MASARYK UNIVERSITY OF BRNO

FACULTY OF EDUCATION

Department of English language and Literature

THE HISTORY AND CELEBRATION OF SAINT PATRICK´S

DAY IN ENGLISH SPEAKING LANDS

Bachelor thesis

Brno 2014

Supervisor: Michael George, M.A. Written by: Lucie Končická, 382 480
 “I proclaim that I have assembled this bachelor thesis by myself and that I used only
sources cited in the bibliography.”

February 22nd, 2014 ……….……………………

Lucie Končická

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Acknowledgement

“I would like to express my gratitude to my supervisor Mr. Michael George, M.A

owing to his valuable advice, patience and enormous support. Furthermore, I would like to
thank all of the respondents of my questionnaire for their time and helpfulness.”

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Anotace

Bakalářská práce “Den svatého Patrika a jeho historie v anglicky mluvících zemích”
se v teoretické části zabývá historií a způsoby oslav tohoto dne v anglicky mluvících zemí, a
to zejména ve Spojených státech amerických a Irsku. Dále bude podrobněji popsán život a
díla patrona tohoto svátku, svatého Patrika. Hlavním cílem této práce bylo prozkoumat
samotnou oslavu svátku ve městech Dublin, Chicago a New Orleans za pomocí dotazníků,
které se nacházejí v praktické části této práce. Tento průzkum je věnován typickým zvykům a
historii v již dříve zmíněných městech.

Annotation

The main idea of this bachelor thesis is concerned with the history and celebration of
St. Patrick´s Day, primarily in English speaking countries such as the United States and
Ireland. Furthermore, the focus is put on the life and works of the patron saint of Ireland,
Saint Patrick. The purpose of this thesis is to examine the celebration of St. Patrick´s Day in
Dublin, Chicago and New Orleans focusing on different ways of celebrating and also on the
history itself. Finally, the thesis will involve a questionnaire, which will be devoted to
studying the customs of certain cities on the basis of people´s memories and experiences.

Bibliography
Končická, Lucie. The history and celebration of St. Patrick´s Day in English speaking
lands: bachelor thesis. Brno: Masaryk University, Faculty of Education, Department of
English Language and Literature, 2013. 71 pages. The supervisor of this bachelor thesis is
M.A. Michael George.

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Keywords:
Saint Patrick, converting, Christianity, Confession of St. Patrick, the color green,
celebration of St. Patrick´s Day, Dublin, Chicago, Chicago´s River, New Orleans

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Table of Contents

Acknowledgement ................................................................................................... ii

Anotace .................................................................................................................. iii

Annotation .............................................................................................................. iii

Bibliography ........................................................................................................... iii

Keywords: .............................................................................................................. iv

Table of Figures ..................................................................................................... vii

1. Introduction ..........................................................................................................1

2. Saint Patrick ..........................................................................................................3

2.1 History of Saint Patrick .....................................................................................6

2.2 Confession of St. Patrick ...................................................................................9

2.3 The Letter to the Soldiers of Coroticus ............................................................ 11

2.4 The Lorica of St. Patrick ................................................................................. 13

2.5 The Book of Armagh ...................................................................................... 14

3. St. Patrick´s Day ................................................................................................. 17

3.1 Commercialization of St. Patrick´s Day .......................................................... 18

3.2 Symbols and traditions .................................................................................... 19

3.2.1 The Shamrock ........................................................................................... 20

3.2.2 Leprechauns.............................................................................................. 22

3.2.3 Guinness ................................................................................................... 24

3.2.4 The Color Green ....................................................................................... 26

4. History of St. Patrick´s Day................................................................................. 29

5. Celebration of St. Patrick´s Day in English speaking lands .................................. 31

5.1 St. Patrick´s Day in Dublin ............................................................................. 33

5.2 St. Patrick´s Day in Chicago ........................................................................... 35

5.3 St. Patrick´s Day in New Orleans .................................................................... 39

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 5.4 Comparison of Selected Cities ........................................................................ 41

Conclusion .............................................................................................................. 44

Bibliography ........................................................................................................... 46

Printed Sources ..................................................................................................... 46

Electronic Sources ................................................................................................ 50

Appendix ................................................................................................................ 54

Attachment A: Allison Miller (2013) .................................................................... 54

Attachment B: Emily Ortlieb (2013) ..................................................................... 55

Attachment C: Andrew Michael (2013) ................................................................ 56

Attachment D: Michael Shock (2013) ................................................................... 56

Attachment E: Kate Shifflet (2013) ....................................................................... 57

Attachment F: Liam Downey (2013) ..................................................................... 58

Attachment G: Laura Clowry (2013) ..................................................................... 59

Attachment H: Christopher K. Voelker (2013) ...................................................... 59

Attachment I: Brittany Cailtin Voelker (2013) ...................................................... 60

Attachment J: Don Vo (2013) ............................................................................... 61

Attachment K: William Bristol (2013) .................................................................. 62

Attachment L: Questionnaire Sample ................................................................... 63

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Table of Figures

Figure 1: Saint Patrick .................................................................................................3

Figure 2: Abduction of St. Patrick ...............................................................................9
Figure 3: The Manuscript .......................................................................................... 14
Figure 4: Damage to the Book of Armagh ................................................................. 15
Figure 5: Irish and Non-Irish People .......................................................................... 17
Figure 6: St. Patrick's Day Decorations ..................................................................... 18
Figure 7: Irish Jig ...................................................................................................... 20
Figure 8: The Shamrock ............................................................................................ 21
Figure 9: The Leprechaun ......................................................................................... 23
Figure 10: A Pint of Guinness ................................................................................... 24
Figure 11: Potato Famine .......................................................................................... 26
Figure 12: St. Patrick in a Blue Gown ....................................................................... 27
Figure 13: Greening of St. Patrick's Cathedral ........................................................... 35
Figure 14: Dying the Chicago River Green ................................................................ 38
Figure 15: List of Parades in New Orleans ................................................................ 40
Figure 16: Flowers Carried at Parades ....................................................................... 41

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1. Introduction

This thesis aims to demonstrate the first references of St. Patrick, the patron saint of
Ireland, who wrote memoires of his life which mentioned being a slave and converting people
to Catholicism. The emphasis of this thesis is put on the history of the holiday as well as on
the different ways that the celebration of St. Patrick´s Day is celebrated in English speaking
lands, specifically in Dublin, Chicago and New Orleans. Thus it is enticing to draw on these
ideas to formulate a dissertation on this topic and to provide insight into the various
celebrations and habits of St. Patrick´s Day. The goal is to examine the history of St. Patrick
and St. Patrick´s Day while furthermore comparing current celebrations across certain
selected cities.

The first part of the thesis is devoted to St. Patrick himself. It highlights St. Patrick´s
origin and what is attributed to him regarding being the one who banished the snakes out of
Ireland. The description of his qualities is demonstrated together with the meaning of his
name as well as past and current usage of his name. This section will likewise be based on the
history of St. Patrick. It stresses his inclination to God, his dreams, his relations with his
family and a journey until the end of this life. This chapter indicates St. Patrick´s concern in
preaching, baptizing and spreading Christianity. Lastly, the works written or connected with
St. Patrick will be presented.

The second part provides an overview of St. Patrick´s Day alongside the
commercialization of this celebration as observed by many sources. Moreover, attention to the
symbols and traditions of St. Patrick´s Day is given. These symbols and traditions provide
insight into the characteristics and connection with St. Patrick´s Day in greater detail.

The third part of the thesis gives importance to the history of St. Patrick´s Day,
mentioning the migration of Irish Catholics and Protestants into North America in response to
the Potato Famine. It similarly deals with the history of the parades, notably in terms of the
popularity and the attendance of spectators and marchers in certain cities. This section is
characterized by various customs which are performed on St. Patrick´s Day.

The last part of the thesis, the practical part, will refer primarily to interviews with
eleven students from Dublin, Chicago and New Orleans. Interviews consisted of a

1
questionnaire which was distributed to contacts in the target cities. The questionnaire can be
seen in Appendix – Attachment L. This section puts emphasis on the comparison of the
celebrations from the aforementioned cities and indicates the conclusion made on the basis of
the current celebrations and the respondents’ experiences.

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2. Saint Patrick

Saint Patrick, as shown in Figure 1, is the patron saint of Ireland. His birth is estimated
to have occurred around 380 C.E. in Britain and his death is recorded as being the 17th of
March 461 CE in Gaul. He is known for being a Roman Briton missionary who spread
Christianity throughout Ireland and also for banishing the snakes from the island. In fact, this
legend that gives him credit for driving the snakes out of Ireland is merely a metaphor for him
having driven out paganism (Little). Moreover, some scientists emphasize that the natural
barriers created by the seas, coupled with prohibitively cold temperatures during the ice age,
prevented snakes from ever settling on the Emerald Isle (Owen). Solinus, a Greek geographer,
confirms this by noting that there were no snakes in Ireland even 200 years before St.
Patrick´s birth (Rogers x).

Figure 1: Saint Patrick (Bradley)

Patrick is depicted as a humble man and is represented as courageous, determined and

a great leader. He was known for his braveness, faith in God, loyalty and commitment. He
was a very open person, and had no hesitations about sharing his goals as well as his fears. In

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Padraig McCarthy’s book My name is Patrick: St. Patrick´s Confessio, St. Patrick confesses
“Although I am imperfect in many ways, I want my brothers and relations to know what I am
really like, so that they can see what it is that inspires my life” (McCarthy 2011 6). The
following two excerpts refer to his extraordinary and intriguing qualities as remarked upon in
the 1998 book by John Skinner The Confession of Saint Patrick and Letter to Coroticus.

“I speak out too for love of my neighbors who are my only sons; for
them I gave up my home country, my parents and even pushing my own
life to the brink of death. If I have any worth, it is to live my life for God
so as to teach these peoples; even though some of them still look down on
me” (Skinner and Patrick 1-2).

“For I know full well, that poverty and adversity suit me better than
riches and delights” (Skinner and Patrick xiii).

Hagiographers1 purport that Patrick´s other quality was fearsomeness. He was capable
of putting curses on foes, turning men into animals and purging rivers of fish. St. Patrick was
nicknamed the banisher of all evil and the ultimate judge of the Irish, a colonizing agent for
the erosion of pagan customs and belief systems and a carrier of the divine light into Ireland.
Patrick was a highly worshiped man, to whom various prayers and venerated sayings were
devoted. The first prayer mentioned by Cronin and Adair is the Irish salutation “May God,
Mary, and Patrick bless you” (Cronin and Adair xxvii-xxviii). The second prayer the Prayer
to Saint Patrick is demonstrated below.

“Dear St. Patrick, in your humility you called yourself a sinner, but
you became a most successful missionary and prompted countless pagans
to follow the Saviour. Many of their descendents in turn spread the Good
News in numerous foreign lands. Through your powerful intercession with
God, obtain the missionaries we need to continue the work you began.
Amen” (Catholic Online , 2013a).

