Pints, places, conversion, and curses: Saint Patrick’s Day in Irish Tradition

Happy Saint Patrick’s Day! 17th March is Saint Patrick’s Day, when Irish culture and all things Irish are celebrated, both in Ireland and abroad.

For instance, on the evening of 15th March 2024, during a stroll in Dublin city centre, I noticed that the main building of Trinity College Dublin, was lighted up in green. I heard that the fountain in Dundrum shopping centre has also been dyed green, in March 2024. Of course, many American rivers are also dyed green, in recognition of the Irish roots of thousands of Americans. In the past two centuries, and especially during the Great Famine of the 1840s, millions of Irish emigrated all over the world, with cities like Boston being among the top destinations. A student of mine years ago told me about the green beer that people often drink in the USA on Saint Patrick’s Day

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The question is, why do people tend to drink on Saint Patrick’s Day? First, drinking is often typical of festivals in general, such as Christmas or Easter; conspicuous consumption, or excess, is also typical of festivals. Even more importantly, Saint Patrick’s Day always falls during Lent. Easter itself is a moveable feast, based on the lunar calendar. However, Easter always falls during March or April. Lent denotes the 40-day period immediately preceding Easter. Lent has been characterised by penance in the past in Ireland. Many people abstained from meat and animal products in the past; they also avoided playing music, singing, and celebrating. And―you probably guessed it at this stage―they also refrained from drinking alcohol during Lent. Saint Patrick’s Day was very much an exception: it was the only day during Lent where abstinence was relaxed, and people indulged in drinking then. So now you know why people visit pubs on Saint Patrick’s Day

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Perhaps the most famous story associated with Patrick in popular culture is the one about him getting rid of all the snakes on the island of Ireland. It is not a coincidence that the snake has been chosen as the symbol of Saint Patrick’s Festival in Dublin in 2024, and in previous years. However, scholars will insist that the story about Patrick getting rid of the evil beasts in Ireland is inaccurate. The Roman writer Solinus―who lived in the 3rd century AD, two centuries before Saint Patrick―mentioned the absence of reptiles in Ireland well before Patrick was only a twinkle in his dad’s eye.

Traditionally, as emphasised by the folklorist Kevin Danaher in The Year in Ireland (1972), two main customs were observed on Saint Patrick’s Day in Ireland: the wearing of the emblem and the wetting of the shamrock.

The wearing of the emblem consisted in wearing a symbol associated with Irish culture, like a harp or a shamrock; paper crosses were sometimes made by children, similarly to Saint Bridget’s crosses. Green is now a popular colour to wear on the day; in the past, on the other hand, it was considered an unlucky colour to wear, perhaps due to its association with the landscape or with supernatural beings.

The wetting of the shamrock consisted in wetting a shamrock into a glass containing a drink at the end of the day.

The shamrock is associated with Saint Patrick because according to a story, Patrick used a shamrock to explain the Trinity to newly-converted followers.

Perhaps the most significant memory of Saint Patrick in Ireland is inscribed in the landscape, in the many holy wells around the country that are dedicated to the saint. Holy wells can be defined as wells or springs of water, usually dedicated to a saint, and embowed with healing or curative properties. It is the belief of communities, and the stories passed down through generations, that make the wells holy. People often visit holy wells in search of a cure, and proceed to drink the water of the well, or bathe in it. They often leave an object behind, often on a bush. Many legends are associated with holy wells. For instance, the following legend accounts for the origin of Saint Patrick’s Well in Carlanstown, Co. Meath. The well is said to have originated when that saint stopped there on his way from Cavan to Tara. St. Patrick and his company were thirsty, and a local refused to give them a drink, so St. Patrick hit the ground with his crosier, and the well sprang up

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There are two other popular legends featuring Saint Patrick in Irish folklore: his encounter with the warrior of Fionn mac Cum(h)aill, Oisin, and his curses.

The former legend is a modern version of the encounter between Patrick and the warriors of Fionn Mac Cumhaill, recounted in the medieval tale, Acallam na Senórach (‘The Colloquy of the Elders’); a version from the oral tradition of 20th century Ireland goes as follows:

‘When Oisin came from Tir na n-óg he met St Patrick and St Patrick tried to convert him… Oisin then asked for baptism. While he was being baptised St Patrick put the Staff that he was carrying accidentally through Oisin's foot,

"I am sorry", said St Patrick, " I have your foot cut".

and Oisin said

"I thought it was part of the baptism".

St Patrick then said that Oisin was forgiven.’

(NFC S 22: 412-413. COLLECTOR: Thomas Reaney. INFORMANT: Tom Reaney. Relation: Grandparent. Address: Caherakeeny, Co. Galway, https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4562127/4561863).

As mentioned by the scholar Dáithí ó hógáin, the story of Saint Patrick accidentally sticking his crozier into the foot of the king of Munster during baptism was transferred to Oisín in the fifteenth or sixteenth century.

