Most Americans (the figure may be as high as 70 percent) have at least a little Irish ancestry.  But did you know that American customs are a far cry from the original Irish celebrations?  So for the sake of authenticity, here’s a St. Paddy’s Day fact sheet that covers everything from drowning the shamrock to downing green beer.

Corned Beef & Cabbage:

Cabbage is authentic enough. But corned beef is strictly an American invention. In Ireland, the traditional St. Patrick’s meal is more likely to feature colcannon – a mixture of cabbage, boiled potatoes and liberal amounts of butter.

Green Beer:

No doubt about it, there are dozens of American brewers who would like to claim credit for this favorite of favorite traditions.  But in reality, it’s unlikely we’ll ever know who served the first glass of green beer.  What we do know is that the tradition is closely associated with the town of Oxford, Ohio where the students of Miami University have made an annual tradition out of drinking green beer on the eve of St. Patrick’s.  Ironically, St. Patrick’s isn’t a big drinking holiday in Ireland.  In fact, many of the local pubs are closed for the day.

Leprechauns are consummate shoemakers. In fact, they’re the official shoemakers of the fairy kingdom.  And as such, leprechauns are notoriously thrifty, hiding their hard-earned gold from the eyes of man … unless you’re lucky enough to spot a rainbow.  As to how these mythical creatures made their way into St. Patrick’s celebrations, it’s most likely owing to their association with the ancient Irish god of light.

Parades:

America’s first St. Patrick’s celebration was held in Boston in 1737, courtesy of the Chartable Irish Society of Boston.  But the first actual parade came 25 years later in New York City.  Still the most popular St. Patrick’s parade in the US, New York’s celebration is rivaled only by Chicago... where the locals have taken to dyeing the city river a festive shade of green.

St. Patrick:

The man who started it all was born in Britain around 370 AD.  The son of affluent Romans, the would-be saint was kidnapped at a young age and sent to Ireland as slave.  Following a stint as a lowly shepherd, he escaped from Ireland, fled to France, entered a monastery, changed his name to Patrick and then returned to Ireland as a Christian bishop.  He died sometime in the mid-fifth century on March 17 – the date we now celebrate as St. Patrick’s Day.  And his legacy?  In addition to converting pretty much the entire Irish population, St. Patrick is also credited with driving the “snakes” (a common pagan symbol) out of Ireland.

Shamrocks:

Legend states that St. Patrick used this little three-pronged flower to illustrate the concept of the Trinity. The shamrock was also worn by early Irish Christians as a representation of the cross. A few centuries later, Irish soldiers took to wearing shamrocks while serving in the British army. Now the national flower of Ireland, shamrocks are picked on St. Patrick’s Day and worn on the shoulder. They also figure in a custom called “drowning the shamrock” where a shamrock is dropped into a glass of whiskey or ale, then yanked out then tossed over the shoulder.

Wearing of the Green:

The ancient Irish used to wear green (the color of spring) in order to curry favor with the harvest gods.  Funny thing is, blue is the color most associated with the actual St. Patrick.  In fact, the Irish don’t particularly like to wear green as the color is still associated with an older, unpopular version of the Irish flag. As for the bit about pinching, that’s a strictly American custom invented by school children.