Much remains unknown about the details of Patrick´s life. Nonetheless, his work
Confessio, also known as the Confession of St. Patrick, provides insight into his relationship

1
People interested in writing about saints´ lives.
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with his ancestors, his abduction, his regaining of his faith in God and his endeavor to thank
God by converting people to Christianity. In the book How the Irish Saved the Civilization, it
is stated that, owing chiefly to St. Patrick, Ireland was a civilized land whereas other parts of
Europe were underdeveloped. “For as the Roman lands went from peace to chaos, the land of
Ireland was rushing even more rapidly from chaos to peace” (Cahill 124).

In the book St. Patrick and How He Is Remembered, St. Patrick is described as a pope,
a description which reflects the level of admiration and respect people had for him. He is
likewise compared to other apostles such as Cyril and Methodius, who were two missionaries
in what is today the Czech Republic. St. Patrick, as well as Cyril and Methodius, identified
well with people from other cultures and adapted well to their languages. Moreover, all three
Apostles struggled with non-acceptance by pagans and were hated by other missionaries (Ó
Dufaigh 69).

The name Patrick recently held the position of being the 21st most famous name in
Ireland (Central Statistics Office). The Latin meaning of this name translates to patrician2. It
has many forms as Paidí, Paití, Patrikios, Padric, Pátraic or Pádraig. People did not use the
name Patrick so commonly in the past because they honored St. Patrick and preferred to use
names such as Gilla Pátraic or Máel Pátraic, which mean servant of Saint Patrick and devotee
of Saint Patrick, respectively. The name Patrick became more popular during the colonist era
(Ó Dufaigh 72). As Robert Bell states, “Patrick is one of the most popular names in the west
of Scotland in pre- Reformation times and in Ireland only became popular after 1600 due
probably to its introduction by Scots settlers in Ulster” (Bell 113). A female version of this
name, Patricia, also exists and is claimed to be more popular these days. Presently, the name
Patrick is not actually so popular and is declining further in popularity (Ó Dufaigh 73). Even
towns and villages in France bear St. Patrick´s name, with examples being Saint- Patrice de
Claids and Saint- Patrice du Desert (Cronin and Adair 248).

2
An aristocrat
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2.1 History of Saint Patrick

As many sources claim, the birth of Saint Patrick arguably dates to the fourth or fifth
century in Britain (Barth 8; Dumville 14). The family of St. Patrick was devout Christian. His
father Calpurnius was a wealthy Decurion3 who collected taxes. Incidentally, he was a deacon
whereas his grandfather Potitus was a priest. At the age of sixteen Patrick was abducted and
captured from Britain by Irish pirates and was taken to Ireland and forced into slavery, where
he was a herdsman for six years doing the night watch. Patrick underwent many torments
while tending the cattle and had to suffer through thirst, hunger and cold. During this
enslavement he found a way to God via daily prayers as demonstrated in the following
paragraph. Until that time he had been unaware of God (Skinner and Patrick xxvi-xxvii; Saint
Patrick 2).

“I used to pasture the flock each day and I used to pray many times
a day. More and more did the Love of God, and my fear of Him and faith
increase, and my spirit was moved so that in a day [I said] from one up to a
hundred prayers, and in the night a like number…” (Faulkenbury 63).

In contrast however, he realized that owing to his kidnap he was not educated as well
as other people. “I don´t have much education compared to other people, I was not able to
study both literature and theology year after year as they did. They never had to learn to speak
any new language but could steadily improve their own Latin until it was practically perfect.
But I write Latin as if it were a foreign language- any reader can easily see what kind of
education I had” (Freeman 13).

Patrick's days of solitude ended with a dream which encouraged him to escape on a
boat full of strange and barbarous men from his captor. “Thou doest well to fast; thou shalt
soon return to thy native land “or “Behold, thy ship is ready” (Bury 31). The chapter “A Long
Journey Home” reveals that Patrick might have travelled with pirates who had the intention of
selling Patrick into slavery again. At first, they refused to take him on board, however the
steer man changed his mind and allowed him to board. Moreover, it is suggested that it is

3
A member of the ancient Roman senate.
6
obvious from his Confessio that he did not buy his freedom nor was he released. St. Patrick
simply ran away from his enslavement (Rogers 31-36).

A surprising passage can be found in his Confessio, which purveys his experience
during his forsaking. “That day, I refused to suck their breasts, because of my reverence for
God. They were pagans, and I hoped they might come to faith in Jesus Christ. This is how I
got to go with them, and we set sail right away” (McCarthy 2011 18). According to the
translation from Latin by Pádraig McCarthy in the document called It Was a Gift of God, the
meaning of sucking the breasts demonstrates a pagan custom in terms of asking for protection.
Another meaning might make reference to the sexual exploitation of Patrick (McCarthy 2011
7), whereas Jonathan Rogers implies that the meaning of it relates to a medieval story in
which a dwarf, in order to be submissive and friendly with an Irish king, had to suck at his
breasts (Rogers 35).

On the way back to Britain, Patrick evangelizes the crew of sailors with the idea to
believe in God as they were running out of food and were nearly perishing from hunger. He
was convincing them that the Almighty Lord will give them everything they need and
suddenly as they reached the land, a herd of animals came across them. When he reunited
with his own family, they beseeched him to stay with them. After years of studies he became
a priest and a missionary. Patrick is once again summoned by God in his dream to return back
to Ireland (Dóchas, 2004b). Thereafter, Patrick practiced his ministry by inviting people to his
Eucharist4 thus bringing God closer to them. Similarly, he brought books and Latin to his
flock of followers, because he believed in learning. Later an apostle sent for Patrick,
requesting that he be sent back to Ireland to provide the grace of the Almighty Lord to
foreigners, pagans or to others who believed in other Gods (Skinner and Patrick xxx).

In a chapter on “The Floruit of St. Patrick” in the book Saint Patrick A.D. 493-1993,
David H. Dumville and other contributors state that the other years of Patrick´s life are until
now unknown and vague (Dumville 15). It is claimed that he might have dedicated his life to
Christian education, clergy and monasticism. During these times he had been denied for
promotions to the episcopate owing to a betrayal by his old friend, who revealed Patrick´s sin
from his adolescence. P. Freeman contributes his presumptions on the question of Patrick´s

4
The Eucharis is a Christian custom where the body and blood of Christ are given to
Christians during mass in the form of bread and wine.
7
sin, purporting that evidence of the sin lies in a betrayal by St. Augustine where St. Augustine
mentioned an incident when Patrick stole pears from a neighbor’s garden. His confessions
prove that he did indeed admit to this sin (Freeman 14-15). Furthermore, it is insinuated that
Patrick was preaching in various areas. “I went… everywhere for sake in many danger, even
to the farthest districts beyond which there lived nobody and where nobody had ever come to
baptize, or to ordain clergy, or to confirm the people” (Dumville 17). Another indication says
“indeed, we are witnesses that the Gospel has been preached into those parts beyond which
there lives nobody” (Dumville 18). Patrick managed during his life to pursue baptizing and he
built numerous churches (Dóchas, 2004b). Another source demonstrates his sojourn in
Munster for seven years, where he was honored in the whole district by kings and chieftains.
Moreover, Munster was a province in Ireland frequently connected with St. Patrick through
various books and journals. His mission here was to convert people and spread the faith (Todd
220).

Patrick´s death is recorded as the 17th of March 461 AD in Gaul, as shown in chapter
three. His grave was situated presumably nearby Downpatrick according to a story which
points out that Patrick was wrapped in a cloth and placed on a carriage carried by two white
Oxen which stopped by Downpatrick. The source emphasizes that on the day of Patrick´s
death the sun shone for twelve days and nights and did not set (Dóchas, 2004b).

Since Patrick´s death many oral legends and myths were passed on throughout the
centuries. Lots of Irish traditions are attributed to St. Patrick because he incorporated many
traditional rituals. One of them relates to lighting a bonfire on Easter, even though the Irish
traditionally venerated their Gods by lighting a fire. As the website History of St. Patrick
indicates, Patrick had difficult times with changing the traditions (Dóchas, 2004b). In the
times of the ruler High King, it was forbidden to light any fire on Easter night until the king
set up a bonfire. As soon as Patrick´s fire was spotted, High King immediately sent his
soldiers to kill him and put out the fire. The story continues with St. Patrick´s escape using
disguises and how he afterwards headed out to fight against the royal druids at Tara with his
followers (Dóchas, 2004b).

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2.2 Confession of St. Patrick

In this chapter the importance of St. Patrick´s unique autobiographical writings will be
given. The Confession of St. Patrick is a document from the 5th century. It consists of St.
Patrick´s theological narration about his life, thoughts, feelings and beliefs. He defends
himself through his writing. Patrick´s first name was originally Maewyn Succat, even though
he represented himself as Patricius (Barth 9). The words of St. Patrick commence with the
introduction to himself “I, Patrick, a sinner, a most simple countryman” and continue to
describe his kidnapping at the age of 16 from Britain to Ireland as shown in Figure 2.

Figure 2: Abduction of St. Patrick (Barth 10)

“I was about sixteen at the time. At that time, I did not know the
true God. I was taken into captivity in Ireland, along with thousands of
others. We deserved this, because we had gone away from God, and did
not keep his commandments” (McCarthy 2011 1).

He openly shares his fate and his gratitude towards God, along with how he silently
endures his every labor without complaint.

“Thus, I should give thanks unceasingly to God, who frequently

forgave my folly and my negligence, in more than one instance so as not to
be violently angry with me, who am placed as his helper, and I did not
easily assent to what had been revealed to me, as the Spirit was urging;
and the Lord took pity on me thousands upon thousands of times, because
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 he saw within me that I was prepared, but that I was ignorant of what to do
in view of my situation; because many were trying to prevent this mission”
(Saint Patrick 16-17).

After feeling the divine prophecy of the Apostle´s speech within him, Patrick
expresses determination to repay God for his protection, consolation and supervision during
his difficult times while being captured with thousands of people. Consequently, Patrick gains
faith in God and resolves to redeem his deeds by sacrificing for his Lord. In the meantime,
God visits him in his dreams and talks to him.

“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in

the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching
them to observe all that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you
always to the end of time” (Saint Patrick 14).

Even though Patrick anticipates a betrayal, murder or even being reduced to a slave,
he concentrates more on the salvation of others and glorifying God. As Patrick promised to
worship God, he sacrifices for him until his death. He baptizes thousands of people and
confirms them into being catholic as well.

Patrick concludes his confession by appealing to those who believe in God:

“But I entreat those who believe in and fear God, whoever deigns
to examine or receive this document composed by the obviously unlearned
sinner Patrick in Ireland, that nobody shall ever ascribe to my ignorance
any trivial thing that I achieved or may have expounded that was pleasing
to God, but accept and truly believe that it would have been the gift of
God. And this is my confession before I die” (Saint Patrick 20).

