St. Patrick's Day is Here...

VIDEO: Courtesy of: Mojo.com

Saint Patrick's Day is a yearly holiday celebrated on March 17th. It is named after Saint Patrick who lived in the 5th Century. He is the most commonly recognized of the patron saints of Ireland.

However, he was originally born in Wales under the name of Maywyn. At the age of 16, he was kidnapped by mauraders (pirates) and taken as a slave to Ireland.

But he would eventually undergo a religious awakening, changing his name to Patrick and dedicating his life to Christianity. Founding churches and schools, his work would eventually lead to Ireland becoming a Christian country.

Originally, St. Patrick's Day began as a purely Christian holiday. But in the early 1600s, it became an official feast day. And gradually, it has become a more secular celebration of Ireland's culture, legends and traditions.

In fact, it is a public holiday on the island of Ireland; including Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. It is also widely celebrated by the Irish community internationally, especially in places such as Great Britain, Canada, the United States, Argentina, Australia, New Zealand, and Montserrat, among others.

Vocabulary associated with St. Patrick's Day and Irish culture:

leprechaun: A mischievous elf in Irish folklore who enjoys playing tricks on people

clover: A sweet-smelling plant with three leaves on each stem that symbolizes Irish culture

limerick: A funny poem written with five lines. The first two lines and the last line all rhyme. The third and the fourth lines rhyme.

St Paddy’s Day is here
Everybody is drinking beer
A sea of Green, White and Gold
Blowing in the cold,
And now it’s over, back next year

by Dean Murphy