The above narrative is not that hard to believe, considering that Patrick allegedly had a bit of a temper, perhaps thus resembling more a character from the Old Testament than Jesus Christ. A legend seems to suggest that Patrick could be quite revengeful. For example:

‘The Three Curses of St Patrick.

When St. Patrick was in this place amongst the people and when anybody vexed him, these were the curses he used:

That your house may be built on the height.

That your cows may be white.

That your wife may be handsome.

That a bad neighbour may be living at your door.

When your house was on the height, it was always in danger of falling.

When your cows were white they were supposed to have white butter.’

(NFC S 101: 446. INFORMANT: Martin Feeney. Address: Carrowmore, Co. Mayo,https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4427863/4351684 ).

Saint Patrick’s fighting spirit appears in another popular legend from Irish folklore, where Saint Patrick is pitted against a pagan chieftain (or pagan god), Crom Dubh. For example:

‘The Story of Crom Dubh.

This place is called Ballyduff because of an old pagan chief named Crom Dubh who lived there in the time of Saint Patrick.

He was a very rich man and he had a very cross bull.

At that time there were a number of monks in Cloghane and they were building a Church and they came to Crom Dubh asking for something in aid of the Church.

He told them there was a bull in one of the fields and they could take him. He knew the bull was a very fierce one and he thought he would kill them but instead the bull went away quietly.

When Crom Dubh saw this he was very angry and he followed hem to Cloghane. The monks said they would write a prayer on a piece of paper and put it on a scales and put the bull on the other side and the prayer weighed the bull.

When Crom Dubh saw this he became a Catholic and the image of his head is to be seen on the wall of the Church in Cloghane.

The last Sunday of July is called Domhnach Crom Dubh and a pattern is held in Cloghane in his honour.’

(NFC S 431: 40-41. COLLECTOR: Michael Hennessy. Address: An Clochán, Co. Kerry. INFORMANT: Seán ó hAongusa. Address: An Clochán, Co. Kerry, https://www.duchas.ie/en/cbes/4687703/4685519)

The story of the encounter between Saint Patrick and Crom Dubh is usually told in connection with Lughnasa, one of the quarter days of Irish tradition, that marks the start of the harvest. Lughnasa used to fall on August 1st in the Middle Ages, and it has shifted to the last Sunday of July or the first Sunday in August from the late 20th century. The folklorist Máire MacNeill argued that the fight between Saint Patrick and Crom Dubh replaced an earlier fight between the pagan god Lug(h) and another pagan god, with the prize of the fight being the harvest.

Saint Patrick’s Day parades started in the USA, in the 18th century, in cities with many Irish emigrants, such as Boston and New York. The annual parade in Dublin is often an occasion for creativity and to bring together people from the community, and it attracts many tourists. It effectively marks the beginning of the tourism season in Ireland.

But who was Saint Patrick, and did he really exist? A traditional Irish folk song goes, ‘Saint Patrick was a gentleman; he came from decent people’; there is truth in that. Patrick was a historical figure, who probably lived in the 5th century. He belonged to an aristocratic family and lived in Roman Britain: his father was a tax collector and a deacon, while his grandfather was a priest. It is uncertain where exactly in Roman Britain Saint Patrick was from. Locations in Wales, England and Scotland have been suggested by various scholars. At any rate, Patrick was captured by some Irish men, and forced to work as a slave in Ireland. Patrick had to mind pigs in Sliabh Mis, County Antrim at one stage. Luckily, Patrick managed to escape, won back his freedom, and returned to Britain. However, his experience encouraged him to convert to Christianity. He went to Rome, where he trained as a priest and missionary, being consecrated as a deacon and a bishop. He returned to Ireland, where he converted many people.

Two documents written by Patrick have survived: The Letter to the Soldiers of Coroticus, a condemnation of slavery, something that Patrick would have experienced firsthand; and his Confessio (or Confession), a spiritual journal.

In the Middle Ages, two lives of Saint Patrick were written by Tirechán and Muirchú in the 7th century. Patrick became associated with the monastery of Armagh, that was very powerful in the Middle Ages. Tirechán and Muirchú were tasked with the duty of writing formidable lives of the saint, in what effectively functioned as political propaganda.

Saint Patrick’s Day is full of contradictions: it is a day to celebrate Irish culture, Irish people, people with Irish roots, and anyone who likes Ireland, is based in Ireland, or has some Irish connections. Yet Saint Patrick himself was a migrant.

Saint Patrick has figured in texts from medieval times: his lives were well-known. His own writings have survived, to provide a glimpse of his world and personality. There is even a legend about an encounter between Saint Patrick and Saint Bridget.

Whatever you do this Saint Patrick’s Day, make sure not to cross Saint Patrick, or else you will have to deal with his anger.