This testimony is an authentic representation of Patrick´s courage, hope and wisdom

and through it we can learn about his relationship with God as well as his homesickness.
However, there is no reference to shamrocks or snakes and furthermore no mention of a place
where he was a slave.

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2.3 The Letter to the Soldiers of Coroticus

In this chapter a plea by St. Patrick against Christians and their British chieftain
Coroticus, who had enslaved and sexually abused St. Patrick´s newly baptized converts, will
be recounted (Skinner and Patrick xvii). The letter denounces a brutal act performed by
Coroticus and his men. Skinner calls Coroticus´s soldiers “rebels against Christ”, “bloody
men who have filled their houses with the spoils of dead Christians” and as having “given
away girls like prizes” (Skinner and Patrick xix). The soldiers committed murders and
captured several men and women, who were subsequently put into slavery (Skinner and
Patrick xviii). St. Patrick conveys at the beginning of this letter that it is directed to Coroticus.

“I myself have composed and written these words with my own hand, so that they can
be given and handed over, then sent swiftly to the soldiers of Coroticus ” (Skinner and Patrick
2).

Patrick was saddened to hear about the kidnapped and ensnared Christians who were
newly baptized and confirmed men and women.

“That is why I will cry aloud with sadness and grief: O my fairest and most loving
brothers and sisters whom I begot without number in Christ, what am I to do for you?”
(McCarthy 2003 24) or “Weep with those who weep” and “If one member suffers pain, let all
the members suffer the pain with it” (McCarthy 2003 23).

He felt as though he should defend his flock and thus he was very protective of them.
Patrick was angry about the tyranny of Coroticus.

“The have filled their homes with what they stole from dead Christians; they live on
what they plundered “ (McCarthy 2003 23).

Patrick hopes that the God´s children will be released and discourages his flock from
being in contact with the soldiers of Coroticus.

“Therefore I ask most of all that all the holy and humble of heart
should not fawn on such people, nor even share food or drink with them,
nor accept their alms, until such time as they make satisfaction to God in
severe penance and shedding of tears, and until they set free the men-

11
 servants of God and the baptised women servant of Christ, for whom he
died and was crucified” (McCarthy 2003 21).

Afterwards, Patrick sends a delegation of priests with a letter pleading for the release
of young converts who were taken into slavery by a gang of Coroticus.

“The newly baptised and anointed were dressed in white robes; the
anointing was still to be seen clearly on their foreheads when they were
cruelly slain and sacrificed by the sword of the ones I referred to above.
On the day after that, I sent a letter by a holy priest (whom I had taught
from infancy), with clerics, to ask that they return to us some of the booty
or of the baptised prisoners they had captured. They scoffed at them”
(McCarthy 2003 20).

Patrick sent the group of authorized priests and required Coroticus to give back the
loot and free captives. The delegation returns with Patrick´s closest friend, the priest in charge
of this delegation, with refusal and disappointment caused by the derision of the soldiers.
Despite this fact, St. Patrick does not relinquish his flock and instead intends to publically
shame Coroticus for his bad deeds. On that account, Patrick wrote a formal letter to warn the
other Christians about the brutal Coroticus, ultimately with the aim of excommunicating him
in either a de juris or de facto fashion. Patrick wrote the letter in Latin, wishing it to be read
aloud and spread everywhere and therefore chose his words quite carefully. Yet even though
he wrote such a well thought out letter, he knew that the Christian communities would hear
about his anger with Coroticus long before reading any such letter, because of the strong
focus on oral communication in his day (Skinner and Patrick xvii).

According to David R. Howlett this letter is divided into four parts where each part
parallels the others and establishes each passage so that it emphasizes and gradually develops
St. Patrick´s line of reasoning. Every part has the same structure where he repeats his
arguments, and in doing so, complement the other parts. Thereby it helps readers, such as the
Somali people, to understand. St. Patrick was very meticulous about the design of this letter
and he wanted it to be easy to follow (Howlett 187).

St. Patrick´s works, the Confession of St. Patrick, the Letter to the Soldiers of
Coroticus and the Lorica of St. Patrick, which might be the only works from St. Patrick,

12
expose his humble relationship with God. He depicts himself as a modest man, being enslaved
at the inception and subsequently gaining faith in God and following God´s steps. He appears
to be robust about his intent to convert and baptize people as well as about protecting his flock
against the savage wolves, which are what he considers the soldiers of Coroticus (Kelly).

2.4 The Lorica of St. Patrick

This sub-chapter will be devoted to another work which was attributed to St. Patrick.
The Lorica of St. Patrick has multiple titles such as A Binding Prayer, St. Patrick´s
Breastplate or The Deer´s Cry. It is said that A Binding Prayer is a poem that arouses feelings
of protection by God on everyone´s journey and it should ward off bad spirits (Alexander).
The second name, The Deer´s Cry, stands for the story of St. Patrick and his flock being
turned into deer while they were chased by the soldiers of the king. Finally, the Lorica of St.
Patrick is a prayer that symbolizes protection, which was used commonly in Celtic lands. The
exact meaning of lorica is “breastplate” (Jones). The example of the Lorica of St. Patrick can
be seen below:

“I bind unto myself today

The strong name of the Trinity,
By invocation of the same,
The Three in One and One in Three.
I bind this day to me for ever,
By power of faith, Christ's Incarnation;
His baptism in the Jordan River;
His death on cross for my salvation;
His bursting from the spicèd tomb;
His riding up the heavenly way;
His coming at the day of doom;
I bind unto myself today.“ (C. F. Alexander)

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2.5 The Book of Armagh

The Book of Armagh, a manuscript written in 807 C.E. (see Figure 3) by Ferdomnach
of Armagh, a wise man and scribe, was actually written for St. Patrick´s heir Abbot Torbach
of Armagh. Armagh means “Heights of Macha”, which was where Patrick established the
superiority of his church over all other churches in Ireland (Dóchas, 2004b). The book
contains the earliest copy of Patrick´s Confessio, in which some passages were left out in
order to support Patrick´s reputation. The manuscript consists of three parts. The first part
directly relates to St. Patrick and includes St. Patrick´s Confessio, Two lives of St. Patrick by
Muirchú, and Liber Angelis by Tírechán. The second part contains the New Testament of the
Bible and the third part consists of the life of St. Martin of Tours by Sulpicius Severus (Royl
Irish Academy).

Figure 3: The Manuscript (Trinity College Dublin Library)

To be more specific about the Book of Armagh, this paragraph will recount each part
of this work. Some of the pages from the Book of Armagh were damaged and some restored.

14
A startling attribute of this manuscript is that it exhibited many well-worn pages, shown in
Figure 4, due to the numerous men who were touching the pages while taking oaths.
Hereafter, the parts of the book will be analyzed in further detail. The first part is
distinguished by a drawing of St. Patrick´s writings and travels around Ireland as well as
Liber Angelis, which was already mentioned above. Liber Angelis tells about an angel
appointing Armagh as being superior above all churches in Ireland, which gave Armagh the
right to collect tributes. A biography of St. Martin of Tours by Sulpicius Severus occurs in the
third part, describing the association with Patrick. It is said that Patrick was Martin´s mentor
or relative. Coincidentally, the scribe Sulpicius was a student of St. Martin. The Book of
Armagh is presently placed in the Trinity College library in Dublin (Smith).

Figure 4: Damage to the Book of Armagh (Smith)

According to Philip Schaff, the Book of Armagh contains S. Patricii Canticum

Scotticum (see the stanza below), an Irish hymn which is attributed to St. Patrick. This hymn
is a prayer to the Almighty God praying for special aid. Moreover, Orthodox Christianity´s
principal doctrine is said to be a part of it (Schaff). Writers Cronin and Adair add that this
manuscript held directions for other monasteries and churches to obey during St. Patrick´s
death. It consisted of a religious sermon based on a speech about St. Patrick´s achievements

15
and lasted for three days and three nights while celebrating over delicious vegetarian food.
Since the 17th century, this event has changed into more than just a religious occasion. The
emphasis now is put on drinking and partying rather than the traditional religious celebration
(Cronin and Adair xxix).

“I bind to myself to−day,

The Power of God to guide me,
The Might of God to uphold me,
The Wisdom of God to teach me,
The Eye of God to watch over me,

The Ear of God to hear me,

The Word of God to give me speech.
The Hand of God to protect me,
The Way of God to go before me,
The Shield of God to shelter me,
The Host of God to defend me,

Against the snares of demons,

Against the temptations of vices,
Against the lusts of nature,
Against every man who meditates injury to me.
Whether far or near,
With few or with many” (Schaff)

16
3. St. Patrick´s Day

St. Patrick´s day, otherwise known as the Feast of Saint Patrick, is celebrated annually
on March 17 over the whole world. The Irish call this celebration Lá ´le Pádraig or Lá Fhéile
Pádraig (Slutzker 1). At this national and church feast day, called St. Paddy´s Day or St.
Patty´s Day by the locals, countless Irish and non-Irish people (see Figure 5) commemorate
St. Patrick´s death and worship him (SaintPatricksDay, LLC). Nowadays, it is widely
celebrated in United States due to the large amount of Irish inhabitants, whose ancestors came
to the United Stated to escape the Potato Famine in 1845-49 (Barth 28). As the book The
Wearing of the Green indicates, St. Patrick´s Day is celebrated all over the world by various
nations no matter how far from Ireland they are. Furthermore, it is stated that it does not
matter if the people come from Tokyo, Auckland or Boston; they still drink Guinness and
dance a jig5 to remember the sheep herder who passed away on the 17th of March (Cronin and
Adair 248).

Figure 5: Irish and Non-Irish People (SaintPatricksDay, LLC)

5
A jig is an Irish folk dance.
17
3.1 Commercialization of St. Patrick´s Day
The beginning of this chapter will be devoted to the commercialization of St. Patrick´s
Day. Greeting cards, napkins, balloons, scarves or even costumes have been proof of the
commercialization of this celebration (see Figure 6). Ms. Ortlieb highlights the fact that Saint
Patrick´s Day has become a largely commercial event (see Appendix–Attachment B5).
Additionally, newspapers such as the Pittsburg Press and The Quindecim claim that this
holiday is substantially about business marketing and consumption (Dehler; McFadden).

Figure 6: St. Patrick's Day Decorations (Etsy)

The first example of commercialization, seen in The Quindecim, demonstrates an

opinion by Kathryn Dehler in her article St. Patrick´s Day perpetuating negative stereotypes.
Dehler affirms the lack of authenticity of the St. Patrick´s Day celebrations. Unfortunately,
nowadays it is not just about spreading the stereotypes of this feast and honoring the Irish
homeland as it was in the past, but it is rather about commercialization, which benefits from
selling popularized products and has become a celebration like any other in the USA.
Nevertheless, she confirms that this celebration is for a lot of Americans simply a reason to
get unconscionably drunk. Her opinion about drinking on St. Patrick´s Day is that it is not
proper according to the Irish tradition. She agrees with drinking just not under the guise of
doing it to celebrate Irish culture (Dehler).

