Celebrating St. Patrick's Day
HOST: Welcome to AMERICAN MOSAIC, in VOA Special English. (MUSIC) I'm Doug Johnson. On our show this week: We report about Saint Patrick's Day. Saturday, March seventeenth is Saint Patricks Day. In Ireland, it is a religious holiday that honors the man who brought Christianity to that country in the fifth century. In the United States, people celebrate with parades and parties. Faith Lapidus tells us more.
FAITH LAPIDUS: Saint Patrick's Day has changed over the years. It is no longer a day to celebrate only Saint Patrick, but a day to celebrate all things Irish.
In nineteen ninety-five, the United States Congress declared the month of March as Irish-American Heritage Month. The American president releases a statement about it every year. The statement praises Americans whose families came to the United States from Ireland. And it calls on all Americans to celebrate the month by learning about the influence of Irish-Americans.
The Census Bureau reports that more than thirty-four million Americans say their ancestors came from Ireland. That is twelve percent of the countrys population. It is the nation's second most frequently reported ancestry. German ancestry is the highest. The state with the highest percentage of Irish-Americans is Massachusetts. Twenty-four percent of the people living there say their ancestors came from Ireland.
History experts say people from Ireland first celebrated Saint Patricks Day in the city of Boston about two hundred fifty years ago. But the first Saint Patricks Day parade was held in New York City on March seventeenth, seventeen sixty-two. It included Irish soldiers who were serving in the British army.
Parades spread across the country as more and more Irish people came to America. But New York Citys parade is still the biggest one. The city of Chicago, Illinois also holds a large Saint Patricks Day parade. And it celebrates Saint Patricks Day by coloring its river green.
Green is the traditional Irish color. You see lots of it on Saint Patricks Day. People wear green clothes. Some even color their hair or faces green. And some drinking places serve green beer. Many people eat the traditional Irish meal of corned beef and cabbage. And many attend Saint Patricks Day parties.
A majority of Americans have no real connection to Ireland. But they like to say that everyone is a little bit Irish on Saint Patricks Day.
HOST: I'm Doug Johnson. I hope you enjoyed our program today.
It was written by Brianna Blake, Dana Demange and Nancy Steinbach. Caty Weaver was our producer.
Join us again next week for AMERICAN MOSAIC, VOAs radio magazine in Special English
