-skyfest-to-rock-at-cashel-26423012.html |date=8 January 2019 }}. [[Irish Independent]]. Retrieved 8 January 2019</ref><ref>[https://www.wexfordpeople.ie/news/disappointment-over-skyfest-31090873.html Disappointment over Skyfest] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190108201212/https://www.wexfordpeople.ie/news/disappointment-over-skyfest-31090873.html |date=8 January 2019 }} (24 March 2015) [[Wexford People]]. Retrieved 8 January 2019</ref>

The week around Saint Patrick's Day is ''[[Seachtain na Gaeilge]]'' ("Irish Language Week"), when more [[Irish language]] events are held and there is more effort to use the language.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://dublin.ie/whats-on/listings/seachtain-na-gaeilge/ |title="Seachtain na Gaeilge", Dublin City Council |access-date=6 August 2018 |archive-date=6 August 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180806085346/https://dublin.ie/whats-on/listings/seachtain-na-gaeilge/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

Christian leaders in Ireland have expressed concern about the secularisation of Saint Patrick's Day. In ''The Word'' magazine's March 2007 issue, Fr [[Vincent Twomey]] wrote, "It is time to reclaim St Patrick's Day as a church festival". He questioned the need for "mindless alcohol-fuelled revelry" and concluded that "it is time to bring the piety and the fun together".<ref>{{cite web |first=John |last=Cooney |url=https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/more-piety-fewer-pints-best-way-to-celebrate-26270094.html |title=More piety, fewer pints 'best way to celebrate' |work=The Irish Independent |date=12 March 2007 |access-date=17 March 2018 |archive-date=1 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210601064951/https://www.independent.ie/irish-news/more-piety-fewer-pints-best-way-to-celebrate-26270094.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

One of the biggest celebrations outside the cities is in [[Downpatrick]], [[County Down]], where Saint Patrick is said to be buried. The shortest Saint Patrick's Day parade in the world formerly took place in [[Dripsey]], [[County Cork]]. The parade lasted just 23.4 metres and traveled between the village's two pubs. The tradition began in 1999, but ended after five years when one of the pubs closed.<ref>{{cite magazine |magazine=Ireland of the Welcomes |url=http://www.dripsey.com/page16/page15/index.html |title=From Here to Here |first=Jo |last=Kerrigan |volume=53 |issue=2 |date=March–April 2004 |via=Dripsey |access-date=6 June 2010 |archive-date=21 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191021074632/http://www.dripsey.com/page16/page15/index.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The current shortest Saint Paddy's Day parade has been held in Little Compton, Rhode Island since 2022. The parade lasts only 89 feet. The title is disputed by Hot Springs, Arkansas which has hosted the shortest St. Patrick's Day parade since 2004, measuring at 98 feet.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Perry |first1=Jack |title=Peace in the streets: Arkansas and RI settle world's shortest St. Patrick's parade battle |url=https://www.providencejournal.com/story/news/good-news/2024/02/15/shortest-st-patricks-day-parade-dispute-ends-with-truce/72595866007/ |website=Providence Journal |access-date=2025-02-11}}</ref>

==Celebrations elsewhere==
===Europe===
[[File:388-0049-hinnerk-ruemenapf 01.jpg|thumb|Saint Patrick's Day 2016 in an [[Irish pub]] in [[Hamburg]], Germany]]
====England==== <!--Northern Ireland is covered in the "Ireland" section-->
[[File:St Patrick's Day - Trafalgar Square March 2006.jpg|thumb|Saint Patrick's Day celebration at [[Trafalgar Square]] in London, 2006]]
In England, the Royal Colonel or [[Colonel-in-chief]] traditionally present bowls of shamrock to members of the [[Irish Guards]], a regiment in the [[British Army]], following [[Alexandra of Denmark|Queen Alexandra]] introducing the tradition in 1901.<ref>[https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-31927196 Duchess of Cambridge Presents St Patrick's Day Shamrocks to Irish Guards] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190414052435/https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-31927196 |date=14 April 2019 }}. (17 March 2015) [[BBC News]]. Retrieved 8 January 2019</ref> Since 2012, the [[Catherine, Duchess of Cambridge|Duchess of Cambridge]] has presented the bowls of shamrock to the Irish Guards. While female royals are often tasked with presenting the bowls of shamrock, male royals have also undertaken the role, such as [[George VI|King George VI]] in 1950 to mark the 50th anniversary of the formation of the Irish Guards, and in 2016 the [[Prince William, Duke of Cambridge|Duke of Cambridge]] in place of his wife.<ref>[https://www.royal.uk/duke-cambridge-joins-irish-guards-st-patricks-day-parade?page=14 The Duke of Cambridge Joins the Irish Guards at the St Patrick's Day Parade] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190108201230/https://www.royal.uk/duke-cambridge-joins-irish-guards-st-patricks-day-parade?page=14 |date=8 January 2019 }}. (17 March 2016) Royal.uk. Retrieved 8 January 2019</ref><ref>Palmer, Richard. (17 March 2016). [https://www.express.co.uk/news/royal/487741/William-St-Patricks-Day-Parade-Shamrock Prince William Handed Out Shamrocks at the St Patrick's Day Parade as Kate Broke with Tradition] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190414044122/https://www.express.co.uk/news/royal/487741/William-St-Patricks-Day-Parade-Shamrock |date=14 April 2019 }}. ''[[Sunday Express]]'' Retrieved 8 January 2019</ref> Fresh Shamrocks are presented to the Irish Guards, regardless of where they are stationed, and are flown in from Ireland.<ref>Rayner, Gordon ,(17 March 2015) Duchess of Cambridge hands out St Patrick's Day shamrocks to Irish Guards. ''[[The Daily Telegraph|The Telegraph]]''. Retrieved 8 January 2019</ref>

While some Saint Patrick's Day celebrations could be conducted openly in Britain pre 1960s, this would change following the commencement by the IRA's bombing campaign on [[Great Britain|mainland Britain]] and as a consequence this resulted in a suspicion of all things Irish and those who supported them which led to people of Irish descent wearing a sprig of shamrock on Saint Patrick's day in private or attending specific events.<ref name="Pages 180–183">Cronin, Mike; Adair, Daryl (2002). ''The Wearing of the Green: A History of St. Patrick's Day''. Routledge. {{ISBN|978-0-415-18004-7}}. [https://books.google.com/books?id=eAuAAgAAQBAJ&dq=irish+in+uk+1960s+wearing+shamrocks+st+patricks+day&pg=PA180 pp. 180–183] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200112025027/https://books.google.es/books?id=eAuAAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA180&dq=irish+in+uk+1960s+wearing+shamrocks+st+patricks+day&hl=es&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjR0MCz0tvfAhUj8-AKHcs1D48Q6AEIKDAA#v=onepage&q=irish%20in%20uk%201960s%20wearing%20shamrocks%20st%20patricks%20day&f=false |date=12 January 2020 }}</ref> Today, after many years following [[Good Friday Agreement|the Good Friday Agreement]], people of Irish descent openly wear a sprig of shamrock to celebrate their Irishness.<ref name="Pages 180–183"/>

Christian denominations in Great Britain observing his [[feast day]] include [[The Church of England]] and the Roman Catholic Church.<ref name="Irish and non-Irish celebrants">{{Cite book|title=Lives of the Saints: From Mary and St. Francis of Assisi to John XXIII and Mother Teresa|publisher=[[HarperOne]]|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IuOlQJPbycwC&pg=PA135|quote=The most famous church in the United States is dedicated to him, St. Patrick's in New York City. St. Patrick's Day is celebrated by people of all ethnic backgrounds by the wearing of green and parades. His feast, which is on the General Roman Calendar, has been given as March&nbsp;17 in liturgical calendars and martyrologies. The Church of England, the Episcopal Church in the USA, and the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America observe his feast on this day, and he is also commemorated on the Russian Orthodox calendar.|first=Richard P.|last=Mcbrien|date= 2009|isbn=9780061763656|access-date=13 November 2010|archive-date=3 October 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151003163247/https://books.google.com/books?id=IuOlQJPbycwC&pg=PA135|url-status=live}}</ref>

[[Birmingham]] holds the largest Saint Patrick's Day parade in Britain with a city centre parade<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.search.connectinghistories.org.uk/engine/resource/exhibition/standard/default.asp?txtKeywords=parade&lstContext=&lstResourceType=&lstExhibitionType=&chkPurchaseVisible=&txtDateFrom=&txtDateTo=&originator=%2Fengine%2Fsearch%2Fdefault%5Fhndlr%2Easp&page=&records=&direction=&pointer=24&text=0&resource=503 |title=Brigitte Winsor: Photographs of the St Patrick's Day Parade |work=Connecting Histories |date=12 March 2006 |access-date=17 March 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110722084529/http://www.search.connectinghistories.org.uk/engine/resource/exhibition/standard/default.asp?txtKeywords=parade&lstContext=&lstResourceType=&lstExhibitionType=&chkPurchaseVisible=&txtDateFrom=&txtDateTo=&originator=%2Fengine%2Fsearch%2Fdefault_hndlr.asp&page=&records=&direction=&pointer=24&text=0&resource=503 |archive-date=22 July 2011 }}</ref> over a two-mile (3&nbsp;km) route through the city centre. The organisers describe it as the third biggest parade in the world after Dublin and New York.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/birmingham/content/articles/2009/02/17/st_patricks_2009_feature.shtml |title=St. Patrick's Parade 2009 |work=BBC Birmingham |date=18 March 2009 |access-date=15 March 2015 |archive-date=24 September 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924152850/http://www.bbc.co.uk/birmingham/content/articles/2009/02/17/st_patricks_2009_feature.shtml |url-status=live }}</ref>