In the chapter “Marketing and Commercializing St. Patrick´s Day” in The Wearing of
the Green – A history of St. Patrick´s Day, Cronin and Adair discuss the post-war era when in

18
1952 shamrocks began to be become available and sent over the ocean to the USA from
Ireland. This distribution also spread in Canada and Australia where many products were
accessible such as St. Patrick´s Day decorations, greeting cards, clothing, souvenirs and
advertisements (see Figure 6). Since the 1950´s it seemed that every radio and every reporter
gave some attention to the St. Patrick´s Day parade which set off sponsors to patronize this
event even though in 1960 the committee of the St. Patrick´s Day parade wished it to be a
more authentic parade. On these grounds, they refused the sponsorships and forbade the street
vendors from selling their huge variety of practically anything that was green (plastic green
hats, green-colored beer, green noodles, green cigarettes, ties, bagels, hair ribbons and other
cheap souvenirs). In 1965 Aer Lingus, Ireland´s national airline, had become an official
sponsor of this celebration as they telecasted the parade, thus being capable of demonstrating
advertisements on Ireland (Cronin and Adair 164-167).

As another significant example of commercialization, the Pittsburg Press published an

article on March16th, 1935 on the resenting of commercialization of St. Patrick´s Day. The
article tells about the disgust of the Irish and non-Irish people about wholesalers and
manufacturers at the time when St. Patrick´s Day is about to be celebrated. Ms. Sarah
McFadden claims that this celebration is a time of rejoicing, believing of new hope, life and
time for gladness and joy owing to the spring time when the trees are awakening and
everything turns green (McFadden 4). However she also refuses the eccentric decorations
displayed on windows and she proposes that Irish people should show the world some
emblem which is typical for Ireland such as imitations of Tara Brooch, the Irish Round Tower
and greeting cards originating in Ireland. Those greeting cards have their own magic thanks to
Ireland´s own language, pictures of Irish nature and verses about Ireland, which can´t compete
with those made in the USA (McFadden 4).

3.2 Symbols and traditions

Nowadays there are numerous symbols and traditions of St. Patrick´s Day. For some
of them, it is hard to recognize the authenticity and the connection between St. Patrick and the
symbol itself. According to the responses of the respondents to the questionnaire, food is a
common symbol which undoubtedly plays an enormous part in St. Patrick´s Day celebrations.

19
The majority of respondents noted connections to corned beef, cabbage and potatoes, as
shown later in the Appendix. Other distinctive features of St. Patrick´s Day are dancing the
Irish Jig (see Figure 7), dying the Chicago River green and pinching those who fail to wear
anything green as shown in chapter 5.1. Other sources provide further symbols and traditions
such as the Celtic cross and kissing the Blarney Stone in the Blarney Castle tower (Cronin and
Adair 22; Hackney and Hackney Blackwell 206-207).

Figure 7: Irish Jig (Baskas)

The following symbols of St. Patrick´s Day will be recounted in detail. Focus will be
given to the history and current use of the shamrock, the description of leprechauns and the
origin of Guinness. Also, the role of the color green will be examined, with its first allusions
in regard to the holiday and its conspicuous presence which is exemplified in the dying of the
Chicago River.

3.2.1 The Shamrock

This most well-known symbol of St. Patrick´s Day depicts the Holy Trinity (see
Figure 8). St. Patrick endeavored to explain it to people by means of this three leaved clover.
When converting people he clarified that the Holy Trinity means God is three beings
simultaneously – the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. The clearest explanation of this can
20
be found in the Bible: “For there are three that bear record in heaven, the Father, the Word,
and the Holy Ghost: and these three are one “ (Nelson 1 John 5:7). This national emblem was
also called “seamroy” by the Celts throughout history (A&E Television Networks). This three
leaved emblem of Saint Patrick´s Day, as well as of Ireland, is known as a trefoil. The
shamrock is demonstrated alongside the English rose and the Scottish thistle on the coat of
arms of Great Britain (Barth 46). Before Christianity, the shamrock was considered a sacred
plant by the Druids in Ireland. The word shamrock was anglicized from the word semair óg.
The first allusion to the shamrock in written English was in the year 1571. Later, in 1707 the
shamrock appears in written Irish literature as well. However as a symbol of St. Patrick´s Day
the shamrock only dates back to the 19th century, presumably owing to the green color of the
Emerald Isle6 (Dóchas, 2004a).

Figure 8: The Shamrock (Bradley)

Wearing a shamrock on one´s lapel on St. Patrick´s Day has remained a common
practice even into modern times. As a symbol, the shamrock was even painted on buildings
and printed on coinage in the 14th century (Frazer 134-135). Nowadays shamrocks are still
commonly used as emblems by some Irish or Northern Irish organizations such as Aer
Lignus, An Post, the Irish Farmers Association, the Ancient Order of Hibernians, Scouting
Ireland or the Olympic council of Ireland (Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia). Since from

6
Ireland is commonly referred to as the Emerald Isle due to the green flora on the
island.
21
ancient times, the shamrock has been a sacred plant and symbol of the rebirth of spring and
was known and accepted by the Irish inhabitants. According to the website “The Shamrock”,
there is a story behind the banishing of snakes out of Ireland which involves the shamrock.
The story asserts that snakes were not to be found on the shamrock fields and therefore these
places were called “a remedy against the snakes” (Dóchas, 2004a). “This plant is worn by the
people in their hats upon the 17th day of March, yearly which is called St. Patrick´s Day; it
being a current tradition, that by this three-leafed grass he emblematically set forth to them
the mystery of the Holy Trinity. However that be, when they wet their Seamar-oge, they often
commit excess in liquor, which is not right keeping of a day of the Lord, error generally
leading to debauchery” (Murray 455).

The shamrock has an important meaning in the history of St. Patrick´s Day. There is
an old tradition connected to it, which is named “the drowning of the shamrock”. Danaher
lends weight to the two oldest traditions of St. Patrick´s Day. The oldest customs are wearing
the shamrock as an emblem and the drowning of the shamrock. The second custom refers to
picking out the shamrock from the bottom of punch or any other drink and throwing it over
the left shoulder (Danaher 64-65). The Journal of the Kildare Archaeological Society
specifies that the name of this tradition is meant metaphorically. It suggests putting the
shamrock, worn all day long on a coat, into the last glass of punch or grog and letting it stay
on the bottom of the glass. After somebody proposes a toast and the final glass is drunk, the
shamrock has to be taken out of the glass and thrown over the left shoulder (Omurethi 443).

3.2.2 Leprechauns

This chapter will discuss another symbol of Saint Patrick´s Day. The leprechaun (see
Figure 9) is mostly illustrated on greeting cards as a small old shoemaker who made shoes for
other fairies while wearing a hat and green suit. He is also depicted in most of the cases with a
big beard and a cap (Barth 80). Evans-Wentz specifies that the cap was colored red (Evans-
Wentz 59). The meaning of the word Leprechaun is literally “small bodies” in Anglo-Irish,
which comes from the words luchuirp or luchorpáin (Evans-Wentz 190). Leprechaun lore
states that a person who finds him is lucky as the leprechaun is said to know the location of a
hidden treasure. It is said that if the finder tells somebody else about this hidden palace and

22
treasure, he might die or no money will be found on that certain place. The revealed treasure,
often money, is changed into ivy leaves or furze blossoms (Evans-Wentz 81). Barth asserts
that Leprechauns are solitary fairies and that moreover they are considered to be spiteful and
mean creatures. No reason as to why Leprechauns became a symbol of St. Patrick´s Day has
been discovered. It is believed that since Leprechauns are dressed in the green clothing, they
should be connected with this feast (Barth 80).

Figure 9: The Leprechaun (Barth 80)

Stories of people who had the chance to see a leprechaun with their own eyes are
recounted by a woman from Dublin who had visions of fairy creatures (Evans-Wentz 195).
Several other people shared the descriptions of the leprechauns. They recounted that they saw
little people with the height of a doll and with little eyes and mouths (Evans-Wentz 72).

According to Ms. Shifflet (see Appendix – Attachment E1) there is a tradition in

Ireland when children fill a box with fake golden coins to attract a leprechaun. To make
children believe that the leprechaun had visited them, the parents make a mess around the
house as a sign that the Leprechaun was searching for the gold throughout the house.

23
3.2.3 Guinness

Guinness Irish Stout (see Figure 10), a beer originating in Dublin and known
worldwide, is among the many sponsors of St. Patrick´s Day celebrations. Guinness was
brewed for the first time at St. James Gate in Dublin in 1759. The founder of this brewery was
Arthur Guinness. This national drink is known for its dark ruby color and for being amongst
the biggest exports in Ireland (Hackney and Hackney Blackwell 217). By the 1930´s the
Guinness Company had become the 7th largest company in the world and was spread across
the globe. Guinness is favored for its thick head and black body. In the beginning, Guinness
did not sell products outside of Ireland; however after it became popular in British bars they
began to export. By the 1990´s it had become a typical drink for people celebrating St.
Patrick´s Day and was itself a symbol of this holiday, in addition to the other symbols such as
the shamrock and leprechaun. Guinness had an interesting idea in 1997, which was to entice
people with the chance to win a pub in an attempt to raise consumption levels. The drip mats
in the pubs were luring consumers with the slogan: “Grab a pen. Win a pub. Change your
commute. Happy St. Patrick´s Day” (Cronin and Adair 240-241).

Figure 10: A Pint of Guinness

24
 In addition to the history of Guinness, current celebrations of St. Patrick´s Day will be
explored as well due to the fact that they are commonly portrayed as drinking events. These
following paragraphs recount the Irish stereotype about drinking. The questionnaire (see
Appendix) is detailed with the respondents’ experiences of St. Patrick´s day, and it suggests
that current celebrations of St. Patrick´s day are largely about drinking, rather than the
religious celebration of St. Patrick´s death. The first respondent, Ms. Miller, claims that St.
Patrick´s Day is a holiday which is all about drinking and she points out a very common
drink: Irish Car Bombs7 (see Appendix –Attachment A2, A3). Ms. Clowry further specifies
various alcoholic drinks such as green beer, Guinness or cider, all of which are drunk on this
celebration (see Appendix – Attachment G2). O´Dwyer considers drinking on St. Patrick´s
Day as a reminiscence of the old Irish stereotype (O´Dwyer 1). On the other hand, Mr.
Downey believes that it all started with the sponsorships from alcoholic companies such as
Guinness, whose advertisements have become highly associated with this celebration. Thus it
might have caused a rumor about the Irish being heavy drinkers, since Guinness is an Irish
product (see Appendix – Attachment F5).

