St. Patrick's Day Trivia Time: 50 Fascinating Facts About St. Paddy's Day
St. Patrick's Day trivia
March 17 will be here before you know it, so it’s time to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day! And while you may be wondering which restaurants will be offering green beer and if there will be any St. Paddy's Day parades going on in your city, have you ever stopped and wondered about the history of St. Patrick's Day?
If not, you’re not alone—many people don’t know the backstory of how St. Patrick's Day started or why certain things, like leprechauns and pots of gold, are associated with the fun holiday.
But lucky for you, this list can help. From explaining who St. Patrick was and why we celebrate the holiday in March to unraveling the reason people wear green on St. Paddy's Day and when four-leaf clovers became part of the tradition, these 50 St. Patrick's Day trivia tidbits will help you unravel the history and true meaning of the holiday
So if you’ve ever found yourself even a little bit curious about St. Paddy's Day, we’re about to fill you in. And with the luck of the Irish on your side, you’ll soon be a St. Patrick’s Day trivia master thanks to this big list of fascinating St. Paddy's facts and trivia.
50 St. Patrick's Day Trivia Questions and Answers
1. What are some other names used to refer to St. Patrick’s Day?
Answer: The Day of the Festival of Patrick and The Feast of Saint Patrick
2. The first-ever St. Patrick’s Day Parade in 1762 didn’t take place in Ireland as you might have thought. Where did it take place?
Answer: The United States
3. Green hasn’t always been associated with Saint Patrick’s Day. That actually didn’t happen until when?
Answer: 1798
4. Each year in Chicago since 1962, the Plumber Union dyes what Kelly green?
Answer: The river
5. To celebrate St. Paddy’s Day in Ireland, Dublin hosts a huge festival that lasts how many days?
Answer: Four days
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6. What was St. Patrick’s Day originally meant to celebrate?
Answer: It was a day honoring Saint Patrick for introducing Christianity to Ireland in the fifth century.
7. What mythological being is a part of St. Patrick's Day lore and Irish culture?
Answer: Leprechauns
8. Where was the first St. Patrick’s Day parade in Ireland held in 1903?
Answer: Waterford, Ireland
Related: Irish Movies
9. According to Irish legends, Saint Patrick’s changed his name to Patricius after becoming a priest. What was his name at birth?
Answer: Maewyn Succat
10. Even though it’s a big drinking day now, St. Paddy’s Day used to be a dry holiday up until what decade?
Answer: The 1970s
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11. NYC’s St. Patrick’s Day parade has been happening since 1762 and is one of the world’s largest parades. About how many marchers does it typically have?
Answer: Around 250,000 marchers
12. What major Catholic holiday does St. Patrick’s Day occur during?
Answer: Lent
13. There’s a tradition that Irish government leaders give United States president shamrocks on St. Patrick’s Day dating back to 1952, when John Hearne first sent some to which former U.S. president?
Answer: President Harry Truman
Related: Wait, There’s No Such Thing as a Leprechaun...Is There?
14. Before becoming a priest, Saint Patrick was abducted and brought to Northern Ireland at what age?
Answer: 16
15. Where is the home of the biggest Saint Patrick’s Day celebration in South America?
Answer: Buenos Aries
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16. What year did St. Patrick’s Day go from being a strictly holy day for Catholics to an official Irish holiday?
Answer: 1903
17. Saint Patrick wasn't actually Irish like many think. Where was he believed to have been born?
Answer: Scotland or Wales
18. St. Paddy’s Day is celebrated annually on March 17, which is the anniversary of what?
Answer: Saint Patrick’s death, not his birthday, like some people assume.
Related: 50 Best St. Patrick's Day Wishes To Toast Your Friends and Family
19. Since 1992, what Japanese city has put on its own St. Patrick’s Day parade?
Answer: Tokyo
20. While cabbage and corned beef are considered to be a traditional St. Patrick’s Day dish, it’s actually not an authentic Irish meal. If the Irish themselves didn't create it, who did?
Answer: Irish American immigrants
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21. What iconic structure turns green to celebrate Saint Patrick’s Day in England?
Answer: The London Eye
22. In the 17th century, green became associated with St. Patrick’s Day. What color was associated with the holiday originally?
Answer: Blue
23. The most popular drink to have on St. Patrick’s Day is Guinness. Roughly how many pints are served on St. Paddy's Day?
Answer: Approximately 13 million pints
24. Up until the 1970s, what used to be closed in Ireland on St. Patrick’s Day?
Answer: Pubs
25. Three-leafed shamrocks were believed to be used by Saint Patrick to explain what?
Answer: The Holy Trinity
26. What story about Saint Patrick and his teaching strategy was never actually proven to be true?
Answer: That he used shamrocks to teach the Christian concept of the Holy Trinity. The first written account of this was in 1726 and was most likely introduced to "Christianize" Saint Patrick's teachings, per Irish Central. The number three was already important and sacred in Irish mythology (thanks to shamrocks and their three leaves).