London, since 2002, has had an annual Saint Patrick's Day parade which takes place on weekends around the 17th, usually in Trafalgar Square. In 2008, the water in the Trafalgar Square fountains was dyed green. In 2020, the parade was cancelled due to the [[COVID-19 pandemic]].{{citation needed|date=March 2021}}

[[Liverpool]] has the highest proportion of residents with Irish ancestry of any English city.<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.merseyreporter.com/history/historic/irish-immigration.shtml | work=Mersey Reporter | title=Irish Immigration to and from Liverpool (UK) | access-date=17 March 2013 | archive-date=8 February 2013 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130208140727/http://www.merseyreporter.com/history/historic/irish-immigration.shtml | url-status=live }}</ref> This has led to a long-standing celebration on Saint Patrick's Day in terms of music, cultural events and the parade.{{citation needed|date=March 2021}}

[[Manchester]] hosts a two-week Irish festival in the weeks prior to Saint Patrick's Day. The festival includes an Irish Market based at the city's town hall which flies the Irish tricolour opposite the Union Flag, a large parade as well as a large number of cultural and learning events throughout the two-week period.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.manchesteririshfestival.co.uk/ |title=Manchester Irish Festival |access-date=17 March 2010 |archive-date=21 February 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160221081149/http://www.manchesteririshfestival.co.uk/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

====Scotland====
[[File:Stpatricksdayfestivalcbridge.JPG|thumb|2009 [[St. Patrick's Day festival Coatbridge|Saint Patrick's Day festival]] celebration in [[Coatbridge]], Scotland]]
The Scottish town of [[Coatbridge]], where the majority of the town's population are of Irish descent,<ref name=ScotGov-Immigration>{{cite web |title=Irish emigration to Scotland in the 19th and 20th centuries – Settlement of the Irish |url=http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/higherscottishhistory/migrationandempire/experienceofimmigrants/irish.asp |website=Education Scotland |publisher=Government of Scotland |access-date=17 March 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150320212938/http://www.educationscotland.gov.uk/higherscottishhistory/migrationandempire/experienceofimmigrants/irish.asp |archive-date=20 March 2015}}</ref><ref name=CoatbridgeFestival>{{cite web |title=The Coatbridge Irish|url=http://www.stpatricksdayfestivalcoatbridge.org/History/Main/History.htm |website=St Patrick's Day Festival Coatbridge |access-date=17 March 2015 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070708051820/http://www.stpatricksdayfestivalcoatbridge.org/History/Main/History.htm |archive-date=8 July 2007}}</ref> also has [[St. Patrick's Day festival Coatbridge|a Saint Patrick's Day Festival]] which includes celebrations and parades in the town centre.<ref name=CoatbridgeFestival/><ref>{{cite web |title=St Patrick's Day in Coatbridge, Scotland |url=https://comingtoscotland.wordpress.com/ |date=14 March 2015 |website=Coming to Scotland |access-date=17 March 2015 |archive-date=2 April 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150402110744/https://comingtoscotland.wordpress.com/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[Glasgow]] has a considerably large Irish population; due, for the most part, to the Irish immigration during the 19th century. This immigration was the main cause in raising the population of Glasgow by over 100,000 people.<ref>{{cite web |first=Michael |last=Moss |work=The Glasgow Story |url=http://www.theglasgowstory.com/storyc.php |title=Industrial Revolution: 1770s to 1830s |access-date=17 March 2012 |archive-date=22 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120322022044/http://www.theglasgowstory.com/storyc.php |url-status=live }}</ref> Due to this large Irish population, there are many Irish-themed pubs and Irish interest groups who hold yearly celebrations on Saint Patrick's day in Glasgow. Glasgow has held a yearly Saint Patrick's Day parade and festival since 2007.<ref>{{cite web |title=Welcome to the Glasgow St. Patrick's Festival 2018 Website |url=http://www.glasgowstpatricksfestival.co.uk/ |website=Glasgow's St. Patrick's Festival |publisher=St. Patrick's Festival Committee |access-date=20 March 2018 |archive-date=16 March 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150316133417/http://www.glasgowstpatricksfestival.co.uk/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

====Malta====
[[File:Porte des Bombes on St Patrick's Night.jpg|thumb|[[Porte des Bombes]] illuminated in green on Saint Patrick's Day of 2014]]

The first Saint Patrick's Day celebrations in Malta took place in the early 20th century by soldiers of the [[Royal Dublin Fusiliers]] who were stationed in [[Floriana]]. Celebrations were held in the Balzunetta area of the town, which contained a number of bars and was located close to the barracks. The Irish diaspora in Malta continued to celebrate the feast annually.<ref name="maltaindependent2018-03-18">{{cite news |last1=Micallef |first1=Roberta |title=St Patrick's Day in Malta – how it started, and where it's going |url=http://www.independent.com.mt/articles/2018-03-18/local-news/St-Patrick-s-Day-in-Malta-how-it-started-and-where-it-s-going-6736186439 |work=[[The Malta Independent]]|date=18 March 2018 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180318121643/http://www.independent.com.mt/articles/2018-03-18/local-news/St-Patrick-s-Day-in-Malta-how-it-started-and-where-it-s-going-6736186439|archive-date=18 March 2018}}</ref>

Today, Saint Patrick's Day is mainly celebrated in Spinola Bay and [[Paceville]] areas of [[St Julian's]],<ref>{{cite news|last1=Azzopardi|first1=Karl|title=Thousands take to the street of St Julian's for St Patrick's Day celebrations |url=https://www.maltatoday.com.mt/news/national/85371/thousands_take_to_the_street_of_st_julians_for_st_patricks_day_celebrations_ |work=[[Malta Today]]|date=17 March 2018 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180317221548/https://www.maltatoday.com.mt/news/national/85371/thousands_take_to_the_street_of_st_julians_for_st_patricks_day_celebrations_ |archive-date=17 March 2018}}</ref> although other celebrations still occur at Floriana<ref name="maltaindependent2018-03-18"/> and other locations.<ref>{{cite news|title=Malta celebrates St Patrick's Day|url=https://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20150315/local/malta-celebrates-st-patricks-day.560045|work=[[Times of Malta]]|date=15 March 2015|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160421042447/http://www.timesofmalta.com/articles/view/20150315/local/malta-celebrates-st-patricks-day.560045|archive-date=21 April 2016}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last1=Grech Urpani|first1=David|title=Finally: A Fresh Take On St. Patrick's Day Celebrations Is Coming To Malta|url=https://lovinmalta.com/sponsored/sponsored-announcement/finally-a-fresh-take-on-st-patricks-day-celebrations-is-coming-to-malta|work=Lovin Malta|date=8 March 2018 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180316004114/https://lovinmalta.com/sponsored/sponsored-announcement/finally-a-fresh-take-on-st-patricks-day-celebrations-is-coming-to-malta|archive-date=16 March 2018}}</ref> Thousands of Maltese attend the celebrations, "which are more associated with drinking beer than traditional Irish culture."<ref>{{cite news|last1=Micallef|first1=Roberta|title=More than 20,000 people expected to celebrate St Patrick's Day in St Julian's|url=http://www.independent.com.mt/articles/2018-03-17/local-news/More-than-20-000-people-expected-to-celebrate-St-Patrick-s-Day-in-Paceville-6736186410|work=[[The Malta Independent]]|date=17 March 2018|url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180317113614/http://www.independent.com.mt/articles/2018-03-17/local-news/More-than-20-000-people-expected-to-celebrate-St-Patrick-s-Day-in-Paceville-6736186410|archive-date=17 March 2018}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Thousands flock to St Julian's to celebrate St Patrick's feast |url=http://www.independent.com.mt/articles/2018-03-17/local-news/Thousands-flock-to-St-Julian-s-to-celebrate-St-Patrick-s-feast-6736186436|work=[[The Malta Independent]]|date=17 March 2018 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180317210613/http://www.independent.com.mt/articles/2018-03-17/local-news/Thousands-flock-to-St-Julian-s-to-celebrate-St-Patrick-s-feast-6736186436|archive-date=17 March 2018}}</ref>

====Russia====
[[File:St Patrick's Day 2012 in Moscow.jpg|thumb|[[Moscow]] hosts an annual Saint Patrick's Day festival]]
The first Saint Patrick's Day parade in Russia took place in 1992.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.stpatrick.ru/russian/index.htm |script-title=ru:Москва. День Св. Патрика |date=1999–2007 |publisher=Русское Кельтское Общество [Russian Celtic Society] |language=ru |trans-title=Moscow. St. Patrick's Day |access-date=29 May 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120417183918/http://www.stpatrick.ru/russian/index.htm |archive-date=17 April 2012 }}</ref> Since 1999, there has been a yearly "Saint Patrick's Day" festival in Moscow and other Russian cities.<ref>{{cite web|first=Erin |last=Andersen |title=St. Patty's Day: Not just green beer – but some of that, too |url=http://journalstar.com/entertainment/misc/st-patty-s-day-not-just-green-beer-but-some/article_1a91449b-3666-5363-a249-7d5378ddd713.html |work=[[Lincoln Journal Star]] |date=17 March 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130518183700/http://journalstar.com/entertainment/misc/st-patty-s-day-not-just-green-beer-but-some/article_1a91449b-3666-5363-a249-7d5378ddd713.html |archive-date=18 May 2013 }}</ref> The official part of the Moscow parade is a military-style parade and is held in collaboration with the Moscow government and the Irish embassy in Moscow. The unofficial parade is held by volunteers and resembles a carnival. In 2014, Moscow Irish Week was celebrated from 12 to 23 March, which includes Saint Patrick's Day on 17 March. Over 70 events celebrating Irish culture in Moscow, St Petersburg, Yekaterinburg, Voronezh, and Volgograd were sponsored by the Irish Embassy, the Moscow City Government, and other organisations.<ref>{{cite web |first=Grace |last=Cuddihy |title=Muscovites Turn Green For Irish Week |url=http://www.themoscowtimes.com/arts_n_ideas/article/muscovites-turn-green-for-irish-week/496349.html |work=[[The Moscow Times]] |date=18 March 2014 |access-date=18 March 2014 |archive-date=18 March 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140318214431/http://www.themoscowtimes.com/arts_n_ideas/article/muscovites-turn-green-for-irish-week/496349.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2017, the [[Russian Orthodox Church]] added the feast day of Saint Patrick to [[Eastern Orthodox liturgical calendar|its liturgical calendar]], to be celebrated on {{OldStyleDate|30 March||17 March}}.<ref>{{cite web |title=В месяцеслов Русской Православной Церкви включены имена древних святых, подвизавшихся в западных странах |url=http://www.patriarchia.ru/db/text/4829992.html |website=Patriarchia.ru |access-date=12 March 2017 |language=ru |date=9 March 2017 |trans-title=Ancient saints who worked in Western countries have been added to the menologium of the Russian Orthodox Church |archive-date=10 March 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170310173023/http://www.patriarchia.ru/db/text/4829992.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

