Saint Patrick is one of the most recognized patron saints of Ireland. The thing is, he wasn't even Irish! He was a Roman citizen, born by the name

of Maewyn Succat (according to legend), but was enslaved and taken to Ireland. He either escaped or was released and went back to Great Britain. Something drew him back to Ireland, however,

and he brought Christianity to the Irish people, who had been polytheistic up until then.

Maewyn Succat changed his name to Patricius (or Patrick) after he became a priest. Patricius is derived from the Latin term for "father figure" (get it?). He died around the

fifth century, but it wasn't until the early 18th century that most of today's traditions were kicked into gear. 

Chances are you've heard the story about St. Patrick "driving all of the snakes out of Ireland." This is a myth, or maybe just quick parable to describe

what really happened. There were no snakes in Ireland to begin with — the waters around the emerald isle are too cold for them. Instead, perhaps, "snakes" is just a

term for pagans, since St. Patrick brought Christianity to the country, and largely eradicated paganism.

On March 17, 1631, the church first established a celebration for St. Patrick and dubbed it a Feast Day. Why the 17th? Because this is said to be the anniversary of

Patrick's death. Since it falls during Lent, Christians are allowed to put aside their food and alcohol restrictions. This is likely one of the reasons the holiday has been permanently stamped

as a drinking celebration.

The Feast Day eventually evolved into a much larger celebration, not only to honor St. Patrick, but also as a nod to Irish culture, history, and traditions. Marion

Casey, a clinical assistant professor of Irish Studies at New York University, said around the 1720s, the church thought the celebrations were getting a bit out of control.

Although the Feast Day originated in Ireland, it was good ol' Americans who started the long-standing tradition of holding a parade on St. Patrick's Day. Then, of course, parades became

exceptionally popular in the 1840s, when many Irish immigrants headed over to America.

St. Patrick's Day, like most holidays, involves a great deal of symbolism. First up, there's the shamrock. How on earth did wearing shamrocks on t-shirts result from St. Patrick bringing

Christianity to Ireland? Well, according to legend, St. Patrick used the three leaves of the shamrock to explain the Holy Trinity to the Irish people. The Irish then wanted to

honor him, so they started wearing a shamrock on their clothing.

The obnoxious amount of green clothing, accessories, and everything else, didn't have anything to do with St. Patrick's Day until the year of the Irish Rebellion, 1798. Originally, the color

blue was associated with St. Patrick, since it was featured in the royal court and ancient Irish flags. But during the rebellion, the British wore red and the Irish chose

to wear green, even singing the song "The Wearing of the Green" as they marched. Ever since, green has been a staple in the Irish community.

Though St. Patrick's Day was originally only celebrated as a religious Feast Day, in 1903 it became a public holiday in Ireland. Huzzah! This was the same year that the

first parade in Ireland was held for the occasion, in Waterford.

We have Mr. James O'Mara to thank for making this holiday public. However, O'Mara wasn't really much of a hero, as he also declared that all pubs were to be

closed on March 17 in Ireland as well. BUMMER.

This nonsense carried on until 1970, when finally, O'Mara's silly rule was overturned and the Irish could drink at their favorite local pubs once again. This was when the religious

affiliation with the holiday really started to decline and it morphed into what is now called St. Patrick's Day.

Shockingly, it wasn't until the late 1980s/early 1990s that St. Paddy's Day really started popping off. And this was when beer in particular made its debut as the poster drink for

St. Paddy's.

If you love St. Patrick's Day, you might want to tip your hat to the folks over at Budweiser for serving a major role in its evolution. Basically, a huge

marketing push from Budweiser in the 1980s led thirsty folks to believe that drinking beer and St. Patrick's Day were linked for life — regardless of how little beer had

to do with the actual meaning of St. Patrick.

You're probably wondering when green beer became a staple. Sometime in the early 1900s, people started enjoying their beers green rather than amber as part of the festivities in America

— where else? But, ironically, in the late 1800s, the term "green beer" meant the beer hadn't finished the fermentation process yet, which gave it a bad taste and made

stomachs turn. I'm sure this made people a bit skeptical about trying beer that was simply colored green.

The more St. Patrick’s Day grew in popularity throughout America, the more traditions and unique celebrations erupted. One tradition in particular that stands out is in the city of Chicago.

Each year since 1962, Chicago has dyed its eponymous river GREEN. While the products they've used as dye have changed (it's now an eco-friendly vegetable-based dye!), the notion

is still the same.

Then, of course, there are the parades. Almost every major city has one around America — from Baltimore to New York City to Seattle. In Ireland, you'll find

every kind of parade you could think of, with the biggest, most well-known parade in Dublin.

Even the popular television networks in America have worked St. Patrick's Day into their episode repertoire. Every show from '30 Rock' to 'Cheers' has featured an episode with all the

characters draped in green.

Of course, in these television depictions of the greenest holiday around (aside from maybe, like, Earth Day) the characters end up showcasing how America celebrates — with lots of binge

drinking and bad decisions!

Perhaps one of the best examples of St. Paddy's Day in pop culture is on the FX show 'It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia.' Not only is the name of the

bar they work at called "Paddy's Irish Pub," clearly named after good ol' St. Patrick himself, but the token episode "Charlie Catches a Leprechaun" is one of the best ever.

Although Budweiser first marketed St. Paddy's Day as a drinking holiday, Guinness might be the winner when it comes to celebratory beverages. In fact, about 13 million pints

of Guinness will be consumed on March 17. Imagine how many hangovers 13 million pints will deliver.

While St. Patrick's Day isn't a big enough holiday to close schools around the nation, most make sure to throw some sort of mini celebration for the kids as well.

Perhaps they are preparing them for the crazy party later in life.

It comes as no surprise that Americans took another country's culture, blew it up, and turned it into something totally different. That's what we do here, obv. But, if the

Irish were drinking and feasting to toast to the patron saint, then why can't we chug some Guinness in his honor in the U.S. of A.?

While many people just use the holiday as an excuse to binge drink, kind of like Cinco de Mayo, maybe we should think twice about what kind of stereotypes and

ideas that fosters for Irish culture. Remember, ever since it was turned into a public holiday, it's exploded amongst non-Irish people and non-Christians alike. That's totally cool and all, but

when you chug those green beers, remember why the holiday exists in the first place. 

Next time your drunk friend claims that the patron saint's holiday is an excuse to drink, take a swig of your Guinness in pride and tell them the real story.

Heck, maybe now you'll even get those trivia questions correct!

As they say, "Erin Go Bragh." Whether you're Irish or wish you were, happy St. Patrick's Day to you! Sláinte!