Saint Patrick's Day : some small details you may not know !

Howdy ! 

I haven't written a post for a while and to resume my writing there is no better date than the prelude to Saint Patrick's Day. This time I will show you some statements about St. Patrick's Day (or Ireland) and you will have to decide if they are true or false. As usual, the answers are at the bottom of this entry. Let's get this started : My always wonderful girlfriend has helped a great deal with this information.  

1. Saint Patrick was an Ireland-born shepherd.

2. The Irish national symbol is the shamrock.

3. Irish Gaelic is the national official language in Ireland.

4. Saint Patrick's shamrock has four leaves because it brings luck to its owner.

5. The Irish flag is green because of the shamrock, white because of its purity and orange because of the blood spilt between Protestants and Catholics.

6. In Chicago, it is a tradition to dye the river green every year.

7. Each year, more than the double of Ireland's population visit the island.

8. Just forty-pounds a year are paid as the yearly rent of the Guinness Warehouse in Dublin.

9. Leprechauns are 'goblins' that hide their gold at the end of a rainbow and can grant three wishes. 

10. Officially, on Saint Patrick's Day Christians shouldn't drink alcohol because Easter is very close. 

Did you guess all of them ? Let's see the answers :

1. FALSE. Saint Patrick was born in England and was later kidnapped and shipped to Ireland as a slave. There he had to work as a shepherd. 

From : https://www.awesomestories.com/asset/view/MAEWYN-SUCCAT-KIDNAPPING-VICTIM-St.-Patrick-of-St.-Patrick-s-Day

2. FALSE. The Irish national symbol is the harp. What else can you see in Ireland's Euros ?

From : http://thomas-douix.eklablog.com/the-symbols-of-ireland-a117744816

3. TRUE. Irish Gaelic and English are the official languages in Ireland. 

From : http://www.nancyjester.com/pressreleases/stpatty/

4. FALSE. His shamrock has three leaves. Why ? Because he used it to explain the Holy Trinity : Father, Son and the Holy Spirit. Four-leaf clovers are the ones that bring luck. 

From : https://www.pinterest.com/lasan0215/trinity/

5. FALSE.  The Irish flag represents the peace between north and south, between Catholics (green) and Protestants (orange), both linked with peace (white).

From : http://www.infoplease.com/spot/irishflag1.html

6. TRUE. Indeed ! 

7. TRUE. Ireland is quite a touristic destination, don't you think ?

8. TRUE. He signed a nine-thousand-year contract for that amount of money. Incredible ! Arthur Guinness was a real bargainer !

9. TRUE. They are also bearded and smoke from a pipe. I really love them !

From : http://www.123rf.com/photo_19156144_leprechaun-with-a-pipe-and-beer-against-a-rainbow-and-pot-of-gold.html

10. FALSE. All the Christians 'obligations' of Lent are forgotten just for that day. Maybe because of that you can see nothing but drunken people on the streets ! 

Well did you learn something about St. Patrick's Day ? I hope so. To finish this post, here you have a video that illustrates some of the most representative St. Patrick's and Ireland's traditions. Don't miss it : 

P.S. If you want to see an extract from a chapter of The Simpsons related to St. Patrick's Day, click on this link !