====Spain====
[[Madrid]],<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.metromadrid.es/en/press-release/2024-03-12/the-community-of-madrid-celebrates-st-patricks-day-with-a-host-of-activities-at-different-points-in-the-metro-network | title= The Community of Madrid celebrates St. Patrick's Day with a host of activities at different points in the Metro network &#124; Metro de Madrid| date= 12 March 2024}}</ref> [[Barcelona]],<ref>{{Cite web | title=Celebrating St. Patrick's Day 2025 in Barcelona | url=https://www.barcelona-life.com/st-patricks-day | access-date=2025-02-01 | website=www.barcelona-life.com}}</ref> [[A Coruña]] and [[Benidorm]] are the biggest cities where great celebrations take place in Spain, but some other smaller cities have started to host Saint Patrick's Day in recent years, such as [[El Espinar]],<ref>{{cite web | url=https://lavozdeelespinar.es/el-espinar-celebra-san-patricio-del-15-al-17-de-marzo/ | title=El Espinar celebra San Patricio del 15 al 17 de marzo | date=12 March 2024 }}</ref> [[Caldas de Reyes]], [[Pontevedra]], [[Salamanca]], [[Elda]], [[Valladolid]]<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.docenotas.com/172425/el-centro-cultural-miguel-delibes-celebra-san-patricio-con-el-espectaculo-de-irish-treble-viaje-celta/ | title=El Centro Cultural Miguel Delibes celebra San Patricio con el espectáculo de Irish Treble, 'Viaje Celta' | date=14 March 2024 }}</ref> and [[Maspalomas]].

====Other European countries====
[[Sarajevo]], the capital city of [[Bosnia and Herzegovina]] has an Irish expatriate community.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://sarajevo.travel/en/things-to-do/sarajevo-irish-festival/795|title=Sarajevo Irish Festival|publisher=Sarajevo Travel|access-date=18 April 2018|archive-date=5 April 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180405153005/https://sarajevo.travel/en/things-to-do/sarajevo-irish-festival/795|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.stpatricksfestival.ie/events/int-event/sarajevo_irish_festival_20171|title=Sarajevo Irish Festival|publisher=stpatricksfestival.ie|access-date=18 April 2018|archive-date=5 April 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180405153029/http://www.stpatricksfestival.ie/events/int-event/sarajevo_irish_festival_20171|url-status=live}}</ref> The community established the [[Sarajevo Irish Festival]] in 2015, which is held for three days around and including Saint Patrick's Day. The festival organizes an annual parade, hosts Irish theatre companies, screens Irish films and organizes concerts of Irish folk musicians. The festival has hosted numerous Irish artists, filmmakers, theatre directors and musicians such as [[Conor Horgan]], Ailis Ni Riain, [[Dermot Dunne]], [[Mick Moloney]], [[Chloë Agnew]] and others.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.klix.ba/magazin/pripremljen-bogat-program-za-ovogodisnji-sarajevo-irish-festival/170307062|title=Pripremljen bogat program za ovogodišnji Sarajevo Irish Festival|publisher=klix.ba|access-date=18 April 2018|archive-date=25 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210325020037/https://www.klix.ba/magazin/pripremljen-bogat-program-za-ovogodisnji-sarajevo-irish-festival/170307062|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://lgbti.ba/intervju-conor-horgan-film-o-panti-bliss-je-o-tome-kako-licno-jeste-politicko/|title=Conor Horgan: Film o Panti Bliss je o tome kako lično jeste političko|date=15 March 2017|publisher=lgbti.ba|access-date=18 April 2018|archive-date=5 April 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180405092057/http://lgbti.ba/intervju-conor-horgan-film-o-panti-bliss-je-o-tome-kako-licno-jeste-politicko/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://avaz.ba/lifestyle/kultura/225274/veceras-otvaranje-sarajevo-irish-festivala|title=Večeras otvaranje Sarajevo Irish Festivala|date=16 March 2016|publisher=avaz.ba|access-date=18 April 2018|archive-date=5 April 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180405092155/http://avaz.ba/lifestyle/kultura/225274/veceras-otvaranje-sarajevo-irish-festivala|url-status=live}}</ref>

Although it is not a national holiday in [[Lithuania]], the [[Vilnia River]] is dyed green every year on the Saint Patrick's Day in the capital [[Vilnius]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Švento Patriko dieną Vilnelė vėl nusidažys žaliai |url=https://madeinvilnius.lt/pramogos/renginiai/svento-patriko-diena-vilnele-vel-nusidazys-zaliai/ |website=madeinvilnius.lt |access-date=14 October 2019 |language=lt-LT |date=13 March 2019 |archive-date=14 October 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191014205920/https://madeinvilnius.lt/pramogos/renginiai/svento-patriko-diena-vilnele-vel-nusidazys-zaliai/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[Norway]] has had a Saint Patrick's Day parade in Oslo since 2000, first organized by Irish expatriates living in Norway, and partially coordinated with the Irish embassy in Oslo.<ref>{{cite web |title=Oslo Parade History |url=https://www.irishsociety.no/st-patricks-day/ |date=18 March 2020 |access-date=17 March 2021 |archive-date=26 January 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210126151159/http://www.irishsociety.no/st-patricks-day/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

While Saint Patrick's Day in [[Switzerland]] is commonly celebrated on 17 March with festivities similar to those in neighbouring central European countries, it is not unusual for Swiss students to organise celebrations in their own living spaces on Saint Patrick's Eve. Most popular are usually those in Zurich's [[Aussersihl|Kreis 4]]. Traditionally, guests also contribute with beverages and dress in green.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.amiv.ethz.ch/content/st-patricks-eve-celebrations-2012-zürich |title=St. Patrick's Eve Celebrations 2012 in Zürich |language=de |publisher=Zurich Student Association |access-date=20 February 2012 |archive-date=15 March 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140315174049/https://www.amiv.ethz.ch/content/st-patricks-eve-celebrations-2012-z%C3%BCrich |url-status=dead }}</ref>

===Americas===
====Canada====
Saint Patrick's Day is a government holiday in [[Newfoundland and Labrador]].<ref>{{cite web | url=https://blog.payworks.ca/nl-paid-holidays-explained-st.-patricks-day-st.-georges-day#:~:text=employees%20and%20workplaces.-,St.,remain%20open%20on%20this%20day | title=NL paid holidays explained: St. Patrick's Day & St. George's Day }}</ref> The island Newfoundland has strong historic and cultural ties to Ireland and is cited as the most Irish place outside of Ireland.<ref>{{cite web | url=https://www.irishstar.com/culture/newfoundland-might-most-irish-place-32439124 | title=Newfoundland might be the most Irish place outside of Ireland | date=25 March 2024 }}</ref> Approximately 20% of Newfoundland's population consists of [[Irish Newfoundlanders]].

[[File:St. Patrick's Day Montreal 2007.jpg|thumb|Montreal hosts one of the longest-running and largest Saint Patrick's Day parades in North America]]
One of the longest-running and largest Saint Patrick's Day ({{langx|fr|le jour de la Saint-Patrick}}) parades in North America occurs each year in [[Montreal]],<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/montreal-celebrates-191st-st-patrick-s-day-parade-sunday-1.2568446 |title=Montreal celebrates 191st St. Patrick's Day parade Sunday |website=CBC News |publisher=Canadian Broadcasting Corporation |date=11 March 2014 |access-date=17 March 2014 |archive-date=1 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210601065311/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/montreal-celebrates-191st-st-patrick-s-day-parade-sunday-1.2568446 |url-status=live }}</ref> whose [[Flag of Montreal|city flag]] includes a [[shamrock]] in its lower-right quadrant. The yearly celebration has been organised by the United Irish Societies of Montreal since 1929. The parade has been held yearly without interruption since 1824. Saint Patrick's Day itself, however, has been celebrated in Montreal since as far back as 1759 by Irish soldiers in the Montreal Garrison following the British conquest of New France.

In [[Saint John, New Brunswick]] Saint Patrick's Day is celebrated as a week-long celebration. Shortly after the JP Collins Celtic Festival is an Irish festival celebrating Saint John's Irish heritage. The festival is named for a young Irish doctor James Patrick Collins who worked on [[Partridge Island (Saint John County)]] quarantine station tending to sick Irish immigrants before he died there himself.