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27. In Mumbai, what iconic structure is turned green each year to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day?
Answer: The Gateway of India
28. What Irish Franciscan invented St. Patrick’s Day?
Answer: Luke Wadding
29. What do places like Argentina, England, Norway, Turkey, New Zealand, Canada, Moscow and India have in common?
Answer: They all celebrate St. Patrick's Day
30: In 2020, the St. Patrick’s Day parade was canceled in NYC for the first time in how many years because of COVID?
Answer: Over 250 years
31. Was St. Patrick a saint?
Answer: No, Saint Patrick was never actually canonized by the Catholic Church (but many of course consider him to “hold saintly status,” per History.com).
32. What animal did St. Patrick allegedly banish from Ireland?
Answer: Snakes
33. Did St. Patrick actually banish snakes from Ireland?
Answer: No, research has shown that snakes never inhabited the country.
34. Where did green beer originate from?
Answer: In New York; Professor Thomas H. Curtin is credited with creating the drink, per Vox.
35. What did the term “green beer” refer to in the past, before the festive St. Patrick’s Day beverage?
Answer: “Green beer” was a term used to describe beer that was too young or “green” to drink because it wasn’t fully fermented yet. It’s said that this “green beer” made people sick if ingested. The term is still used today, but the problem of “underaged beer” is a far less common one.
36. What song is considered the national anthem of Northern Ireland and is one of the most popular St. Patrick’s Day songs?
Answer: “Danny Boy”
37. Where does the phrase, “Kiss me, I’m Irish,” come from?
Answer: The phrase comes from the Blarney Stone legend, which is supposed to bring luck to you if you kiss it.
38. What St. Patrick’s Day symbol is considered sacred?
Answer: The shamrock; it is a sacred plant of the Irish Druids. It was a popular and significant symbol long before Saint Patrick came to Ireland.
39. What do you call female leprechauns?
Answer: Nothing, because there are only male leprechauns, per Mental Floss.
40. Leprechauns are part of what magical, mystical being’s family tree?
Answer: Fairies. Leprechauns are considered part of the fairy family. They’re descended from Tuatha Dé Danann (magical creatures that served under the Gaelic goddess Danu).
41. Where is the smallest park in the world, said to house a leprechaun colony?
Answer: Portland, Oregon. The park is called Mill Ends Park. Journalist Dick Fagan noticed a small hole in concrete in 1946 and created a story about how it belonged to leprechauns. Since then, the smallest park in the world was created. Over the years, they’ve added a small swimming pool with a diving board, mini statues and a mini Ferris wheel.
42. What color did leprechauns reportedly wear before green?
Answer: Red.
43. What is the “night-form” of leprechauns called, otherwise known as leprechauns’s rowdier cousins?
Answer: Clurichauns. They’re drunk and surly and have been known to clean out whole wine cellars. Again, they’re said to either be the night form of leprechauns or an entirely different species that are cousins to the leprechaun.
44. How many leprechauns are reportedly still residing in the caverns of the mountain Slieve Foye in Ireland?
Answer: 236 leprechauns. And they’re protected by European law (along with the animals and plants in the area), per the Irish Independent.
45. Where did the tradition of pinching people for not wearing green on St. Patrick’s Day come from?
Answer: This American tradition came from the belief that wearing green makes you invisible to leprechauns. And if leprechauns see you, they pinch you. So pinching someone on St. Patrick’s Day who isn’t wearing green is believed to be a reminder of what a leprechaun could do to you if he can see you.
46. Because corned beef and cabbage is an Irish American creation and tradition, what do people in Ireland typically eat on St. Patrick’s Day?
Answer: The Irish Fry, scones, Irish soda bread, beef pot roast and more are traditional Irish meals on St. Patrick’s Day per AllRecipes.
47. What is the name of the only female patron saint of Ireland?
Answer: Saint Brigid, the patron saint of Irish nuns, newborns, midwives, dairy maids and cattle.
48. What caused nearly 2 million Irish people to leave Ireland, including a quarter of the Irish nation at the time coming to America?
Answer: The potato blight or potato famine, which began in 1845, per History.com.
49. Why are rainbows associated with St. Patrick's Day?
Answer: A rainbow is a symbol of the covenant between God and the people on Earth that God would never flood or destroy the Earth again in the Noah and the Arc story. With Saint Patrick being a Catholic saint, he taught this story about the rainbow. So this Christian story merged with Irish myths that also included rainbows to associate them with St. Patrick's Day.
50. Who is the third patron saint of Ireland?
Answer: St. Columcille.
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