According to the magazine Irish America in an article “Breaking the code of Silence:
The Irish and Drink”, it is argued that the Irish are known for being drunks and the reasons of
it are based on the Irish history. The history of the Irish drinking habits reaches presumably
back to the 17th or 18th century, when the Irish experienced terrible conditions such as
poverty, starvation and persecution. O´Connor implies that heavy drinking was in Ireland in
the 1600´s on a daily basis of people from lower classes such as peasants (O´Connor).
Moreover, there were the harsh penal laws of which aim was to make the Irish citizens poorer
and to make the papacy rich. Heavy drinking during the 18th century spread owing to the
invention of gin (O´Dwyer 4). To run away from this misery of starving and being poor, they
decided to produce their own alcoholic drinks such as poitín8 at home. On the other hand, the
upper class was treated with various wines, beers and even brandy. Afterwards, seven years of
Potato Famine (see Figure 11) dated to 1845-1852 caused an enormous migration of about 2
million Irish citizens to North America. There they experienced worse poverty than at home

7
An Irish car bomb is Guinness with Bailey´s dropped into it (see Appendix – Attachment
A2).
8
During the Potato Famine, poitín was made at home in little pots by distilling potatoes
(Dolan 180).
25
and were victims of discrimination (O´Connor). The research paper Irish Descent, Religion,
and Alcohol and Tobacco Use detailed by Mullen, Williams and Hunt adds that the second–
generation coped with the assimilation problems by drinking and were considered as the
heaviest drinkers (Mullen, Williams and Hunt 253). In spite of the massive migration after the
Potato Famine, which is known also as the Great Famine, it is dated that until the 17th century
Catholics migrated to the American colonies even before the famine. However the amount of
immigrants before the famine was much smaller than afterward. During 1820-1920 about five
million people were moving to North America (Kenny 7).

Figure 11: Potato Famine (Barth 86)

3.2.4 The Color Green

The typical color worn on St. Patrick´s Day is undoubtedly green. The first allusions to
the color green are noted from 19th century, when it began to be a symbol of Ireland (Ó Cuív
107). This trend of wearing something green is very popular on St. Patrick´s Day, because, as
it was mentioned in the first chapter, the color green symbolizes the greenness of the Emerald
Isle and it is reminiscent of Irish heritage and the Irish homeland. Numerous theories exist as
to why green is symbolic for this Catholic festivity. Many views were observed and

26
considered about the wearing of the color green since the 19th century. Some claim that due to
its greenness and verdant nature of the island, the color green is very reasonably associated
with Ireland. However there are no proven theories about the origin of this color association.

As Ó Cuív implies, until the middle of the 18th century the color blue was actually
more associated with Ireland than the color green (Ó Cuív). It was even known as “St.
Patrick´s Blue” (Ó Cuív 107) and St. Patrick was commonly depicted with the color blue (see
Figure 12). Since the beginning of 18th century the color green began to be used and the
shamrock became the emblem of the Catholic Irish. In addition to that, the shamrock´s use
spread as people were wearing it on their uniforms after the Irish Rebellion in 1798. Due to
the increase in the shamrock´s usage, the color blue was used less and thus considered a
custom of the past and reminiscent of ancient Irish flags, armbands and flags of the Irish
Citizen Army (Romero). Later in the 19th century in Ulster, green became accepted as the
color of Catholic Ireland. Nowadays, the color green symbolizes catholic people on the flag of
Ireland. Despite suggestions that the use of the color green comes from the shamrock being
used as an emblem of Ireland, ultimately it is still a mystery as to why this color is now used
instead of blue (Ó Cuív 107-108).

Figure 12: St. Patrick in a Blue Gown (Catholic Online , 2013b)

27
 In the book History of the Irish Rebellion in 1798: With Memoirs of the Union, and
Emmett´s Insurrection in 1803, Maxwell contributes that the color green was used to support
the Irish Rebellion of 1798 together with a song “The Wearing of the Green” (Maxwell 412).
The following paragraph demonstrates the song, which complains about oppression of the
Irish by the British.

“O Paddy dear, and did you hear the news that going round?
The shamrock is forbid by law to grow on Irish ground;
St. Patrick's Day no more we'll keep, his colours can't be seen,
For there's a bloody law against the wearing of the green.
I met with Napper Tandy and he took me by the hand,
And he said, "How's poor old Ireland, and how does she stand?"
She's the most distressful countries that ever yet was seen,
And they're hanging men and women for the wearing of the green.”
(Boucicault)

Moreover, there is a tradition connected with wearing green on St. Patrick´s Day. As
Mr. Voelker asserts, it has become a common tradition to pinch people who are not wearing
anything green on St. Patrick´s Day (see Appendix- Attachment H1). This tradition likely
began in America in the beginning of the 18th century. People believed that the color green
made them invisible to leprechauns. Then they started pinching others who were not wearing
anything green in order to remind them of the threat of leprechauns (Haq).

28
4. History of St. Patrick´s Day

In Ireland between the years 1790 and 1829, 94% of the country was Catholic and thus
St. Patrick´s day was celebrated very extensively. In Northern Ireland St. Patrick’s Day was
still celebrated by the Catholics, although they only made up a minority of the population
there. The majority of the people in Northern Ireland were Protestants, who were at that
period of time celebrating another festival called Orangemen´s Day on the 12th of July. They
memorialized the 1st of July of 1690, when king William III won the battle of the Boyne.
Later on in the 18th century many other numerous traditional anniversaries were approved and
celebrated (Cronin and Adair 3). Hill adds that “The celebration of St. Patrick´s day was
associated primarily – but not exclusively- with Catholics, while Protestants in general
celebrated 4th November, and, so, apparently, did some Catholics” (Hill 30). Afterwards, as
Hill indicates, the 17th of March became officially recognized by the state as the day
associated with St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland (Hill 31). In London, it is said that
members of the court wore crosses on this day, and that that day also gained new significance
in Dublin. The celebration began to be called the Knights of the Most Illustrious Order of St.
Patrick9, which lent new importance to the viceregal court of the 1780’s as an Irish honor
system was developed by George III. In the 1790´s the people´s emblem of St. Patrick´s Day
was the shamrock, which was worn on the uniforms of the knights while ladies embroidered
shamrocks on their dresses. The state began to officially acknowledge this celebration in
1829. There is an observation of this celebration by Thomas Dinely from the 1680´s, when he
observed that “The 17th day of March yearly is St. Patrick´s, an immovable feast when the
Irish of all nations and conditions wear crosses in their hats, some of pins, some of green
ribbon, and the vulgar superstitiously wear shamrocks, three-leaved grass…” (Ó Dufaigh 80).

Parades in the United States began to spread and became more renown in the 1970´s.
Cronin and Adair add that even small towns were interested in celebrating St. Patrick´s Day
even though they did not have any Irish inhabitants or a strong awareness of its history. In
the 1990´s a census of marchers and spectators was made in particular big cities. The largest

9
The Order of St. Patrick was established by George III. in 1783 in Britain. It was a
feudal order of chivalry whose patron was St. Patrick. The order was closely connected to
Ireland and consisted of the king and 22 knights (Casey 4).
29
parade, which was in Manhattan, featured 150,000 marchers with 1.5 million spectators. After
the Manhattan parade came Boston, Savannah, Kansas City, Cleveland and Chicago in order
of size. Not the most crowded parade but perhaps the liveliest one was said to be in New
Orleans in the 1930´s. In New Orleans, St. Patrick´s Day is not as popular as Mardi Gras,
which generally occupies the city just one month before. However, New Orleans is mentioned
owing to the rare tolerance of gay and lesbians participants in this parade (Cronin and Adair
210).

The number of traditions related to St. Patrick´s Day has increased greatly since this
celebration was officially recognized. According to Cronin and Adair, in the 1940´s people
started throwing vegetables in the parades as a symbol of those who were starving during the
Potato Famine. In San Francisco and Dallas they invented traditions such as Gaelic football
matches, snake races and typical Irish dance competitions (Cronin and Adair 211). Later, the
shamrock started to be sent overseas and pinching anybody not wearing green became a
custom in the 1950´s (Cronin and Adair 238). Among the most commonly eaten food
belonged corned beef, cabbage and soda bread. Among Irish Americans the habit was to drink
porter or whiskey, whereas others in North America drank green beer (Cronin and Adair 235).
Another tradition which arose after the First World War was to wear Celtic crosses.
Connected with St. Patrick´s Day are many superstitions as well. People believed dogs would
cry and cows would drown on this day (Cronin and Adair 26-27).

30
5. Celebration of St. Patrick´s Day in English speaking
lands

In addition to the history of celebrating St. Patrick´s Day, current celebration of this
holiday will be explored as well as typical features and common rituals. This chapter will
highlight the religious and traditional habits surrounding this day and will refer mainly to
Bronwen Walter´s work Celebrations of Irishness in Britain: second-generation experiences
of St. Patrick´s Day (2008) and Cronin and Adair´s book The Wearing of the Green – A
History of St. Patrick´s Day (2002). In the end, the reader will have a broader understanding
of this complex celebration. The aim of the subsequent subsections will be to provide the
reader with a broader knowledge of how St. Patrick´s Day in Dublin, Chicago and New
Orleans is celebrated. Therefore, from this chapter on, the parades and customs in selected
cities will be described alongside respondents´ own personal experiences of the holiday.
Furthermore, the celebrations in these cities will be compared and contrasted.

This annual festive custom arouses a lot of emotion for millions of Irish citizens, as
well even for the vast majority of those living abroad. It is said that 70 million people of Irish
descent are spread worldwide and celebrating this occasion, which is noticeably more than the
5 million natives within Ireland (Walter 193). The president of Ireland Mary McAleese held a
speech about national pride, which mentioned Irish people inside and outside Ireland and
thereto non- Irish people willingly joining the celebration (Walter 192).

“I wish to send warm greetings on this St Patrick’s Day to Irish people at

home and abroad, and to Ireland’s friends around the globe. Today is a day of
celebration in Ireland and for our global Irish family throughout the world. Over
many decades the people of Ireland, resolute in their belief in freedom,
democracy, and human rights and the pursuit of truth, justice, and peace, have
worked to create the successful Ireland of today. We can all bear witness to the
arduous trials of our predecessors. Yet, through it, and perhaps because of it, we
have built a new confidence and sense of direction – our collective aim to create
a better Ireland and a better life for our children and our children’s children”
(McAleese).

31
 Another point of view on this national commemoration is held by the authors Mike
Cronin and Daryl Adair, who claim, “St Patrick’s Day is fundamentally about the Irish: their
sense of self, their ties to home, their place in the world, their views of the past and their
claims to the future” (Cronin and Adair xv).