In [[Manitoba]], the Irish Association of Manitoba runs a yearly three-day festival of music and culture based around Saint Patrick's Day.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.irishassociation.ca/ |title=Coming Events |website=Irish Association of Manitoba |access-date=19 March 2018 |archive-date=13 March 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130313224941/http://www.irishassociation.ca/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

In 2004, the CelticFest Vancouver Society organised its first yearly festival in downtown [[Vancouver]] to celebrate the [[Celtic Nations]] and their cultures. This event, which includes a parade, occurs each year during the weekend nearest Saint Patrick's Day.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.celticfestvancouver.com |title=CelticFest Vancouver |publisher=Celticfest Vancouver |access-date=19 March 2018 |archive-date=1 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210601065305/https://www.celticfestvancouver.com/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

In [[Quebec City]], there was a parade from 1837 to 1926. The [[Quebec City St-Patrick Parade]] returned in 2010 after more than 84 years. For the occasion, a portion of the [[New York City Police Department|New York Police Department]] Pipes and Drums were present as special guests.

There has been a parade held in [[Toronto]] since at least 1863.<ref>{{cite journal |last=Cottrell |first=Michael |url=http://pi.library.yorku.ca/ojs/index.php/hssh/article/viewFile/16699/15557 |title=St. Patrick's Day Parades in Nineteenth-Century Toronto: A Study of Immigrant Adjustment and Elite Control |journal=Histoire Sociale – Social History |volume=XXV |issue=49 |date=May 1992 |pages=57–73 |access-date=17 March 2015 |archive-date=22 August 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140822171343/http://pi.library.yorku.ca/ojs/index.php/hssh/article/viewFile/16699/15557 |url-status=live }}</ref>

The [[Toronto Maple Leafs]] hockey team was known as the [[Toronto St. Patricks]] from 1919 to 1927, and wore green jerseys. In 1999, when the Maple Leafs played on Saint Patrick's Day, they wore green St Patrick's retro uniforms.{{citation needed|date=March 2018}}

Some groups, notably [[Guinness]], have lobbied to make Saint Patrick's Day a national holiday.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.proposition317.com/Gateway.aspx |title=Guinness |publisher=Proposition 3–17 |access-date=17 March 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100323192927/http://www.proposition317.com/Gateway.aspx |archive-date=23 March 2010 }}</ref>

In March 2009, the [[Calgary Tower]] changed its top exterior lights to new green CFL bulbs just in time for Saint Patrick's Day. Part of an environmental non-profit organisation's campaign (Project Porchlight), the green represented environmental concerns. Approximately 210 lights were changed in time for Saint Patrick's Day, and resembled a [[Leprechaun]]'s hat. After a week, white CFLs took their place. The change was estimated to save the Calgary Tower some $12,000 and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 104 tonnes.<ref>{{cite web|last=Bevan |first=Alexis |url=https://calgaryherald.com/news/Calgary+Tower+gets+full+green+bulb+treatment/1378992/story.html |title=Calgary Tower gets full green bulb treatment |work=Calgary Herald |date=11 March 2009 |access-date=17 March 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090330025307/http://www.calgaryherald.com/news/Calgary%2BTower%2Bgets%2Bfull%2Bgreen%2Bbulb%2Btreatment/1378992/story.html |archive-date=30 March 2009 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

Since 2019, the City of [[Waterloo, Ontario]] has had to contend with an ever-growing massive street party that has coincided with the Saint Patrick's Day celebrations. In 2023, police could be seen putting fences up on Ezra Avenue to discourage partiers to participate in the unauthorized event that has cost the city as much as $750,000 a year for police, paramedics, and municipal services.<ref>{{cite web|last=Pickel|first=Jeff|url=https://kitchener.ctvnews.ca/will-fences-stop-ezra-ave-partiers-on-st-patrick-s-day-1.6314878|title=Will fences stop Ezra Ave. partiers on St. Patrick's Day?|work=CTV News Kitchener|date=15 March 2023 }}</ref>

====United States====
[[File:ChicagoStPatricksDay2015.jpg|thumb|The [[Chicago River#Saint Patrick's Day|Chicago River dyed green]]<ref>{{cite news |url=http://abc7chicago.com/news/crowds-gather-for-st-patricks-day-celebrations-downtown/1242900/ |title=Crowds gather for St. Patrick's Day celebrations downtown |last=Holmes |first=Evelyn |newspaper=Abc7 Chicago |date=12 March 2016 |publisher=[[American Broadcasting Company]] |access-date=13 March 2016 |quote=Large crowds gathered for Saturday's St. Patrick's Day festivities downtown. Although St. Patrick's Day is actually on a Thursday this year, Chicago will be marking the day all weekend long. Some started the day at Mass at Old St. Patrick's Church in the city's West Loop neighborhood. Spectators gathered along the riverfront in the Loop for the annual dyeing of the Chicago River, which began at 9&nbsp;am |archive-date=13 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160313110314/http://abc7chicago.com/news/crowds-gather-for-st-patricks-day-celebrations-downtown/1242900/ |url-status=live }}</ref>]]
{{Main|Saint Patrick's Day in the United States}}
Saint Patrick's Day, while not a legal holiday in the United States, is nonetheless widely recognised and observed throughout the country as a celebration of Irish and [[Irish-American]] culture. Celebrations include prominent displays of the colour green, religious observances, numerous parades, and copious consumption of alcohol.<ref name="Irish Culture 3" /> The holiday has been celebrated in what is now the U.S. since 1600, with the first parade occurring in 1601.<ref>{{Cite news|url=http://totallystaugustine.com/first-u-s-st-patricks-celebration-held-in-st-augustine-florida-in-1600/|title=First U.S. St. Patrick's celebration held in St. Augustine, Florida in 1600|newspaper=Totally St. Augustine |access-date=2 March 2020|archive-date=9 November 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191109211401/http://totallystaugustine.com/first-u-s-st-patricks-celebration-held-in-st-augustine-florida-in-1600/|url-status=live}}</ref>

It is customary for the Irish [[Taoiseach]] (Irish Prime Minister) to meet with the [[President of the United States]] on or around Saint Patrick's Day.<ref name="irishtimes.com">Collins, Stephen. (11 March 2017). [https://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/a-short-history-of-taoisigh-visiting-the-white-house-on-st-patrick-s-day-1.3005736 A Short History of Taoisigh Visiting the White House on St Patrick's Day] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190411085934/https://www.irishtimes.com/news/ireland/irish-news/a-short-history-of-taoisigh-visiting-the-white-house-on-st-patrick-s-day-1.3005736 |date=11 April 2019 }}. ''Irish Times''. Retrieved 8 January 2019</ref><ref>[https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/articles/st-patricks-day-irish-heritage-american-history/ St. Patrick's Day and Irish Heritage in American History] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210302235353/https://trumpwhitehouse.archives.gov/articles/st-patricks-day-irish-heritage-american-history/ |date=2 March 2021 }} (14 March 2018). [[whitehouse.gov]] Retrieved 8 January 2019</ref> Traditionally, the Taoiseach presents the US president a [[Waterford Crystal]] bowl filled with shamrocks.<ref name="irishexaminer.com">Dwyer, Ryle. (2 January 2017). [https://www.irishexaminer.com/viewpoints/analysis/president-reagans-bowl-of-shamrock-and-the-1500-year-wake-437296.html President Reagan's Bowl of Shamrock and the 1,500-Year Wake] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190110014343/https://www.irishexaminer.com/viewpoints/analysis/president-reagans-bowl-of-shamrock-and-the-1500-year-wake-437296.html |date=10 January 2019 }}. [[Irish Examiner]]. Retrieved 8 January 2019</ref> This tradition began in 1952 when the Irish Ambassador to the US, [[John Hearne (lawyer)|John Hearne]], sent a box of shamrocks to President [[Harry S. Truman]]. From then, it became a yearly custom for the Irish ambassador to send Saint Patrick's Day shamrocks to an official in the US President's administration, although on some occasions the shamrocks were given personally by the Irish Taoiseach or Irish President to the US president in Washington.<ref name="irishtimes.com"/><ref name="irishexaminer.com"/> After the meeting between Taoiseach [[Albert Reynolds]] and President [[Bill Clinton]] in 1994, the presenting of the shamrocks became a yearly custom.<ref name="irishtimes.com"/><ref>Dwyer, Ryle. (2 January 2017). [https://www.irishexaminer.com/viewpoints/analysis/president-reagans-bowl-of-shamrock-and-the-1500-year-wake-437296.html President Reagan's Bowl of Shamrock and the 1,500-Year Wake] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190110014343/https://www.irishexaminer.com/viewpoints/analysis/president-reagans-bowl-of-shamrock-and-the-1500-year-wake-437296.html |date=10 January 2019 }}. ''[[Irish Examiner]]''. Retrieved 8 January 2019</ref>

====Mexico====
The [[Saint Patrick's Battalion]] is honored in Mexico on Saint Patrick's Day.<ref>{{cite web |last=Talley |first=Patricia Ann |url=http://imagine-mexico.com/mexico-honors-irish-immigrants/ |title=Mexico Honors Irish Soldiers On St. Patrick's Day-The "San Patricios" |work=Imagine Mexico |date=28 February 2019 |access-date=21 March 2019 |archive-date=3 June 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190603103659/http://imagine-mexico.com/mexico-honors-irish-immigrants/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

====Argentina====
[[File:Día de San Patricio Buenos Aires 2.jpg|thumb|Celebrations in [[Buenos Aires]] centre on Reconquista street]]
In Buenos Aires, a party is held in the downtown street of Reconquista, where there are several Irish pubs;<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sanpatricio2009.com.ar/index.htm |title=Saint Patrick's Day in Argentina |publisher=Sanpatricio2009.com.ar |date=17 March 2009 |access-date=17 March 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130727025139/http://sanpatricio2009.com.ar/index.htm |archive-date=27 July 2013 }}</ref><ref>{{youTube|Df8ATMkkqWE|Saint Patrick's Day in Argentina}}. {{Retrieved|access-date=17 March 2009}}</ref> in 2006, there were 50,000 people in this street and the pubs nearby.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.clarin.com/diario/2006/03/18/laciudad/h-06401.htm |title=San Patricio convocó a una multitud |publisher=Clarin.com |date=18 March 2006 |access-date=17 March 2012 |archive-date=25 October 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081025034202/http://www.clarin.com/diario/2006/03/18/laciudad/h-06401.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> Neither the Catholic Church nor the [[Irish settlement in Argentina|Irish community]], the fifth largest in the world outside Ireland,<ref>{{Cite journal |title=Los Irlandeses en la Argentina |journal=Familia, Journal of the Ulster Historical Foundation |volume=2 |number=8 |year=1992 |first=Pat |last=Nally |url=http://www.irishtimes.com/ancestor/magazine/articles/uhf_argentina1.htm |access-date=6 November 2010 |archive-date=14 May 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160514232404/http://www.irishtimes.com/ancestor/magazine/articles/uhf_argentina1.htm |url-status=live }}</ref> take part in the organisation of the parties.

