Rosemary SharpeMarch 15, 2013

Happy St. Patrick’s Day!

What is St. Patrick’s Day?KNOW WANT TO KNOW LEARNED

Ireland

Ancient Castle in Ireland

Dublin, Ireland

Óró, sé do bheatha abhaileIrish Rebel Folk Song

’Sé do bheatha, a bhean ba léanmhardo bé ár gcreach tú bheith i ngéibhinndo dhúiche bhreá i seilbh meirleachis tú díolta leis na Gallaibh.Chorus:Óró, sé do bheatha abhaileóró, sé do bheatha abhaileóró, sé do bheatha abhaileanois ar theacht an tsamhraidh.Tá Gráinne Mhaol ag teacht thar sáileóglaigh armtha léi mar gharda,Gaeil iad féin is ní Gaill[8] ná Spáinnighis cuirfidh siad ruaig ar Ghallaibh.ChorusA bhuí le Rí na bhFeart go bhfeiceammuna mbeam beo ina dhiaidh ach seachtainGráinne Mhaol agus míle gaiscíochag fógairt fáin ar Ghallaibh.

Hail to you sorrowful womanit was our woe that you were in captivityyour fine country in the possession of thieveswhile you were sold to the foreigners.Chorus:Hurrah, welcome homeHurrah, welcome homeHurrah, welcome homenow at the coming of Summer.Gráinne Mhaol is coming over the seaarmed warriors as her guardthey are Gaels, not foreigners or Spaniardsand they will put the foreigners to flight.ChorusThanks to the King of Miracles that we might seealthough we might not live but a week afterGráinne Mhaol and a thousand heroesdeclaring the scattering of the foreigners.

Who was St. Patrick?• The person who was to become St. Patrick, the patron

saint of Ireland, was born in Wales about AD 385. His given name was Maewyn.

• Far from being a saint, until he was 16, he considered himself a pagan. At that age, he was sold into slavery by a group of Irish bandits that raided his village. During his captivity he became a Christian and adopted the name Patrick.

• He escaped from slavery after six years and went to Gaul where he studied in the monastery for a period of twelve years. During his training he decided that his calling was to return to Ireland and convert the native pagans to Christianity.

• Patrick was very successful at winning converts. And this fact rightfully upset the Celtic Druids, who had their own native religion. Patrick was arrested several times, but escaped each time. He traveled throughout Ireland, establishing monasteries across the country. He also set up schools and churches, helping him turn Ireland into a Christian country.

• His mission in Ireland lasted for thirty years. He died on March 17 in AD 461. That day has been commemorated as St. Patrick's Day ever since.

About St. Patrick’s Day• The Irish have celebrated this

day as a religious holiday for over 1,000 years.

• On St. Patrick's Day, which falls during the Christian season of Lent, Irish families would traditionally attend church in the morning and celebrate in the afternoon. Lenten prohibitions against the consumption of meat were waived and people would dance, drink and feast--on the traditional meal of Irish bacon and cabbage.

Irish in the United States• St. Patrick’s Day is extremely

popular in the United States. This is partly because there are so many Americans of Irish descent. Over 40 million Americans, about 13% of the population are of Irish descent. That’s over six times the population of Ireland!

• As a percentage of the population, Massachusetts is the most Irish state, with about a quarter of the population claiming Irish descent.

St. Patrick’s Day Myths

• There are a lot of myths about St. Patrick's Day. One belief is that Patrick raised people from the dead.

• It is also said that Patrick gave a sermon from a hilltop that drove all the snakes from Ireland. Of course, no snakes were ever native to Ireland, and some people think this is a metaphor for the conversion of the pagans.

Vocabulary

• Ireland• shamrock• Leprechaun• Pot of gold• Rainbow• parade• Guinness• Saint

Irish dancers in Moscow, Russia

Empire State Building lit up in green

Irish politician presents Obama with a shamrock

St. Patrick’s Day Pins

Corned Beef and Cabbage

St. Patrick’s Day Parades

• The first St. Patrick’s Day parade happened in 1762 in New York City.

• New York has the largest parade in the world, sometimes as many as 150,000 people in it.

• The Chicago parade is always held on the Saturday before the holiday, unless the 17th is a Saturday. Something unique about this parade is that the Chicago River is always dyed bright green at 10:45am on the morning of the parade. Chemists have made bright green dye that is safe for the environment.

Little girl in NYC parade

St. Patrick’s Day ParadeBoston, 1973

St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Dublin

Chicago River dyed green

St. Patrick’s Day ParadeMontreal, Canada 2006

Bagpipers

An Irish blessing

May the road rise to meet you.May the wind be always at your back,The sun shine warm upon your face,The rain fall soft upon your fields.And until we meet again,May God hold you in the hollow of His hand.

What is a leprechaun?

• Leprechaun (Irish: leipreachán) is a type of fairy in Irish folklore

• The popular depiction is an old man that is no taller than a small child, dressed in a green coat with a beard and hat, who enjoys making mischief.

• The Leprechauns spend all of their time busily making shoes, and store away their coins in a hidden pot of gold at the end of the rainbow.

• If they ever get captured by a human, the Leprechaun has the magical power to grant three wishes in exchange for their release.

The Symbol of the Shamrock• One traditional icon of the day

is the shamrock. This is because Patrick used the three-leafed shamrock to explain the Holy Trinity. He used it in his sermons to represent how the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit could all exist as separate elements of the same entity. His followers adopted the custom of wearing a shamrock on his feast day.

St. Paddy’s Day Games

• http://gamequarium.com/stpatricks1.html• http://www.quia.com/jg/781671.html