This section will be devoted to the views on St. Patrick´s Day by Irish descendants
living in Great Britain. The journal Celebrations of Irishness in Britain: second-generation
experiences of St. Patrick´s Day (Walter) shares 116 individual interviews in two dimensions
– England and Scotland. The aim of it was to examine the memories and experiences of St.
Patrick´s Day among adults from second- generation Irish immigrants. The comparison sheds
light on their relationships to Ireland and the effects of emigration on their family traditions.
Some of the interviewees were distinguished by a lack of awareness about the Irish traditions
and some were cautious of exposing their Irish origin. Aidan implies that being part of
minority might be difficult (Walter 196), himself being of Irish heritage yet born and raised in
England. His advice is to keep one´s head down. Some Irish descendants living in Britain,
despite having received Irish symbols such as shamrocks, medals and cards from their
relatives still in Ireland, did not even know who St. Patrick was. It was evident that they were
losing touch with their culture and in fact were called plastic Paddies 10 by the locals since
they were not born in Ireland and had no Irish accent (Walter 195). On the other hand, a few
interviewees confirmed that their parents did indeed try to promote St. Patrick´s Day. Pauline,
a Scotswoman, remembers wearing green and welcoming traditional Irish symbols with pride
on this significant day. Regarding schools, the majority of the interviewees attended catholic
schools where kids were bonding on March 17th and wore shamrocks from Irish ancestors.
However, in public schools the conditions were different and noticeably tougher due to
bullying. At the beginning of 19th century street parades began to grow. Even though in the
1970´s – 1980´s were many parades ceased, around 1990 by the first street parade was re-
established in Manchester (Walter 202). In 2006, street parades were a spectacular show on
Trafalgar Square accompanied by Irish music, floats and everything being dyed green. Some
Irish participants have stated that preferred to make the trip to the United States, specifically
to New York. The celebration in Britain was not so enjoyable and spread as in the United
States (Walter 204). Colin added that even though people just went to pubs, it was still a

10
Plastic Paddies are people who falsely claim to be Irish. In fact, their origin is not
Irish and they do not know much about Irish customs and its culture.
32
holiday for everybody since St. Patrick was the saint of all Ireland, not just of Catholics
(Walter 205). Another source comments about third generation11 and their knowledge about
Irish traditions. By the third generation, many families are losing contact with Irish culture
and are wholly assimilated with American culture. Despite of however, they are still aware of
St. Patrick´s Day celebrations (Cronin and Adair 232).

5.1 St. Patrick´s Day in Dublin

Dublin, the capital of Ireland and the city whose patron saint is St. Patrick himself,
naturally has long history with St. Patrick´s Day. An officially recognized national holiday,
St. Patrick´s Day is the stereotypical Irish holiday. This section of the thesis is devoted to
exploring the history, traditional as well as modern rituals and views surrounding this holiday.

Despite being a celebration centered on Ireland, St. Patrick´s Day began in the United
States of America (Roach). The first parade dates back to 1762 in New York City however in
Ireland it remained relatively uncelebrated until the 1970´s. Before 1970´s was the St.
Patrick´s Day celebrated mainly in religious context. This is because the holiday comes from
worshiping St. Patrick on his feast day, since he was the patron saint of Ireland as shown in
chapter 2. Until the 1970´s the holiday remained primarily in the church with hardly any
public festivities (Roach).

Since the 1970´s interest in celebrating St. Patrick´s Day in Ireland has grown along
with a sense of national pride and patriotism. Of all the days in the year, what better day to
celebrate being Irish than St. Patrick´s Day, which was already an established holiday in the
United States of America and was celebrated by many Irish citizens who had moved abroad.
This sense of patriotism was reinforced by a focus in Irish schools on St. Patrick and his
legacy so that people of Ireland were very aware of St. Patrick and his associations with
Ireland (see Appendix- Attachment F3).

11
The second generation is the children of the immigrated persons whereas the third
generation would be the grandchildren of the original immigrant.
33
 School children have a lesson on St. Patrick every year. Considering this, the people of
Ireland know a great deal about St. Patrick, from his being sold into slavery to his becoming a
priest and converting people to Christianity (see Appendix- Attachment F4). This knowledge
of the origin of the holiday helps the Irish to keep the holiday´s traditional roots alive,
focusing on time with the family and the church perhaps as much or more than drinking and
celebrating in the streets.

In Dublin, a common tradition for St. Patrick´s Day is to spend an evening at home
having a dinner with your family (see Appendix- Attachment E2). This kind of tradition is
especially common among the older generations. Younger generations often find their way
into the bars and pubs to celebrate this holiday (see Appendix- Attachment G1, F1). One
respondent even mentioned a ritual where he walks barefoot on the top of a mountain called
Croagh Patrick (see Appendix – Attachment F1). However, regardless of the generation,
eating and drinking seem to be the spirit of the day.

St. Patrick´s Day, because it is a deeply traditional holiday, features many traditional
Irish meals and drinks. Traditional Irish food includes corned beef, mashed potatoes and
colcannon. Colcannon consists of mashed potatoes and cabbage or kale (Mac Con Iomaire
and Óg Gallagher). Additionally, anything green is also commonly also eaten on this day. In
terms of drinks, Guinness, cider and once again anything green are popular (see Appendix-
Attachment E4, F2 and G2).

Aside from drinking and eating, people are also heading out to the parades. In Dublin,
there is one official parade on the 17th of March, which is preceded by a weeklong festival.
The parade runs for 2.5 kilometers through the city centre of Dublin finishing at St. Patrick´s
Cathedral (St. Patrick´s festival). Festivities include Greening the City, the traditional Irish
dancing Festival Céilí, the Irish University boat races, Irish craft beer and food market and a
five kilometer road race. Greening the City, seen in Figure 13, is when many buildings set up
green lighting, essentially turning the city green. Correspondingly, festival goers also wear
green clothing or pin shamrocks to their jackets to fit in with the festivities.

34
 Figure 13: Greening of St. Patrick's Cathedral (St. Patrick´s festival)

Questionnaire respondents from Dublin exhibited varying views on celebrating St.

Patrick´s Day. Some people say that family is a very important aspect of St. Patrick´s Day so
they spend the day having dinner with their family (see Appendix- Attachment E2). Mr.
Downey however points out that not everybody is religious or prefers to spend time with
family and these people often celebrate by drinking in the pubs (see Appendix – Attachment
F1). Nevertheless, the people of Dublin all celebrate this day in some way, at least celebrating
for celebration’s sake.

5.2 St. Patrick´s Day in Chicago

This section will provide insight into the history and customs surrounding St. Patrick´s
Day celebrations in Chicago. There are many aspects to be discussed including Irish
immigrants, food and drinks, parades and the views of the celebrations as held by the
respondents who participated in the questionnaire. As the immigrants had the greatest
influence on St. Patrick´s Day celebrations, the section will begin with discussion on this
topic and will be followed by modern customs.

35
 Irish immigrants began to appear in Chicago in significant numbers in 1830´s. This
trend grew massively after the Potato Famine in Ireland, culminating in 1850 when an
astonishing 20% of Chicago was made up of Irish immigrants (Funchion). This large
expatriate community likely carried with them many memories and customs from their home
country, along with a sense of Irish pride. They naturally took up St. Patrick´s day as their day
to connect with their families back home and to celebrate their heritage. In terms of
connecting with their families, St. Patrick´s Day was a much awaited time for children who
would receive cards, shamrocks and other small trinkets from their families who were still
living in Ireland (Walter 195). In terms of celebrating their heritage, the Irish communities in
Chicago began hosting parades on this day.

The first St. Patrick´s Day parade was held in 1843 (University of Illinois at Chicago).
Since then, the city has added a second parade so that now the city enjoys the St. Patrick´s day
parade downtown as well as the South Side Irish St. Patrick´s day parade. Many surrounding
suburbs and cities in Illinois organize their own celebrations. This year´s celebration of St.
Patrick´s Day in Chicago takes place on the 15th of March (Saint Patrick's Day Parade
Committee of Chicago). As Ms. Ortlieb implies, the celebration usually starts on the 17 th of
March and continues until the next weekend. She personally celebrates the so called
“Unofficial St. Patrick´s Day” at University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign on the first
Friday in March, where they start the day by having a “Kegs and eggs”12 style breakfast
which follows attending parties and parades (see Appendix – Attachment B2). The St.
Patrick´s parade in Chicago is also annually organizing the Queen contest, where "Chicago's
fairest Colleen" is being chosen and is expected to attend various Irish events on St. Patrick´s
Day as well as throughout the whole year (Saint Patrick's Day Parade Committee of Chicago).
Overall, the reader can see that St. Patrick´s Day is a very eventful time in Chicago.

At the celebrations and festivals eating and drinking is a big part of the atmosphere.
Likewise, many traditional Irish food and drinks are being served and enjoyed by Irish and
non-Irish alike. According to the respondents’ experiences, among the highest consumed
beverages belong green beers, whiskey and Guinness (see Appendix – Attachment A2, B4,
C1, D1). Irish Car Bombs are another popular drink among festival goers (see chapter 3.2.3).

12
Breakfast before the celebration frequently features kegs of beer and cooking eggs
usually with bacon and pancakes.
36
As for food, cabbages and corned beef were the most prevalent food noted by the respondents.
For vegetarians, green pancakes may be a popular alternative to meat-based dishes. In
addition to typical food there are also typical clothing and accessories which can be seen at
the celebrations (see Appendix – Attachment A2, B4, C1, D1).

Green is the color of the day (see Appendix – A1, B3, C2). People in Chicago are
aware that the penalty for not wearing green is a pinch, so everybody wear something green
on St. Patrick´s Day. Face paint, temporary tattoos, novelty sunglasses, mugs and hats are all
a good way to avoid being pinched (see Appendix – Attachment B3, C2). This has an
interesting unifying effect on the crowd such that on St. Patrick´s Day everybody can be Irish,
since everybody is joined together by being clad in green (see Appendix – Attachment A4).

Perhaps the most unique, spectacular and breathtaking event on St. Patrick´s Day in
Chicago is dying the Chicago River green (see Figure 14). This tradition has been happening
past 50 years and is world renown. This year´s dying begins at 10:00 AM (Saint Patrick's Day
Parade Committee of Chicago), just hours before the downtown parade. Surprisingly, this lore
is a private action in which other cities are not successful. A miracle happening at this day is
that the crew of people in charge throws an orange powder into the river shortly thereafter
changes into the true Irish green. However, was later discovered that the dye itself had
dangerous environmental impacts (National Public Radio). According to Dan O´Leary, in
1966 environmentalists claimed that dying the Chicago River is harmful. Nevertheless, Steve
Bailey, a head of plumbers´ union, came up with a better mixture which would not be
dangerous for animals under the water yet would still turn the river green (O’Leary).
Concurringly, the newspapers The Telegraph quotes „tons of green dye are tipped for St
Patrick’s Day into the Chicago river, although the quantity has reduced, for environmental
reasons, from 100 to 40 [pounds] “ (The Telegraph).