====Montserrat====
The island of [[Montserrat]] is known as the "Emerald Island of the [[Caribbean Sea|Caribbean]]" because of its founding by [[Irish immigration to Saint Kitts and Nevis|Irish refugees from Saint Kitts and Nevis]]. Montserrat is one of three places where Saint Patrick's Day is a public holiday, along with Ireland and the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador. The holiday in Montserrat also commemorates a failed slave uprising that occurred on 17 March 1768.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Gallery Montserrat: some prominent people in our history |last=Fergus |first=Howard A. |year=1996 |publisher=Canoe Press University of West Indies |isbn=976-8125-25-X |page=83 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2DD81ZHWhxgC&pg=PA83 |access-date=24 December 2010 |archive-date=6 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151006150410/https://books.google.com/books?id=2DD81ZHWhxgC&pg=PA83 |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Oceania ===
====Australia====
[[File:St Patrick's Parade Brisbane-13 (8562155117).jpg|thumb|Saint Patrick's Parade in Brisbane]]
Saint Patrick's Day is not a public holiday in Australia, although it is celebrated each year across the country's states and territories.<ref>[[National Museum of Australia]] (2020). [https://www.nma.gov.au/exhibitions/not-just-ned/about/about/st-patricks-day St Patrick's Day] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210207094309/https://www.nma.gov.au/exhibitions/not-just-ned/about/about/st-patricks-day |date=7 February 2021 }}. Retrieved 2 February 2021</ref><ref>Irish Echo (Australia) (2019) [https://www.irishecho.com.au/news/tag/St+Patrick%27s+Day+in+Australia St Patrick's Day in Australia: Latest News] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210321113813/https://www.irishecho.com.au/news/tag/St+Patrick%27s+Day+in+Australia |date=21 March 2021 }}. Irish Echo (Australia). Retrieved 2 February 2021</ref><ref>Modern Australian. (29 January 2019). [https://modernaustralian.com/4400-the-best-st-patrick-s-day-events-in-australia-2019 The best Saint Patrick's day events in Australia 2019] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210208050408/https://modernaustralian.com/4400-the-best-st-patrick-s-day-events-in-australia-2019 |date=8 February 2021 }}. Modern Australian. Retrieved 2 February 2021</ref> Festivals and parades are often held on weekends around 17 March in cities such as [[Sydney]],<ref>{{cite news |last=Mitchell |first=Georgina |date=17 March 2018 |title=St Patrick's day celebrations to turn Moore Park into the 'green quarter' |url=https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/st-patrick-s-day-celebrations-to-turn-moore-park-into-the-green-quarter-20180317-p4z4ui.html |work=[[The Sydney Morning Herald]] |access-date=2 February 2021 |archive-date=7 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210207091307/https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/st-patrick-s-day-celebrations-to-turn-moore-park-into-the-green-quarter-20180317-p4z4ui.html |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Brisbane]],<ref>{{cite news|last=Garcia|first=Jocelyn|date=16 March 2019|title=St Patrick's Day parade patron honoured at Brisbane festivities|url=https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/national/queensland/st-patrick-s-day-parade-patron-honoured-at-brisbane-festivities-20190316-p514rq.html|work=[[Brisbane Times]]|access-date=2 February 2021|archive-date=7 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210207091513/https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/national/queensland/st-patrick-s-day-parade-patron-honoured-at-brisbane-festivities-20190316-p514rq.html|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Adelaide]],<ref>{{cite news|last=Iannella|first=Antimo|date=16 March 2017|title=St Patrick's Day takes to Adelaide Oval for the first time since 1967, with celebrations at southern end of stadium|url=https://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/south-australia/st-patricks-day-takes-to-adelaide-oval-for-the-first-time-since-1967-with-celebrations-at-southern-end-of-stadium/news-story/1882121362c680f649067884e7141dfe|work=[[The Advertiser (Adelaide)|The Advertiser]]|access-date=2 February 2021|archive-date=10 September 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170910202046/http://www.adelaidenow.com.au/news/south-australia/st-patricks-day-takes-to-adelaide-oval-for-the-first-time-since-1967-with-celebrations-at-southern-end-of-stadium/news-story/1882121362c680f649067884e7141dfe|url-status=live}}</ref> and [[Melbourne]].<ref>{{cite news|last=Kozina|first=Teigan|date=16 March 2018|title=2019 Saint Patrick's Day 2018: Where to celebrate in Melbourne|url=https://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/saint-patricks-day-2018-where-to-celebrate-in-melbourne/news-story/26d3bf2bacfd0ddd3ae48023b0db9263|work=[[Herald Sun]]|access-date=2 February 2021|archive-date=26 April 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180426111709/http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/saint-patricks-day-2018-where-to-celebrate-in-melbourne/news-story/26d3bf2bacfd0ddd3ae48023b0db9263|url-status=live}}</ref> On occasion, festivals and parades are cancelled. For instance, Melbourne's 2006 and 2007 Saint Patrick's Day festivals and parades were cancelled due to sporting events ([[Commonwealth Games]] and [[Australian Grand Prix]]) being booked on and around the planned Saint Patrick's Day festivals and parades in the city.<ref>{{cite news|last=Holroyd|first=Jane|date=17 March 2006|title=Irish see green over Grand Prix|url=https://www.theage.com.au/national/irish-see-green-over-grand-prix-20070317-ge4fyk.html|work=[[The Age]]|access-date=2 February 2021|archive-date=6 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210206161335/https://www.theage.com.au/national/irish-see-green-over-grand-prix-20070317-ge4fyk.html|url-status=live}}</ref> In Sydney the parade and family day was cancelled in 2016 due to financial problems.<ref>{{cite news |last=Murphy |first=Damien |date=6 February 2016 |title=Why there will be no St Patrick's Day Rising: Burden of debt on the centenary of the Easter Rising forces cancellation of St Patrick's Day parade. |url=https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/why-there-will-be-no-st-patricks-day-rising-20160204-gmlydi.html |work=[[The Sydney Morning Herald]] |access-date=2 February 2021 |archive-date=12 February 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190212004753/https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/why-there-will-be-no-st-patricks-day-rising-20160204-gmlydi.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Murphy |first=Damien |date=16 March 2016 |title=Irish eyes not smiling: St Patrick's Day parade cancelled in Sydney |url=https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/irish-eyes-not-smiling-st-patricks-day-parade-cancelled-in-sydney-20160316-gnk86u.html |work=[[The Sydney Morning Herald]] |access-date=2 February 2021 |archive-date=9 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210209051232/https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/irish-eyes-not-smiling-st-patricks-day-parade-cancelled-in-sydney-20160316-gnk86u.html |url-status=live }}</ref> However, Brisbane's Saint Patrick's Day parade, which was cancelled at the outbreak of [[World War II]] and wasn't revived until 1990,<ref>{{cite news|last=Crockford|first=Toby|date=17 March 2018|title=Grand parade to be sure, when St Patrick's Day falls on a Saturday|url=https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/national/queensland/grand-parade-to-be-sure-when-st-patrick-s-day-falls-on-a-saturday-20180317-p4z4v0.html|work=[[Brisbane Times]]|access-date=2 February 2021|archive-date=9 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201109031629/https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/national/queensland/grand-parade-to-be-sure-when-st-patrick-s-day-falls-on-a-saturday-20180317-p4z4v0.html|url-status=live}}</ref> was not called off in 2020 as precaution for the [[COVID-19 pandemic]], in contrast to many other Saint Patrick's Day parades around the world.<ref>{{cite news|last=Layt|first=Stuart|date=10 March 2020|title=Coronavirus fears won't rain on Brisbane St Patrick's Day parade|url=https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/national/queensland/coronavirus-fears-won-t-rain-on-brisbane-st-patrick-s-day-parade-20200310-p548qo.html|work=[[Brisbane Times]]|access-date=2 February 2021|archive-date=11 March 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200311155325/https://www.brisbanetimes.com.au/national/queensland/coronavirus-fears-won-t-rain-on-brisbane-st-patrick-s-day-parade-20200310-p548qo.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

