St Patrick’s Day

St Patrick’s Day is celebrated annually on Friday 17^th March.

Who was Saint Patrick?

• Saint Patrick is the saint patron of Ireland and its national apostle.
• He was kidnapped and brought to Ireland at 16 after being born in Roman Britain.
• He escaped but returned to Ireland and was credited for bringing Christianity to its people.
• The most well-known legend of St. Patrick is that he explained the Holy Trinity (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) by using the three leaves of the shamrock, a native Irish clover.

Where to celebrate St Patricks Day in Lincoln?

Many student bars are having St Patricks day celebrations!

On Friday 17th March, Superbull is having a St Patricks day special and the Students Union is running a Bongos Bingo St Patricks day special!

I will be out celebrating St Patricks day with my friends going to some bars and having a few of my favourite shots, a baby Guinness!

St Patricks Day Celebrations

The Shamrock

By the seventeenth century, the shamrock had become a symbol of Irish nationalism.

Many Irish people began to wear the shamrock as a symbol of their pride in their heritage and their displeasure with English rule, as the English began to make laws against the use of Irish language.

Irish Music

Music is often associated with general Irish culture and St Patrick’s day.

The Celts had an oral culture, where history, legend, and religion was passed through generations through stories and songs.

Presently, traditional Irish bands such as The Clancy Brothers, The Chieftains, and Tommy Makem are gaining popularity worldwide.

Their music incorporates traditional instruments such as the fiddle, the uilleann pipes, tin whistle and the bodhran.

Leprechauns

An icon of St Patrick’s day is the Leprechaun.

The original Irish name for these folklore figures is ‘lobaircin’ which means ‘small-bodied fellow’.

The belief in leprechauns could stem from the Celtic belief in fairies, which described small men or women who could use their magical powers to serve good or evil.

Within Celtic folktales, leprechauns were grumpy souls, who had responsibilities for mending the shoes of other fairies. But they were also known for their trickery in order to protect their much-fabled treasure.

Leprechauns are celebrated through their own holiday on the 13^th May, but many still dress up as leprechauns on St Patrick’s day as a form of celebration!