St. Patrick’s Day

©

Macmillan Polska 2008 PHOTOCOPIABLE

Student’s Worksheet

First published online 22.02.08

1 Check that you understand the words from the box. Use some of them to complete
the sentences below.

community

patron saint

shamrock

celebrated

feast

Lent

public

commemorates

dye

parades

1.

Saint Patrick's Day ______________________ the day of Saint Patrick's arrival in Ireland.

2.

When Saint Patrick died, he soon became the _____________________ of Ireland.

3.

___________________ is the national emblem of Ireland.

4.

Saint Patrick's Day has been ____________________ since the 17th century.

5.

St. Patrick's Day always falls in the period of _________________.

6.

Nowadays St. Patrick's Day is a ____________________ holiday in some countries.

7.

The _________________ of Saint Patrick involves traditional Irish food and drink.

8.

In Ireland the ___________________ on St. Patrick's Day are only held in some larger cities.

9.

The largest St. Patrick's Day parade in the world is organised by the New York Irish________________________.

10.

Many people who take part in the celebrations __________________ their hair green.

2 Read the passage below. Decide whether the sentences from 1 are true or false according to
the text or if there is no information. Correct the false statements.

Saint Patrick's Day

Saint Patrick was born in Roman Britain and although little is known about the dates of his life, it is believed that he was an active
missionary in the second half of the 5th century. When Saint Patrick was 16 years old, he was captured by Irish raiders and taken to
Ireland as a slave. After his escape six years later he became a priest and a bishop and returned to Ireland as a missionary. One of the
several legends surrounding his life says that he drove away all snakes from Ireland (even though there were not any at the time) and
according to another he managed to explain the idea of the Holy Trinity to the people of Ireland by showing them the shamrock (a
three-leaved clover). It is believed that he died on March 17 which date became known and celebrated as Saint Patrick's Day. By the
end of the 8th century he became the patron saint of Ireland.

The modern history of Saint Patrick's Day celebrations began in the early 17th century when March 17 became a feast day for Roman
Catholics in Ireland. At first the day was only a religious holiday until 1903 when it was introduced as a public holiday but it wasn't
until the early 1990s that the Irish authorities started using the festival to promote Irish culture and customs around the world.

Nowadays St. Patrick's Day is celebrated all over the world by the Irish communities and lots of non-Irish people, following the phrase
Everyone wants to be Irish on St. Patrick's Day. Traditional festivities include wearing green or orange clothes, eating Irish food and
taking part in parades. Although all Irish town and cities organise their own festival on that day, it is interesting to note that the
largest St. Patrick's parade takes place in New York City, with over 2 mln people taking part or watching the event. The parade is
attended by bands, firefighters, military and police groups as well as lots of emigrant, social and culture associatoins. Green is the
colour theme of the day and many people wear green or orange clothing (the colours of the Irish flag) or shamrocks on their hats.
Streets are painted green for the parade as well as blocks of flats, fountains and other public places. Astonishingly, Chicago even dyes
its river green.

Saint Patrick's Day is an enjoyable festival that is becoming more and more popular worldwide, even in countries that do not have
large Irish communities such as Mexico or Russia.

3 Discuss the questions below.

1.

Have you ever taken part in the festival of Saint Patrick's Day? What did you think of it?

2.

If you haven't, would you like to take part in the festival? Why? Why not?

3.

Why do you think some customs or traditions such as St. Patrick's Day or Halloween become

popular worldwide?