The first mention of Saint Patrick's Day being celebrated in Australia was in 1795, when Irish convicts and administrators, Catholic and Protestant, in the [[penal colony]] came together to celebrate the day as a national holiday, despite a ban against assemblies being in place at the time.<ref name="O'Farrell">[[Patrick O'Farrell|O'Farrell, Patrick]]. (1995). St Patrick's Day in Australia: The John Alexander Ferguson Lecture 1994. Journal of Royal Historical Society 81(1) 1-16.</ref> This unified day of Irish nationalist observance would soon dissipate over time, with celebrations on Saint Patrick's Day becoming divisive between religions and social classes, representative more of Australianness than of Irishness and held intermittingly throughout the years.<ref name="O'Farrell"/><ref>''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (18 March 1887). [https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/28355652 St Patrick's Day Celebrations] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210519150719/https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/28355652 |date=19 May 2021 }}. ''[[The Sydney Morning Herald]]''. [[New South Wales]]. p5. Retrieved 2 February 2021 via National Library of Australia</ref><ref>The Adelaide Chronicle (25 Mar 1916). [https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/87241295/8616594 St. Patrick's Day in Adelaide] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210519150800/https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/87241295/8616594 |date=19 May 2021 }}. [[The Adelaide Chronicle]] [[Adelaide]] [[South Australia]]. p25. Retrieved 2 February 2021 via National Library of Australia</ref> Historian [[Patrick O'Farrell]] credits the [[Easter Rising|1916 Easter Rising]] in [[Dublin]] and [[Archbishop Daniel Mannix]] of [[Melbourne]] for re-igniting St Patrick's Day celebrations in Australia and reviving the sense of Irishness amongst those with Irish heritage.<ref name="O'Farrell"/> The organisers of the Saint Patrick's festivities in the past were, more often than not, the Catholic clergy<ref>The Southern Cross. (20 February 1931). St. Patrick's Day: The Adelaide Celebration: Meeting of the Committee. [[The Southern Cross (South Australia)|The Southern Cross]]. [[Adelaide]] [[South Australia]]. p7. Retrieved 2 February 2021 via National Library of Australia</ref> which often courted controversy.<ref>{{cite news|last=Daley|first=Paul|date=2 April 2016|title=Divided Melbourne: When Archbishop turned St Patrick's Day into Propaganda|url=https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/postcolonial-blog/2016/apr/22/divided-melbourne-when-the-archbishop-turned-st-patricks-day-into-propaganda|work=[[The Guardian]]|access-date=2 February 2021|archive-date=6 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210206213653/https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/postcolonial-blog/2016/apr/22/divided-melbourne-when-the-archbishop-turned-st-patricks-day-into-propaganda|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>Sullivan, Tim. (2020). [https://www.htav.asn.au/documents/item/3390 An Illusion of Unity: Irish Australia, the Great War and the 1920 St Patrick's Day Parade] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210206020126/https://www.htav.asn.au/documents/item/3390 |date=6 February 2021 }} Agora 55(1). 24–31</ref> [[Patrick Phelan (Bishop of Sale)|Bishop Patrick Phelan]] of [[Roman Catholic Diocese of Sale|Sale]] described in 1921 how the authorities in [[Victoria (Australia)|Victoria]] had ordered that a [[Union Jack]] be flown at the front of the Saint Patrick's Day parade and following the refusal by Irishmen and [[Irish-Australians]] to do so, the authorities paid for an individual to carry the flag at the head of the parade.<ref>Fitzgerald, Ellen (21 March 2019). [https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/in-the-herald-march-21-1921-20190313-p513tl.html In the Herald : 21 March 1921: Union Jack forced on St Patrick's Day] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210210001805/https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/in-the-herald-march-21-1921-20190313-p513tl.html |date=10 February 2021 }}. [[The Sydney Morning Herald]]</ref><ref>Warwick Daily News (21 March 1921). [https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/177270639?searchTerm=Patrick%20Phelan%20Union%20Jack%20forced%20on%20St%20Patrick%E2%80%99s%20Day St Patrick's Day: Scenes in Melbourne: Union Jack Hooted: Speech by Bishop Phelan]. [[Warwick Daily News]] [[Queensland]]. p5. Retrieved 2 February 2021 via National Library of Australia</ref> This individual was later assaulted by two men who were later fined in court.<ref>The Argus. (22 March 1921). [https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/1741365?searchTerm=Union%20Jack%20forced%20on%20St%20Patrick%E2%80%99s%20Day Attack on Union Jack: St Patrick's Day Incident: Two Men Before the Court.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210207181041/https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/1741365?searchTerm=Union%20Jack%20forced%20on%20St%20Patrick%E2%80%99s%20Day |date=7 February 2021 }} [[The Argus (Melbourne)|The Argus]]. [[Melbourne]] [[Victoria (Australia)|Victoria]]. p7. Retrieved 2 February 2021 via National Library of Australia</ref><ref>The Argus (31 March 1921). [https://trove.nla.gov.au/newspaper/article/1743242?searchTerm=Union%20Jack%20forced%20on%20St%20Patrick%E2%80%99s%20Day Attack on Union Jack: St Patrick's Day Incident: Two Young Men Fined]. ''[[The Argus (Melbourne)|The Argus]]''. [[Melbourne]] [[Victoria (Australia)|Victoria]]. p7. Retrieved 2 February 2021 via National Library of Australia</ref>

====New Zealand====
From 1878 to 1955, Saint Patrick's Day was recognised as a public holiday in New Zealand, together with [[St George's Day]] (England) and [[St Andrew's Day]] (Scotland).<ref>Swarbrick, Nancy. (2016). [https://teara.govt.nz/en/public-holidays/page-3 Public holidays - Celebrating communities] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210207085104/https://teara.govt.nz/en/public-holidays/page-3 |date=7 February 2021 }}, [[Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand]], Retrieved 2 February 2021</ref><ref>Swarbrick, Nancy. (2016) [https://teara.govt.nz/en/public-holidays/print Public holidays] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210206081203/https://teara.govt.nz/en/public-holidays/print |date=6 February 2021 }}, [[Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand]], Retrieved 2 February 2021</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=Daly|first=Michael|date=20 May 2020|title=How do we get public holidays? Government considering an extra long weekend|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/121569002/how-do-we-get-public-holidays-government-considering-an-extra-long-weekend|work=[[Stuff (website)|Stuff]]|access-date=2 February 2021|archive-date=6 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210206123935/https://www.stuff.co.nz/national/121569002/how-do-we-get-public-holidays-government-considering-an-extra-long-weekend|url-status=live}}</ref> [[Auckland]] attracted many Irish migrants in the 1850s and 1860s, and it was here where some of the earliest Saint Patrick's Day celebrations took place, which often entailed the hosting of community picnics.<ref name="Bueltmann">Bueltmann, Tanja. (2012). [https://books.google.com/books?id=opjuVKk-HEoC&dq=The+New+Zealand+Herald+st+patrick%27s+day+public+holiday&pg=PA105 Remembering the Homeland: St Patrick's Day Celebrations in New Zealand to 1910] in Oona Frawley (ed.) (2012). ''Memory Ireland: Diaspora and Memory Practices'' Vol.2 Syracuse University Press. {{ISBN|9780815651710}} pp101-113. Retrieved 2 February 2021</ref> However, this rapidly evolved from the late 1860s onwards to include holding parades with pipe bands and marching children wearing green, sporting events, concerts, balls and other social events, where people displayed their Irishness with pride.<ref name="Bueltmann"/> While Saint Patrick's Day is no longer recognised as a public holiday, it continues to be celebrated across New Zealand with festivals and parades at weekends on or around 17 March.<ref>{{cite news|last=[[The New Zealand Herald]] |date=17 March 2018|title=St Patrick's Day celebrations underway in Auckland|url=https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/st-patricks-day-celebrations-underway-in-auckland/ZASJXHLEBLWJT2YAQOAXZNK2UA/|work=[[The New Zealand Herald]]|access-date=2 February 2021|archive-date=7 February 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210207051529/https://www.nzherald.co.nz/nz/st-patricks-day-celebrations-underway-in-auckland/ZASJXHLEBLWJT2YAQOAXZNK2UA/|url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|last=O'Sullivan|first=Aisling|date=16 March 2017|title=Best places to celebrate St Patrick's Day in New Zealand and around the world|url=https://www.stuff.co.nz/travel/destinations/nz/90440256/best-places-to-celebrate-st-patricks-day-in-new-zealand-and-around-the-world|work=[[Stuff (website)|Stuff]]|access-date=2 February 2021|archive-date=8 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190508044805/https://www.stuff.co.nz/travel/destinations/nz/90440256/best-places-to-celebrate-st-patricks-day-in-new-zealand-and-around-the-world|url-status=live}}</ref>

===Asia===
[[File:Saint Patricks Day in Motomachi Yokohama.jpg|thumb|Saint Patrick's Day in [[Motomachi, Yokohama]]]]
Saint Patrick's parades are now held in many locations across Japan.<ref name="url2013 St Patricks Day Parades in Japan">{{cite web |url=http://st-patricks-day.com/st_patricks_day_parades_asia_japan.html |title=Saint Patrick's Day Parades & Events in Japan |access-date=24 April 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130508140202/http://st-patricks-day.com/st_patricks_day_parades_asia_japan.html |archive-date=8 May 2013 }}</ref> The first parade, in Tokyo, was organised by The Irish Network Japan (INJ) in 1992.

The Irish Association of Korea has celebrated Saint Patrick's Day since 1976 in [[Seoul]], the capital city of [[South Korea|Korea]] and [[Busan]], second largest city in Korea. The plaxe of the parade and festivals are [[Itaewon]] of Seoul and [[Seo-myeon, Busan|Seomyeon]] of Busan. It is sponsored by Embassy of Ireland in Korea.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.iak.co.kr/event/event.php |title=Saint Patrick's Day in Korea Event Page |publisher=Irish Association of Korea |access-date=17 March 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100314060945/http://www.iak.co.kr/event/event.php |archive-date=14 March 2010 }}</ref>

In [[Malaysia]], the St Patrick's Society of Selangor, founded in 1925, organises a yearly St Patrick's Ball, described as the biggest Saint Patrick's Day celebration in Asia. [[Guinness Anchor Berhad]] also organises 36 parties across the country in places like the [[Klang Valley]], [[Penang]], [[Johor Bahru]], Malacca, [[Ipoh]], [[Kuantan]], [[Kota Kinabalu]], [[Miri, Malaysia|Miri]] and [[Kuching]].

