St Patrick's Day- blarney and all tablescape

I do so love St. Patrick's Day. 

I'm sure somewhere I have an Irish gene..

a wee bit unlikely, but even blarney is Irish! :-)

How much of what we know is myth? How much truth?

 I think I found some answers:

Shamrocks:

"St. Patrick used this simple green herb to explain the concept of The Holy Trinity – The Father, The Son and The Holy Spirit – and how they could all exist as separate elements of the same entity. His followers adopted the custom of wearing a shamrock on his feast day."

(Discover Ireland) 

The Wearing of the Green:

"With 10 times the population of Ireland in the US claiming Irish ancestry, one in four Britons doing the same, and countless more in other countries around the world, it seems that people wishing to become ‘Irish for the day’ have opted for the green of the Irish flag to express their Irishness. In fact, in the US, it’s not uncommon to spot folks sporting hand-drawn shamrocks on their cheeks with streaks of green running through their hair.

(Discover Ireland) 

"One of the reasons that one wears green on St. Patrick's Day is because the Catholic side of Ireland is identified with green, and St. Patrick is a Catholic Saint credited with converting the island to Christianity. Whereas the Protestants are identified with orange, and are often called "Orangemen," as in King William the Orange. The clashes in Ireland between the Catholics and Protestants are often clashes of the green and the orange. The irony is that the Irish flag, is supposed to represent the unity of the two with the white between the two colors representing unity. The traditional pinching of a person who wears orange on St. Patrick's Day is a mild form of the violence that has so often occurred in the past as both factions have had St. Patrick's Day marches/parades. In Ireland, you only wear green if you are Catholic. Protestants all wear orange. The US does not observe this tradition. The day is celebrated with parades, green beer and lots of shamrock decorations. On St. Paddy's day, everyone is Irish."

(Wiki answers)

"History: Just before the 1798 Rebellion in Ireland if you wore a shamrock in your hat, it signified your support for the Rebellion. Hence the saying "the wearing of the green." Green was also the colour of "Society of United Irishmen," a republican revoluntionary organisation. This organisation launched the 1798 Rebellion and may I add that the forefathers/founders of this Organisation, despite public misconception were a mixture of Presbyterians, Church of Ireland and Catholics."

 (Wiki answers) 

 "Another answer: The wearing of Green stems from the ancient Celtic practice of wearing green during the Vernal Equinox to celebrate the rebirth of the Earth. When Christianity invaded Ireland, many of the Irish traditions were adopted into practice, to make conversion easier. Saint Patrick included using bonfires and adopted the symbol of the sun onto the cross, creating what is now known as the Celtic Cross. Since the local Pagan population was hesitant to give up wearing green, that too was adopted. It should be noted that St. Patrick's original color was blue."

 (Wiki answers) 

Myth or Truth?

"The Irish didn’t always look so kindly on donning the color green. Irish folklore considered the color unlucky as it was the favorite shade of the Good People – leprechauns. Those who wore too much of the color – especially children – could be stolen away. Some cynics may tell you there are no such things as leprechauns, but there are those who beg to differ. True believers will swear that if you take a stroll along a quiet country lane in Ireland, you can actually hear the mischievous leprechauns giggling by the side of the road."

(Discover Ireland) 

Snakes in Ireland?

"First, let’s tackle the snakes. Apart from our modern-day zoos, it’s true that there are no snakes slithering around the green isle. But this has little to do with St. Patrick and probably more to do with the fact that there have never been any indigenous snakes in Ireland. Driving the snakes from Ireland was most likely symbolic of putting an end to pagan practices, which disappeared from Ireland in the centuries after St. Patrick introduced the seeds of Christianity."

(Discover Ireland)

Ireland or America?

"Until the 1970s, St. Patrick's Day in Ireland was a minor religious holiday. A priest would acknowledge the feast day, and families would celebrate with a big meal, but that was about it.

"St. Patrick's Day was basically invented in America by Irish-Americans," Freeman said.

Irish-American history expert Timothy Meagher said Irish charitable organizations originally celebrated St. Patrick's Day with banquets in places such as Boston, Massachusetts; Savannah, Georgia; and Charleston, South Carolina.

Eighteenth-century Irish soldiers fighting with the British in the U.S. Revolutionary War held the first St. Patrick's Day parades. Some soldiers, for example, marched through New York City in 1762 to reconnect with their Irish roots.

Other parades followed in the years and decades after, including well-known celebrations in Boston, Philadelphia, and Chicago, primarily in flourishing Irish immigrant communities.

"It becomes a way to honor the saint but also to confirm ethnic identity and to create bonds of solidarity," said Meagher, of Catholic University in Washington, D.C.."

 (National Geographic)

 The River Green

"Sometime in the 19th century, as St. Patrick's Day parades were flourishing, wearing the color green became a show of commitment to Ireland, Meagher said.

In 1962 the show of solidarity took a spectacular turn in Chicago when the city decided to dye a portion of the Chicago River green.

The tradition started when parade organizer Steve Bailey, head of a plumbers' union, noticed how a dye used to trace possible sources of river pollution had stained a colleague's overalls a brilliant green, according to greenchicagoriver.com.

Why not use the dye to turn the whole river green on St. Patrick's Day, Bailey thought. So began the tradition.

The environmental impact of the dye is minimal compared with pollution such as bacteria from sewage-treatment plants, said Margaret Frisbie, the executive director of the advocacy group Friends of the Chicago River."

 (National Geographic)

Shamrock or Clover
"..... the custom of wearing a shamrock dates back to the 17th and 18th centuries, and "I know of no evidence to say what people then used. I think the argument on authenticity is purely academic—basically I'd guess they used anything cloverlike then."

 (National Geographic)

St. Patrick

S ent to Ireland by God,
T aken there by force.

P atrick tended his flock
A nd listened to the Lord.
T ime ended his bondage
R eturning as a free man.
I nspiring with stories and service,
C eltic Christians honored him,
K eeping his memory forever green.

(Voices.yahoo)

 Thank you for playing along.. It's time for a Guinness...

"On any given day 5.5 million pints of Guinness, the famous Irish stout brand, are consumed around the world.

But on St. Patrick's Day, that number more than doubles to 13 million pints, said Beth Davies Ryan, global corporate-relations director of Guinness.

"Historically speaking, a lot of Irish immigrants came to the United States and brought with them lots of customs and traditions, one of them being Guinness," she said.

Today, the U.S. tradition of St. Patrick's Day parades, packed pubs, and green silliness has invaded Ireland with full force, said Freeman, the classics professor.

The country, he noted, figured out that the popularity of St. Patrick's Day was a good way to boost spring tourism."

(National Geographic)

Cast:

Irish Linen Placemats

Bordallo Pinheiro Cabbage Charger Plates

Wedgwood Windsor Dinner Plates

French Arcorac? Maybe Salad Plates

Estate Sale Mixed Silver Flatware

Ralph Lauren Napkins

Stein Mart Napkin rings

Handblown in France Purchased in Santa Fe, NM Water Goblets

Dollar Tree Wine Glasses

Candle holders and Plant are both Unknowns

Thank so much for sticking this one out! Wishing each of you a safe and happy St. Patrick's Day. I'll be partying over at Cuisine Kathleen's Let's Dish and then on to Susan's Tablescape Thursday at Between Naps on the Porch. See ya there!