With 34.7 million U.S. residents claiming Irish ancestry, what began as a religious feast day for the patron saint of Ireland has become a festival celebrating Irish culture with parades, dancing, special foods and a whole lot of green.
The Irish have a story for everything. Some are based in fact. Others may be pure blarney. Amaze your friends with your knowledge of these tales from the Emerald Isle.
The Stone of Eloquence
An old witch revealed Ireland’s famed Stone of Eloquence –better known as the Blarney Stone – to the King of Munster whose life she had saved. As a reward, she told him about a mystical stone located in his castle. Many an Irishman has kissed the stone, which explains their well-known gift of gab.
Leprechauns and other Irish fairies
There’s a saying in Ireland, “I don’t believe in fairies, but they’re there.” Irish fairies take many forms and often play tricks on mortals. The leprechaun may be the best known of the bunch. He loves to collect gold and tends to avoid humans, believing them to be greedy and foolish. However, if captured, a leprechaun will promise a pot of gold in exchange for his freedom. But he’s tricky and rarely keeps this promise. Pooka fairies take the form of a black horse and are known to take drunkards on madcap rides, returning them to the ditch where they found them. The Clobher-Ceann is a naughty fairy usually found drinking. On the other hand, Will-‘o-the-Wisps, or fairy lights, are kind fairies who appear in the misty mountains to help searchers locate someone who is lost.
The lucky shamrock
A four-leaf shamrock is believed to be one of the luckiest of all Irish symbols. Each leaflet has a special significance. One stands for hope, one for faith, one for love and one for luck. But they’re not easy to find because there simply isn’t a clover plant that produces four leaflets.
St. Patrick
Born in Britain, St. Patrick was captured at age 16 and carried off to Ireland as a slave. After six years in captivity, he escaped, became an ordained bishop and vowed to spread Christianity throughout Ireland. According to one legend, he carried a walking stick, which he thrust into the ground wherever he preached. By the time he was finished, the stick had taken root and grown into a tree. Perhaps the most famous legend credits St. Patrick with banishing the snakes from Ireland. It’s likely Ireland never had any snakes to begin with, so the “snakes” in the story are believed to represent the serpent symbolism of the Druids.
We hope you enjoyed learning about these Irish tales, and however, you choose to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day, we wish you luck in finding your pot of gold.