37
 Figure 14: Dying the Chicago River Green (Jakubczyk)

The dying of the Chicago River has made the St. Patrick´s Day celebrations in this city
famous around the world and many people flock to this city every year to experience this
celebration. This paragraph will highlight the views of some people who have experienced it.
For the research of this thesis a questionnaire was distributed and among the respondents were
three people from Chicago. The common view held by these respondents is that the holiday is
largely focused on drinking rather than on the Irish history and culture (see Appendix-
Attachment A3). As Ms. Ortlieb states, the whole celebration does not have much to do with
St. Patrick anymore (see Appendix – Attachment B2).

In summary, although Chicago has a long history of Irish activities and it is even
world renown for St. Patrick´s Day celebrations, the celebration itself does not retain much of
its original connection with St. Patrick. Despite this, the celebration there is still very large,
with two parades and even the dying green of an entire river.

38
5.3 St. Patrick´s Day in New Orleans

St. Patrick´s Day comes to New Orleans at an interesting time, right after Mardi
Gras13, while the city is still in the mood of celebrating. Owing to this, New Orleans has many
different parades and festivities for this holiday. A large Irish immigrant community, coupled
with a love with celebrating, leads to a great focus to St. Patrick´s Day.

New Orleans has a long history with Irish immigration. The potato famine, occurring
around 1850, coincided fairly closely with the American Civil War. This Civil War not only
heavily reduced the male population in the area, but also brought about the end of slavery,
leaving many low income and manual labor jobs open. Irish immigrants crowded into the city
to help build the levees and take other low income jobs (Fussel 848), giving rise to such
neighborhoods as the Irish Channel, were the Irish community was viewed as a close-knit,
albeit lower class, of the New Orleans population (City of New Orleans 1).

Despite the large Irish influence on New Orleans, knowledge about the true history of
St. Patrick is low. Many respondents believe that St. Patrick is celebrating for having banished
the snakes out of Ireland (see Appendix –Attachment I3, K4), which was shown in chapter 2
to be untrue. Most of the respondents did not mention anything about Patrick´s use of the
shamrock, his baptism and the general fact that he is the patron saint of Ireland. Thereto, one
respondent believed that St. Patrick is the patron saint of alcoholic beverages (see Appendix-
Attachment J2). Nevertheless, even though they do not know very much about the history or
traditional values, they celebrate this holiday anyway to great extent.

Typical drinks consumed in New Orleans on St. Patrick´s Day include Irish Car
Bombs, Guinness, Jameson and beers dyed green such as Coors and Miller (see Appendix –
Attachment H2, I2, J1 and K2). One attractive aspects of the St. Patrick´s Parade in New
Orleans is that parade goers can catch vegetables such as potatoes, carrots and cabbage from
the floats (see Appendix- Attachment H2, I4). This provides many people the opportunity to

13
The last day of Carnival and comes from the French “Fat Tuesday”.
39
make a free meal after the parade, typically an Irish style stew. Other typical dishes are
shepherd´s pie, corned beef and bangers and mash14 (see Appendix – Attachment H2).

New Orleans features a variety of parades for St. Patrick´s Day. From uptown to
downtown, during nighttime and daytime, family oriented and even mixed with Italian
organizations. In total New Orleans organizes seven St. Patrick´s Day parades spread out over
the course of two weeks. Figure 15 demonstrates all the parades on the St. Patrick´s Day in
and around New Orleans, with the dates for the 2014 season. In addition to the parades, there
is also a day long block party the Saturday before St. Patrick´s Day in the Irish Channel
(Weitz).

Parade Name Location Date

Molly's at the Market Irish Parade Downtown March 14
Irish Channel Parade Uptown March 15
Italian-American St.Joseph's Parade Uptown March 15
St. Patrick's Day Parade Metairie March 16
Downtown Irish Club Parade Downtown March 17
Louisiana Irish-Italian Parade Metairie March 23
Irish-Italian Islenos Parade St. Bernard April 6

Figure 15: List of Parades in New Orleans

At the parades and festivals, people are dressed in green clothing and costumes (see
Appendix – Attachment H2, K1). Face paint and wig are common accessories as well as
anything with shamrocks or clovers on them. Men marching in the parades commonly carry a
staff filled with fake orange, green and white flowers which they give away to girls for the
price of a kiss (see Appendix- Attachment I). This staff of flowers is shown in Figure 16,
being carried at the Irish Channel Parade in Uptown New Orleans.

14
Bangers and mash is typical Irish dish consisting of sausages served on top of
potatoes.
40
 Figure 16: Flowers Carried at Parades (Voelker)

According to the questionnaire, respondents enjoy St. Patrick´s Day for variety of
reasons. The most common reason was that it is a day to celebrate being Irish while on this
day everybody can be Irish (see Appendix- Attachment H3, I5, K3). This means that even the
non-Irish can still wear green, drink Guinness and dance an Irish jig in the streets. Although
for many it is just a day for drinking, many others may remember the historical struggles of
the Irish. For those with Irish ancestors, it is a day to celebrate their ancestors´ culture. Yet
regardless of one´s ancestry, the whole city seems to come out to celebrate this holiday.

5.4 Comparison of Selected Cities

Variations as well as similarities did exist between the questionnaires from the various
cities. This section will compare and contrast the answers given by the respondents in Dublin,
Chicago and New Orleans. Attention will be paid to the topics of food and drink, knowledge
of history, clothing, festivities, and overall view of the holiday.

Certain similarities appeared among all respondents, indicating the international nature
of this holiday. Perhaps the most obvious similarity is that all respondents noted that many
people celebrate St. Patrick´s Day by drinking Irish alcoholic beverages. Guinness, being a
large sponsor of the celebration worldwide, is naturally one of the primary beverages

41
consumed at the festivities. In Chicago and New Orleans, cheaper local beer such as Coors
and Miller are also commonly consumed, however these beers are first dyed green with food
coloring in order to make them more festive. In Dublin, green beer may also be seen, but
traditional cider would be much more common.

In addition to drinking, all cities had some form of organized parades to celebrate St.
Patrick´s Day. Interestingly, Dublin only offers one parade, which was less than in both
Chicago and New Orleans. All cities have at least one parade that runs through the city center,
showing that this celebration has enough local support to stop traffic in important city streets
in order to host the festivities. At the parades, people across all cities mentioned wearing the
same type of clothing, in that wearing anything green is very important. Wigs and face paint
can be seen in both the USA and in Ireland, as well as many green or shamrock themed
accessories such as cups, hats, and sunglasses.

Food is another area that shows similarities. All respondents said they eat typical Irish
dishes on St. Patrick´s Day. What each city´s respondents thought were typical Irish dishes
was also very similar, with nearly every respondent naming cabbage and potatoes as popular
items, also with corned beef. None of the respondents mentioned that any regional non-Irish
dishes are popular in their cities. Obviously, this issue would not be seen in Dublin, because
any regional dishes there would automatically be Irish and therefore acceptable to be included
with St. Patrick´s Day.

In terms of differences, certain things seem to stand out about each city. The most
notable would be about knowledge of the history of St. Patrick. Dublin stands out because the
respondents there showed a much better understanding of what the holiday is and what its
roots are. One respondent noted that this is because they have classes in school every year
about the history of St. Patrick (see Appendix- Attachment F4), since he is the patron saint of
Ireland. Contrastingly, in both Chicago and New Orleans people seemed to celebrate the
holiday just as an excuse for drinking and going to festivals. Many respondents in New
Orleans even believed that St. Patrick is famous for removing the snakes from Ireland. This
difference between the USA and Ireland seems natural though, since St. Patrick and the
holiday itself naturally has a close connection to Ireland and its history.

Another difference is seen with the number of parades. Dublin only offers one parade,
which is surprising because the holiday celebrates the country of which Dublin is the capitol.
Chicago offers more, having two parades running through different parts of the city. New

42
Orleans has more than both cities combined though, offering a total of seven parades spread
out over two weeks. Owing to this it would seem that New Orleans loves St. Patrick´s Day the
most, however the large amount of parades is probably due to the fact that New Orleans is
famous for parades and celebrations. Since St. Patrick´s Day occurs close after Mardi Gras,
which is the carnival time when New Orleans has an extremely large amount of parades, it is
not surprising that the city just continues to celebrate and organize parades. By looking at the
results from the questionnaire, one sees that it is true that New Orleanians do not simply love
St. Patrick´ Day the most, because they do not seem to know much about the history and roots
of the holiday.

43
Conclusion

This thesis demonstrated St. Patrick as a major figure in Irish history. It examined his
life and the celebration of St. Patrick´s Day, which celebrates him as the patron saint of
Ireland. For this study, historical and literary analyses along with a questionnaire (see
Appendix – Attachment L) were used to gain information on St. Patrick and his holiday, both
past and present. Furthermore, with the insight gained via the questionnaire, a comparison of
St. Patrick´s Day celebrations between Dublin, Chicago and New Orleans was made.

The thesis was divided into two parts. The first part was focused on theory and the
second part was focused on more practical research, namely from the questionnaire. For the
latter section, eleven questionnaires were distributed among contacts in the three selected
cities for the purpose of learning more accurately about current celebrations. This information
was used firstly to give an overview of St. Patrick´s Day celebrations in these cities and
secondly to compare and contrast these cities with each other.

The first half of the thesis discusses St. Patrick as a historical figure. In this section the
reader learned that St. Patrick was kidnapped and brought to Ireland as a slave and forced into
shepherding. After escaping, he returned to Ireland after being inspired by God to evangelize
the Irish pagans. To explain the Holy Trinity to the pagans, he used the shamrock as a symbol
of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit being one entity. For his religious deeds in Ireland,
he was canonized as the patron saint of Ireland. By the 19 th century, he had become quite
well-known among the Irish.

One of St. Patrick´s tools for spreading Christianity was his writings. He was a
talented author and wrote many letters and books about his connection with God. These
writings were analyzed in the thesis and exemplified to the reader St. Patrick´s passion for
religion and helped to show why he is celebrated as a saint even today.

St. Patrick´s Day is the holiday which celebrates St. Patrick as the patron saint of
Ireland, and occurs on the anniversary of his death, which is March 17 th. This thesis showed
that despite his close connection with Ireland, large celebrations of St. Patrick´s Day actually
began in the United States of America in the mid 18th century with the first parade being dated
to New York in 1762. Research showed that the reason for this is that Irish immigrants who

44
had settled in the USA began to celebrate St. Patrick´s Day as a way to keep a closer
connection to their home country.

After analyzing the origins of the holiday, the thesis moved on to study St. Patrick´s
Day celebrations in Dublin, Chicago and New Orleans. In this section the reader learned that
in Dublin, St. Patrick´s Day is commonly celebrated by spending time with family, while in
Chicago and New Orleans the focus is more on the parades. The celebration in Chicago has
grown to be very famous because the city dyes the river green every year, which attracts many
visitors. In New Orleans, the holiday is celebrated more extensively than in the other two
cities, with seven different parades providing entertainment. The final part of the thesis
featured a comparison of the celebrations between these cities, which led to the conclusion
that no matter how far the cities are from each other, they still have much in common in terms
of celebrating St. Patrick´s Day.