===UN Peacekeeping missions===
Irish [[United Nations]] (UN) peacekeepers outside Ireland also celebrate Saint Patrick's Day. For example, in 2021, the [[United Nations Disengagement Observer Force]]'s Irish contingent led a parade in Syria where members received shamrocks and 35 personnel were presented with the [[United Nations Peacekeeping Medal|UN Peacekeeping Medal]].<ref>{{cite web|title=ST PATRICK'S DAY 2021 IN UNDOF|url=https://undof.unmissions.org/st-patrick%E2%80%99s-day-2021-undof|publisher=[[United Nations]]|website=undof.unmissions.org|date=22 March 2021|access-date=18 November 2023}}</ref>

===International Space Station===
[[File:Chris Hadfield in the Space Station on Saint Patrick's Day.jpg|thumb|Astronaut [[Chris Hadfield]] wearing green in the [[International Space Station]] on Saint Patrick's Day, 2013]]
Astronauts on board the [[International Space Station]] have celebrated the festival in different ways. Irish-American [[Catherine Coleman]] played a hundred-year-old flute belonging to [[Matt Molloy]] and a [[tin whistle]] belonging to [[Paddy Moloney]], both members of the Irish music group [[The Chieftains]], while floating weightless in the space station on Saint Patrick's Day in 2011.<ref>{{cite web |first=Tariq |last=Malik |url=http://www.space.com/11159-irish-astronaut-stpatricks-day-flute-music.html |title=Irish Astronaut in Space Gives St. Patrick's Day Musical Flair |work=Space.com |date=17 March 2011 |access-date=18 March 2013 |archive-date=1 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210601065208/https://www.space.com/11159-irish-astronaut-stpatricks-day-flute-music.html |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vX-5n_YcxgQ |title=St. Patrick's Day Greeting From Space |publisher=NASA TV video |date=17 March 2011 |access-date=1 December 2016 |archive-date=1 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210601065219/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vX-5n_YcxgQ |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |first=Diarmaid |last=Fleming |url=https://www.irishtimes.com/news/molloy-s-flute-to-help-irish-music-breach-the-final-frontier-1.687275 |title=Molloy's flute to help Irish music breach the final frontier |work=Irish Times |date=15 December 2010 |access-date=19 March 2018 |archive-date=1 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210601065247/https://www.irishtimes.com/news/molloy-s-flute-to-help-irish-music-breach-the-final-frontier-1.687275 |url-status=live }}</ref> Her performance was later included in a track called "The Chieftains in Orbit" on the group's 2012 album, ''[[Voice of Ages]]''.<ref>{{cite web |first=Brian |last=Boyd |url=https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/music/2.659/chieftains-call-up-to-an-army-of-indie-admirers-1.479104 |title=Chieftains' call-up to an army of indie admirers |work=Irish Times |date=10 March 2012 |access-date=19 March 2018 |archive-date=1 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210601071548/https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/music/2.659/chieftains-call-up-to-an-army-of-indie-admirers-1.479104 |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[Chris Hadfield]] took photographs of Ireland from Earth orbit, and a picture of himself wearing green clothing in the space station, and posted them online on Saint Patrick's Day in 2013. He also posted online a recording of himself singing "[[Danny Boy]]" in space.<ref>{{cite news |first=Ronan |last=McGreevy |url=http://www.irishtimes.com/news/out-of-this-world-rendition-of-danny-boy-marks-st-patrick-s-day-in-space-1.1328923 |title=Out of this world rendition of Danny Boy marks St Patrick's Day in space |newspaper=The Irish Times |date=17 March 2013 |access-date=18 March 2013 |archive-date=17 March 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130317213530/http://www.irishtimes.com/news/out-of-this-world-rendition-of-danny-boy-marks-st-patrick-s-day-in-space-1.1328923 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F83635601 |title=Astronaut Chris Hadfield singing "Danny Boy" on the International Space Station |work=Soundcloud |date=17 March 2013 |access-date=18 March 2013 |archive-date=18 March 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130318233806/https://w.soundcloud.com/player/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fapi.soundcloud.com%2Ftracks%2F83635601 |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Criticism==
Saint Patrick's Day celebrations have been criticised, particularly for their association with [[public drunkenness]] and [[disorderly conduct]]. Some argue that the festivities have become too [[Commercialism|commercialised]] and tacky,{{sfnp|Cronin|Adair|2002 |p=240}}<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/opinion/columnists/fionola-meredith/time-to-banish-perpetually-offended-elements-in-society-29142031.html |title=Time to banish perpetually offended elements in society |first=Fionola |last=Meredith |work=[[Belfast Telegraph]] |date=21 March 2013 |access-date=11 March 2016 |archive-date=12 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160312072118/http://www.belfasttelegraph.co.uk/opinion/columnists/fionola-meredith/time-to-banish-perpetually-offended-elements-in-society-29142031.html |url-status=live }}</ref> and have strayed from their original purpose of honouring Saint Patrick and Irish heritage.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.irishtimes.com/opinion/st-patrick-s-day-celebrates-the-role-of-all-us-migrants-1.483637 |title=St Patrick's Day celebrates the role of all US migrants |first=James |last=Flannery |newspaper=[[The Irish Times]] |date=17 March 2012 |access-date=11 March 2016 |archive-date=12 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160312062023/http://www.irishtimes.com/opinion/st-patrick-s-day-celebrates-the-role-of-all-us-migrants-1.483637 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/12003/irish-american-catholics-negotiate-st-patricks-day-and-holy-week-conflict |title=Irish-American Catholics negotiate St. Patrick's Day and Holy Week conflict |work=[[Catholic News Agency]] |date=7 March 2008 |access-date=11 March 2016 |archive-date=12 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160312065341/http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/irishamerican_catholics_negotiate_st._patricks_day_and_holy_week_conflict |url-status=live }}</ref>{{sfnp|Cronin|Adair|2002 |p=240}} Irish American journalist [[Niall O'Dowd]] has criticised attempts to recast Saint Patrick's Day as a celebration of [[multiculturalism]] rather than a celebration of Irishness.<ref>{{cite web |title=Please, let's keep political correctness out of Saint Patrick's Day |url=http://www.irishcentral.com/opinion/niallodowd/please-lets-keep-political-correctness-out-of-saint-patricks-day--pressure-mounts-to-make-it-about-more-than-just-the-irish-in-america-143292966-238125081.html |first=Niall |last=O'Dowd |work=IrishCentral |date=18 March 2012 |access-date=11 March 2016 |archive-date=12 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160312064109/http://www.irishcentral.com/opinion/niallodowd/please-lets-keep-political-correctness-out-of-saint-patricks-day--pressure-mounts-to-make-it-about-more-than-just-the-irish-in-america-143292966-238125081.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[File:Man in Leprechaun Outfit on St Patrick's Day.jpg|thumb|Man in a [[leprechaun]] outfit on Saint Patrick's Day]]
Saint Patrick's Day celebrations have also been criticised for fostering demeaning stereotypes of Ireland and [[Irish people]].{{sfnp|Cronin|Adair|2002 |p=240}} An example is the wearing of '[[leprechaun]] outfits',<ref>{{cite web |first=Ian |last=O'Doherty |url=http://www.independent.ie/opinion/columnists/ian-odoherty/st-patricks-day-when-everyones-proud-to-be-a-stereotype-31072014.html |title=St Patrick's Day – when everyone's proud to be a stereotype |work=[[Irish Independent]] |date=17 March 2015 |access-date=11 March 2016 |archive-date=12 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160312065728/http://www.independent.ie/opinion/columnists/ian-odoherty/st-patricks-day-when-everyones-proud-to-be-a-stereotype-31072014.html |url-status=live }}</ref> which are based on derogatory 19th century caricatures of the Irish.<ref>{{Cite book|title=Gold: A Cultural Encyclopedia |last=Venable |first=Shannon |year=2011 |publisher=ABC-CLIO |pages=196–197}}</ref> In the run up to Saint Patrick's Day 2014, the [[Ancient Order of Hibernians]] successfully campaigned to stop major American retailers from selling novelty merchandise that promoted negative Irish stereotypes.<ref>{{cite web |first=Jennifer |last=Harper |url=http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/mar/16/weary-drunk-leprechauns-irish-americans-protest-th |title=O'Done with It: Irish Americans protest 'negative stereotyping' as bawdy drunks |work=[[The Washington Times]] |date=16 March 2014 |access-date=23 March 2018 |archive-date=14 June 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180614025603/https://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2014/mar/16/weary-drunk-leprechauns-irish-americans-protest-th/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

