On March 17, people all over the US will put on their green apparel and celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. The Holiday celebrated by Irish and non-Irish alike involves parades, drinking, and the great search for the Pot of Gold. But while many celebrate the Irish Holiday, there is still many things that people don’t know about it. Here are 5 facts to know about St Patrick’s Day:

1.St. Patrick wasn’t actually Irish

While the Irish holiday is a celebration of St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, St. Patrick himself is actually not Irish at all. St. Patrick was born to Roman parents, who were living in wales at the time. Despite not being Irish, he was born into Christianity, which was widespread across Europe under Roman control. He is given credit later when he served as a Christian missionary to Ireland.

2.St. Patrick’s colors were actually blue

Every St. Patrick’s day, the color green is seen everywhere. However, St. Patrick was not originally associated with the color Green, which used to symbolize bad luck. He was often associated with blue instead, which was symbolic of Ireland for many centuries. The Irish Presidential Standard Today is still blue.

3.The Largest (and Smallest) Celebrations on St. Patrick’s Day

St. Patrick’s day is celebrated all over the world. One of the biggest celebrations occurs in New York where many Irish immigrants originally settled. Every year, the city holds the biggest celebration with a parade involving around 250,000 participants and up to 2 million spectators. The tradition dates back to 1762, making it older than the United States itself.
Bonus Fun Fact: The world’s shortest St. Patrick’s day parade occurs in Hot Springs, Arizona, where the parade route is only one city block (98 ft).

4.St. Patrick’s day was originally a dry holiday

For most of the 20th century, Saint Patrick’s Day was considered a strictly religious holiday in Ireland, which meant that the nation’s pubs were closed for business on March 17. However, after becoming a national holiday in 1970, drinking was allowed and has since become a well known part of the holiday.

5.The Four Leaf Clover

The four leaf clover is often associated with good luck and is a symbol of the Irish Holiday, but how hard is it to actually find? There are no clover plants that naturally produce four leaves, making it extremely difficult to find. There is only 1 in 10,000 clovers that have four leaves. It is said that Ireland has more than any other country, giving it “The Luck of the Irish”.