Through writing this thesis, a great deal of experience in communication was gained
by working with the eleven respondents who took part in the questionnaire. Conversations
with research contacts showed how enriching it is to get to know other cultures´ traditions and
celebrations. Overall, the theoretical part was very enriching in terms of learning about deeds
of a foreign saint. As a Christian, this thesis held special importance because it teaches about
a religious aspect which was otherwise not familiar.

45
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day-perpetuating-negative-stereotypes/>.

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Appendix

Attachment A: Allison Miller (2013)

Type: Questionnaire
Sender: Allison Miller
Origin: Chicago, Illinios
Position: Student at University of Illinois at Urbana- Champaign

Recipient: Lucie Končická

Date: May 6th, 2013

1) Do you wear some special clothing or something green?

People do try to wear green things- green clothes, green shamrock stickers
etc.

2) What do you drink? What do you eat?

My family used to always eat corned beef, cabbage, potatoes and Irish soda
bread. Other people might also eat Irish food on St. Patrick’s Day, but the holiday
is mostly about drinking for people over 21. People will go to pubs early in the day
and start drinking: green beer, Guinness, “Irish Car Bombs” (a drink of Guinness
beer with a shot of Bailey’s dropped into it. The goal is to drink the entire glass
before the cream in the Bailey’s curdles – which happens really quickly, so you
have to drink fast!).

3) What is unique about St. Patrick´s Day in comparison with other holidays?
It is a holiday that is all about drinking, and everybody celebrates it even if
they have no Irish heritage.

4) Characterize St. Patrick´s Day in one word/one sentence.

On St. Patrick’s Day, “Everybody’s Irish”.

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Attachment B: Emily Ortlieb (2013)
Type: Questionnaire
Sender: Emily Ortlieb
Origin: Chicago, Illinois

Position: Language assistant, Hartberg, Austria

Recipient: Lucie Končická
Date: July 29th, 2013

1) How many days does the celebration of St. Patrick´s Day take in your country?
The 17th of March and the following weekend; the first Friday in March at
my University (“Unofficial St. Patrick’s Day)

2) What is typical for you to do on this day?

“Kegs and eggs” style breakfast, parties with friends. It really does not have
much to do with St. Patrick anymore. Usually all of the Catholic grandmas go to
church, and I went through catholic school so we usually had a party on that day.
But once you are at university, it´s basically just about drinking and partying.

3) Do you wear some special clothing or something green?

Usually a green shirt or green dress; necklaces with beer mugs and shot
glasses on them; green sunglasses

4) What do you drink? What do you eat?

Usually we stick to beer and whiskey, Irish car bombs; as a vegan I don’t
usually eat the traditional corned beef and cabbage (usually we make green
pancakes)

5) Do the media give attention to this celebration?

Yes. It is very commercialized event.

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Attachment C: Andrew Michael (2013)
Type: Questionnaire
Sender: Andrew Michael
Origin: Chicago, Illinois

Position: Student at University of Illinois at Urbana- Champaign

Recipient: Lucie Končická
Date: June 7th, 2013

1) What do you drink? What do you eat?

I drink green beer, Jameson whiskey, Guinness beer. No special food

2) Do you wear some special clothing or something green?

I wear green shirt with a hat and face paint or temporary tattoos.

Attachment D: Michael Shock (2013)

Type: Questionnaire
Sender: Michael Shock
Origin: Chicago, Illinois
Position: Student at University of Illinois at Urbana- Champaign
Recipient: Lucie Končická
Date: July 2nd, 2013

1) What do you drink? What do you eat?

I usually drink beer and eat corned beef.

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Attachment E: Kate Shifflet (2013)
Type: Questionnaire
Sender: Kate Shifflet
Origin: Dublin, Ireland

Position: Student at Lord Fairfax Community College for Nursing Bachelor Degree in
Warrenton, Virginia
Recipient: Lucie Končická
Date: June 29th, 2013

1) What is typical for you to do on this day?

All family wear something green - T-Shirts, pants, scarves, hats. Kids will
set up the Leprechaun (laprikon) trap in the basement or in their rooms; the trap is
usually the box hanging out of the ceiling filled with fake golden coins to get his
attention. Leprechauns come visit and make a mess in the house while looking for
the gold (parents make the mess for kids to believe that they had visit from
Leprechauns).

2) Characterize St. Patrick´s Day in one word/one sentence.

St. Patrick's Day means all family to get together and celebrate.

3) Do you wear some special clothing or something green?

You wear anything green, T-Shirt with clover, hoodie, pants, scarf, hat or
green socks.

4) What do you drink? What do you eat?

We eat corn beef and cabbage for dinner, cookies with green icing and
sprinkles for desert.

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Attachment F: Liam Downey (2013)
Type: Questionnaire
Sender: Liam Downey
Origin: Dublin, Ireland

Position: Radiographer in St. James hospital. Dublin

Recipient: Lucie Končická
Date: May 29th, 2013

1) What is typical for you to do on this day?

It usually starts off with going to Mass first and then into the city centre for
the parade. Afterwards, we head to some bars and pubs. There is a tradition to
climb Croagh Patrick on this day in your bare feet for Mass at the top of the
mountain.

2) What do you drink? What do you eat?

Some people go out drinking beer or wine (a lot of it actually) but we don't
eat or drink anything special. Around St Patrick’s Day, you can get mint flavored
"shamrock" milk shakes in McDonalds!!

3) What is unique about St. Patrick´s Day in comparison with other holidays?
Well it symbolizes the beginning of Christianity in Ireland and is our
national holiday. It gives us a sense of patriotism and belonging to the country and
island.

4) Do you know something about history of St. Patrick´s Day?

Yes! All of it from the selling of him into slavery, to the praying while out
in the fields to the becoming a priest and converting Ireland to Christianity using
shamrock to symbolize the shape of the cross. We are taught it every year in
school.

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 5) Does this celebration in your country differ by region, family or city?
Yes it does, not everybody are practicing Christians and don't follow in the
holiness of the day but use it as a day of celebration. So they use it as an excuse to
drink a lot as it is a day off work. That is why maybe Irish are considered as heavy
drinkers.

Attachment G: Laura Clowry (2013)

Type: Questionnaire

Sender: Laura Clowry

Origin: Dublin, Ireland
Position: Radiographer in St. James hospital, Dublin
Recipient: Lucie Končická

Date: May 21st, 2013

1) What is typical for you to do on this day?

Drink alcohol. Go to the pub and there are usually traditional bands playing
in Temple Bar which is the main tourist area in Dublin.

2) What do you drink? What do you eat?

Guinness for the occasion that’s in it and then normal alcoholic drinks, cider,
spirits etc. Traditional meal would include colcannon and mash potato.

Attachment H: Christopher K. Voelker (2013)

Type: Questionnaire

Sender: Christopher K. Voelker

Origin: New Orleans
Position: Research and Development Manager , Voelker and Associates, LLC
Recipient: Lucie Končická
Date: December 21st, 2013

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 1) Do you wear some special clothing or something green?
We wear something green. If you aren’t wearing green, people will pinch
you.

2) What do you drink? What do you eat?

We drink Guinness and also light colored beers (like Coors or Miller) dyed
green with food coloring. We eat cabbage, potatoes, and Irish style stews. At the
parades we get cabbages, carrots, potatoes, and other vegetables to make stew
with. Other common meals involve shepherd’s pie, corned beef, and bangers and
mash.

3) What is unique about St. Patrick´s Day in comparison with other holidays?
It’s unique because of the culture behind it. Everybody listens to Irish music
and drinks Irish or green beer and really celebrates the culture. Other holidays here
all revolve around American culture, but St. Patrick’s Day is a time for us to
celebrate a culture from abroad.

Attachment I: Brittany Cailtin Voelker (2013)

Type: Questionnaire
Sender: Brittany Caitlin Voelker

Origin: New Orleans

Position: Office Administrator, Voelker and Associates, LLC
Recipient: Lucie Končická
Date: December 1st, 2013

1) Do you wear some special clothing or something green?

I wear lots of green, sometimes even a green wig and/or shamrock face paint

2) What do you drink? What do you eat?

I drink Guinness, Jameson, and Irish car bombs

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 3) Do you know something about history of St. Patrick´s Day?
No. Maybe something with snakes in Ireland

4) What is typical for you to do on this day?

I go to a parade where I dress in green and catch cabbage and kiss boys
handing out fake flowers

5) What is unique about St. Patrick´s Day in comparison with other holidays?
It’s all about one nationality, yet inclusive to all nationalities. No other
holiday does everyone pretend to be one race.

Attachment J: Don Vo (2013)

Type: Questionnaire
Sender: Don Vo
Origin: New Orleans
Position: Landman, Vo abstracting, LLC

Recipient: Lucie Končická

Date: December 3rd, 2013

1) What do you drink? What do you eat?

I drink some beer and whiskey. There is usually selling food in the area of
the parade.

2) Do you know something about history of St. Patrick´s Day?

St. Patrick is the patron saint of beer, whiskey, and some other alcohol.

3) Do you know any parades of St. Patrick´s day and can you name them?
There’s an Irish parade, and then there’s an Italian Parade.

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Attachment K: William Bristol (2013)
Type: Questionnaire
Sender: William Bristol
Origin: New Orleans

Position: Naval Architect

Recipient: Lucie Končická
Date: December 16th, 2013

1) What is typical for you to do on this day?

Beverage heavily upon anything Irish, eat anything Irish, wear green, watch
parades, have fun with friends, eat crawfish on occasion as well.

2) What do you drink? What do you eat?

I drink Guinness and any other Irish alcoholic beverage. Sometimes it is
dyed green. Or, any green alcoholic beverage. I will usually eat anything, but
most of the time it includes some form of cabbage.

3) What is unique about St. Patrick´s Day in comparison with other holidays?
Celebrate both my Irish heritage and the hardships my people went through.

4) Do you know something about history of St. Patrick´s Day?

He kicked out all the snakes in Ireland; he gives the American people an
excuse to unabashedly consume alcohol in obscene amounts.

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Attachment L: Questionnaire Sample

The history and the celebration of St. Patrick´s Day in

English speaking lands
Questionnaire

1. How do you celebrate St. Patrick´s Day?

a) How many days does the celebration of St. Patrick´s Day take in your country?
b) What is typical for you to do on this day?
c) Do you wear some special clothing or something green?
d) What do you drink? What do you eat?
e) Do the media give attention to this celebration?

2. How important is St. Patrick´s Day in comparison with other holidays?

a) What is unique about St. Patrick´s Day in comparison with other holidays?
b) Characterize St. Patrick´s Day in one word/one sentence.

3. Do you know who St. Patrick?

a) Do you know something about history of St. Patrick´s Day?
b) Does this celebration in your country differ by region, family or city?
c) Do you know about any company which financially supports this celebration?
d) Do you know any parades of St. Patrick´s day and can you name them?

63