Saint Patrick's Day celebrations outside Ireland have been described by critics as displays of "[[Plastic Paddy]]ness"; where foreigners [[Cultural appropriation|appropriate]] and misrepresent [[Irish culture]], claim Irish identity, and enact Irish stereotypes.<ref>{{cite web |author-link=Alex Massie (journalist) |author=Massie, Alex |url=http://www.nationalreview.com/article/217081/erin-go-argh-alex-massie |title=Erin Go Argh! |work=[[National Review Online]] |date=17 March 2006 |access-date=11 March 2016 |archive-date=12 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160312064448/http://www.nationalreview.com/article/217081/erin-go-argh-alex-massie |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[LGBTQ rights in the United States|LGBTQ groups in the US]] were long banned from marching in Saint Patrick's Day parades in [[New York City]] and [[Boston]], resulting in the landmark [[Supreme Court of the United States|Supreme Court]] decision of ''[[Hurley v. Irish-American Gay, Lesbian, and Bisexual Group of Boston]]''. In New York City, the ban was lifted in 2014,<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/04/nyregion/new-york-st-patricks-day-parade-organizers-lift-ban-on-gay-groups.html?_r=0 |last=Santora |first=Mark |title=Gay Groups to March in St. Patrick's Day Parade as Ban Falls |work=The New York Times |date=3 September 2014 |access-date=17 March 2016 |archive-date=22 July 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190722105445/https://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/04/nyregion/new-york-st-patricks-day-parade-organizers-lift-ban-on-gay-groups.html?_r=0 |url-status=live }}</ref> but LGBTQ groups still find that barriers to participation exist.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.huffingtonpost.com/huff-wires/20140903/us--nyc-st-patrick-s-day-parade-gays/ |last=Fitzgerald |first=Jim |title=Gays Scoff at NY St. Patrick's Day Parade Decision |work=Huffington Post |date=3 September 2014 |access-date=17 March 2016 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160324104033/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/huff-wires/20140903/us--nyc-st-patrick-s-day-parade-gays/ |archive-date=24 March 2016}}</ref> In Boston, the ban on LGBTQ group participation was lifted in 2015.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://time.com/3745215/gay-groups-boston-st-patricks-parade/ |last=Worland |first=Justin |title=Boston Sees Historic St. Patrick's Day Parade |magazine=Time |date=15 March 2015 |access-date=17 March 2016 |archive-date=10 September 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190910193051/https://time.com/3745215/gay-groups-boston-st-patricks-parade/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Sports events==
* Traditionally the finals of the [[All-Ireland Senior Club Football Championship]] and [[All-Ireland Senior Club Hurling Championship]] were held on Saint Patrick's Day in [[Croke Park]], Dublin, but since 2020 these now take place in January. The [[Interprovincial Championship]] was previously held on 17 March but this was switched to games being played in Autumn.
*The [[Leinster Schools Rugby Senior Cup]], [[Munster Schools Rugby Senior Cup]] and [[Ulster Schools Senior Cup]] finals are held on Saint Patrick's Day. The [[Connacht Schools Rugby Senior Cup]] final is held on the weekend before Saint Patrick's Day.
* Horse racing at the [[Cheltenham Festival]] attracts large numbers of Irish people, both residents of Britain and many who travel from Ireland, and usually coincides with Saint Patrick's Day.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/special_report/1998/03/98/stpatrick/64867.stm |title=The day the world turns green |work=[[BBC News]] |date=17 March 1998 |access-date=17 March 2013 |archive-date=5 July 2004 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040705083914/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/special_report/1998/03/98/stpatrick/64867.stm |url-status=live }}</ref>
* The [[Six Nations Championship]] is an annual international rugby Union tournament competed by [[England national rugby union team|England]], [[France national rugby union team|France]], [[Ireland national rugby union team|Ireland]], [[Italy national rugby union team|Italy]], [[Scotland national rugby union team|Scotland]], and [[Wales national rugby union team|Wales]] and reaches its climax on or around Saint Patrick's Day.<ref>Carey, Tom. (10 March 2018). [https://www.telegraph.co.uk/rugby-union/2018/03/10/ireland-vs-scotland-six-nations-2018-live-score-updates/ Ireland will chase a Grand Slam at Twickenham on St Patrick's Day after claiming Six Nations title in Dublin] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190108200912/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/rugby-union/2018/03/10/ireland-vs-scotland-six-nations-2018-live-score-updates/ |date=8 January 2019 }}. ''[[The Daily Telegraph|The Telegraph]]''. Retrieved on 8 January 2018</ref><ref>Tevlin, Rory (17 March 2018)[https://www.independent.ie/sport/rugby/six-nations/on-st-patricks-day-and-after-cheltenham-this-is-the-icing-on-the-cake-ireland-rugby-fans-paint-london-green-36714831.html 'On St Patrick's Day and After Cheltenham – This is the Icing on the Cake' – Ireland Rugby Fans Paint London Green] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190109011747/https://www.independent.ie/sport/rugby/six-nations/on-st-patricks-day-and-after-cheltenham-this-is-the-icing-on-the-cake-ireland-rugby-fans-paint-london-green-36714831.html |date=9 January 2019 }}. [[Independent.ie]]. Retrieved 8 January 2018</ref> On [[2018 Six Nations Championship|St Patrick's Day 2018]], Ireland defeated England 24–15 at [[Twickenham Stadium|Twickenham]], [[London]] to claim the third [[Grand Slam (rugby union)|Grand Slam]] in their history.<ref>Fordyce, Tom. (17 March 2018). [https://www.bbc.com/sport/rugby-union/43414537 Six Nations: Ireland beat England 24–15 to win Grand Slam.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190417034411/https://www.bbc.com/sport/rugby-union/43414537 |date=17 April 2019 }} [[BBC Sport]]. Retrieved 8 January 2018</ref><ref>Godwin, Hugh. (17 March 2018). [https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/rugby/rugby-union/international/six-nations-2018-ireland-beat-england-grand-slam-2415-match-report-video-a8261221.html Six Nations: Ireland Complete the Third Grand Slam in Their History with 24–15 Victory Over England] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200330083426/https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/rugby/rugby-union/international/six-nations-2018-ireland-beat-england-grand-slam-2415-match-report-video-a8261221.html |date=30 March 2020 }} ''[[The Independent]]''. Retrieved 8 January 2018</ref>
* The [[Saint Patrick's Day Test]] is an international [[rugby league]] tournament that is played between the [[United States national rugby league team|US]] and [[Ireland national rugby league team|Ireland]]. The competition was first started in 1995 and continued in 1996, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2011, and 2012. Ireland won the first two tests as well as the one in 2011, with the US winning the remaining 5. The game is usually held on or around 17 March to coincide with Saint Patrick's Day.<ref>{{cite web |last=Lowe |first=Brian |url=http://www.wearerugby.com/news/articles/tomahawks-host-ireland |title=Tomahawks To Host Ireland |website=We Are Rugby |date=9 December 2010 |access-date=31 March 2011 |url-status=usurped |archive-url=https://archive.today/20110718010215/http://www.wearerugby.com/news/articles/tomahawks-host-ireland |archive-date=18 July 2011}}</ref>
* The [[major professional sports leagues of the United States and Canada]] that play during March often wear special [[third jersey]]s to acknowledge the holiday. Examples include the [[Buffalo Sabres]] (who have worn special Irish-themed practice jerseys), [[Toronto Maple Leafs]] (who wear [[Toronto St. Patricks]] throwbacks), [[New York Knicks]], [[Toronto Raptors]], and most [[Major League Baseball]] teams. The [[New Jersey Devils]] have worn their green-and-red throwback jerseys on or around Saint Patrick's Day in recent years.<ref>{{cite news
 |url          = http://www.nj.com/devils/index.ssf/2015/03/how_do_the_devils_feel_about_wearing_the_green_and.html
 |title        = How do the Devils feel about wearing the green and red retro jerseys?
 |work         = NJ.com
 |author       = Chere, Rich
 |date         = 16 March 2015
|access-date  = 21 February 2017
|archive-date = 3 August 2017
|archive-url  = https://web.archive.org/web/20170803223803/http://www.nj.com/devils/index.ssf/2015/03/how_do_the_devils_feel_about_wearing_the_green_and.html
 |url-status   = live
}}</ref>

==See also==
{{Portal|Holidays|Ireland|Christianity}}
* [[Gaelic calendar]], also known as Irish calendar
* "[[It's a Great Day for the Irish]]"
* [[Order of St. Patrick]]
* [[Saint Patrick's Breastplate]]
* [[St. Patrick's Day Snowstorm]] of 1892
* [[Saint Brigid of Ireland]]
* [[Saint Urho]]
* [[Unofficial Saint Patrick's Day]]

==References==
{{Reflist|refs=
<ref name=Koch2005>{{cite book |last=Koch |first=John T. |year=2005 |title=Celtic Culture: A Historical Encyclopedia |volume=1 A-Celti |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=f899xH_quaMC&q=Goídel+Glas&pg=PA830 |location=Oxford |publisher=ABC-Clio |isbn=978-1-851-09440-0 |access-date=14 March 2018 |archive-date=19 May 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210519150936/https://books.google.com/books?id=f899xH_quaMC&q=Go%C3%ADdel+Glas&pg=PA830 |url-status=live }}</ref>
<ref name=Macalister1939>{{cite book |last=Macalister |first=Robert Alexander Stewart |year=1939 |title=Lebor Gabála Érenn: The Book of the Taking of Ireland |volume=2 |url=https://archive.org/details/LeborGablarennTheBookOfTheTakingOfIreland-Volume21939 |location=Dublin |publisher=Irish Texts Society by the Educational Co. of Ireland |access-date=14 March 2018}}</ref>
<ref name=MacKillop2005>{{cite book |last=Mackillop |first=James |year=2005 |title=Myths and Legends of the Celts |pages=145–146 |location=London |publisher=Penguin Books |isbn=978-0-141-01794-5 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=HI5yXNhbebYC&pg=PT215 |access-date=14 March 2018 |archive-date=19 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200819114705/https://books.google.com/books?id=HI5yXNhbebYC&pg=PT215 |url-status=live }}</ref>
}}
* {{Cite book |title=The Wearing of the Green: A History of St. Patrick's Day |last1=Cronin |first1=Mike |last2=Adair |first2=Daryl |year=2002 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-415-18004-7 }}

==External links==
* [http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/03/17/st-patricks-day-history-m_n_502386.html Saint Patrick's Day History] – slideshow by ''[[The Huffington Post]]''
{{Ireland Holidays}}
{{US Holidays}}
{{UK Holidays}}
{{Ireland topics}}
{{Subject bar |portal1=Christianity |portal2=Holidays |portal3=Ireland |commons=y |d=Q181817 |n=Category:St Patrick's Day}}
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