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by Caitlin Stuckey
On March 17th, it’s common to see people wearing green and pinching those who aren’t. Have you ever wondered why they do this? Or maybe you spend many a day searching for a four-leaf clover in hopes of a year of good luck; in any case, stick around and we’ll uncover the history and traditions of St. Patrick’s Day together.
The Real Story of St. Patrick’s Day
St. Patrick’s Day originated in 1631 when the Church of Ireland established a feast to celebrate St. Patrick, a former slave in Ireland who came back to convert the Irish to Christianity. They designated March 17th a day to honor the saint through parades, feasts, and fun traditions.
The Origin of Pinching
Pinching is one of this holiday’s superstitions; it might also be the worst one. The common belief is that wearing green on St. Patrick’s Day makes you invisible to leprechauns. These mythical creatures are known to be mischievous and enjoy pinching people who aren’t wearing the special color, green. Make sure to always wear your green on March 17th to avoid a pinch from others.
Rules to Help You Prepare for This Year
Everyone must know these three simple rules before this upcoming St. Patrick's day:
Always Wear Green! – Wearing green makes you invisible to leprechauns and invincible to pinching so you must wear green, and it must be visible. This means no green socks!
Pinch Back! – If you pinch someone wearing green, they can pinch you back.
Everyone Participates! – Even if you say you are not celebrating, people are still allowed to pinch you.
Origin of Wearing Green
People commonly wear green on this holiday in celebration of Ireland, and as a tribute to the holiday’s association with shamrocks. Originally, however, blue was the holiday’s signature color. Green was first introduced as tradition in the 1900s when Irish immigrants came to America . As a way to honor their heritage and the lucky shamrock, Irish Americans wear green.
Shamrocks & 4-Leaf Clovers
Shamrocks, or typical 3-leaf clovers, have been important to Ireland since the days of St. Patrick. It is said that he used them on his missionary journeys to explain the Holy Trinity. The Shamrock remains important as Ireland’s national flower. Four-leaf clovers have become symbols of faith, hope, love, and luck for their rarity, each corresponding to the four different leaves. Only about 1 in 10,000 clovers has 4 leaves! It is common to see people on St. Patrick's Day searching for four-leaf clovers, as finding one grants one a year of good luck – or so the legend goes.
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