St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated by Irish people around the world, with many others embracing the spirit of the occasion and becoming “Irish for a day.” Now, what do we actually celebrate on 17 March? And most importantly, who was Saint Patrick?
The 17 March honours Ireland’s patron saint, Saint Patrick. According to the legend, he introduced the island to Christianity, initiated the cloverleaf trend, and on top of it all he saved Ireland from a snake plague. The last might be debatable, as biologists have discovered that there were no snakes in Ireland when St Patrick arrived there. However, this should not prevent anyone from celebrating the saint, whose death day has been commemorated for 1,500 years.
St Patrick’s Day has only been an official holiday since 1903. In the early 20th century they did not celebrate it as we do today, it was a rather calm national holiday coinciding with the beginning of lent.
In 1960, a law allowed pubs to open on 17 March, subsequently the Catholic celebrations turned into parades and parties.
Everything is tinted green on St Patrick’s Day. Hair, clothing, rivers, and even food adapts to the patriotic colour of Ireland. Even beer is coloured green, and the well-known Guinness is cooked into many dishes. Several pubs in Luxembourg are planning to flaunt their bright green colours on Monday. Everyone should feel a little Irish, although whether green beer tastes good is a question for another day.
Several pubs and associations celebrate the patron’s day, hopefully there will be a few establishments cleansing your parched pallets with a pint of green beer or a creamy Guinness. Oscar’s, the Pyg, the Black Stuff (with live music), and the Shamrock pubs in the City will all be open and celebrating in a way they know best.
Meanwhile outside of the City, in Clervaux, Cornelyshaff have an Irish evening on 21 March, there is an Irish folk concert in Garnich on 17 March.
RTL Today wishes you a happy St. Patrick’s Day!
