Ever since the death of Saint Patrick on March 17, 461 A.D., Saint Patrick’s Day has been celebrated all over the world. Although this day was once a day of religious festivals, today most people celebrate Saint Patrick’s Day to remember their Irish heritage.

 The life of Saint Patrick was all but easy. At age sixteen he was kidnapped from his home in Roman occupied Britain and taken to Ireland as a slave. Saint Patrick did manage to escape captivity, but at a later date he returned back to Ireland and was credited with bringing his religion of Christianity to the Irish. After his death, many Irish myths about Saint Patrick began to surface. One such myth is that he explained the Holy Trinity using a three leaf clover, which the Irish call the shamrock. Since then, the Irish have been observing the day of his death both in Ireland and across the ocean in America, where the first Saint Patrick’s Day Parade was held in 1762 in New York City.

 When the Great Potato Famine hit Ireland in 1845, thousands of poor Irish immigrants began pouring into America to escape this starvation. These immigrants struggled to become accustomed to American life, but when the Americans celebrated Saint Patrick’s Day through parades, these Irish immigrants instantly began celebrating along with the Americans. They slowly began to gain more of a status among the people, and in 1948 President Harry S. Truman attended their annual Saint Patrick’s Day parade in New York City.

 Saint Patrick’s Day is now celebrated all around the world through many unique ways. One such way is to wear green in order to not be pinched by an angry leprechaun. In Chicago, pollution control workers release forty pounds of green vegetable dye into the Chicago River to turn it green for a few hours. In Ireland, an average of one million people participate in the Irish festivities on Saint Patrick’s Day, which include concerts, parades, and even a fireworks show.

 In Raleigh, there is always the annual Saint Patrick’s Day Parade in downtown with free admission. Throughout the parade, there are many entertainment venues for you to check out! At the courthouse steps, you can watch a performance of the NC State University’s Pipes and Drums and multiple Irish dancing studios will perform. According to sophomore Talley Krause, “Irish dance does tie into the Saint Patrick’s Day festivities. I have been dancing since I was seven. It’s displayed because Irish dance is a big part of traditional and modern Ireland during Saint Patrick’s Day. We perform in pubs, public squares, and in the St. Patrick’s day parade every year.”

 Although Saint Patrick lived so many years ago, his legacy still carries on today. The celebration of St. Patrick’s Day is a fun day of festivals and parades commemorating the life of Saint Patrick, an influential man in Irish history.. Have a Happy Saint Patrick’s Day and do not forget to wear green!