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March 17th, 2025

What Is St Patrick's Day and Why Do We Celebrate It?

St Patrick's Day was originally celebrated as a religious holiday. It started as a day that marked the death of St Patrick and commemorated Christianity coming to Ireland.

However, the holiday has since expanded into a general celebration of Irish culture and heritage. It takes place on March 17 every year.

While primarily celebrated in the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, it's also commemorated in the UK, US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, and Argentina.

Some countries have a national holiday to mark St Patrick's Day, which generally comes with a day off work. Because of this, many people countdown to St Patrick's Day so they can celebrate an extra non-working day during the week.

Why Do We Celebrate St Patrick's Day With Green?

Green is symbolic of St Patrick's Day. In Ireland and other countries that celebrate the holiday, it's common to wear green. It's also customary to decorate bars, pubs, and other venues with four-leaf clovers and other green items.

The reason the color green is associated with St Patrick's Day is that leprechauns (a supernatural being in Irish folklore) cannot see the color green. So, you are invisible to leprechauns if you wear green on St Paddy's Day.

If you don't wear green on St Patrick's Day, folklore says you will be pinched by a leprechaun (because they can see you). For this reason, it's a common tradition to pinch people not wearing green as part of the holiday celebrations.

Before buying your outfit for the Irish holiday, use the St Patrick's Day countdown to see how long you have to prepare for the occasion.

What Food Is Eaten On St Patrick's Day?

To celebrate St Patrick's Day, the most popular food to eat is cabbage and corned beef. Many pubs and bars serve the dish especially to honor the occasion.

Originally, the Irish used to eat bacon and cabbage on St Patrick's Day, but Irish ex-pats in America substituted the dish in the 19th century. Since then, the tradition stuck.

It's also common to eat an "Irish Fry" on St Patrick's Day in Ireland. This is similar to the "English Fry Up" and includes bacon rashers, fried tomatoes, black pudding, and bread slices.

Being a traditional Irish drink, it's also popular to drink Guinness on St Patrick's Day.

How Many Days Until St. Patrick's Day?

There are days until St. Patrick's Day.