Northern Ireland / Ireland
The patron saint of Ireland is St. Patrick.
The National Day of Ireland is called St. Patrick’s Day. It is celebrated on the 17th of March and it is a public holiday in Northern Ireland and Ireland.
Many people in Northern Ireland celebrate St. Patrick’s Day with people from Ireland, however many people don’t.
The people who celebrate St. Patrick’s Day probably want Northern Ireland to separate from the UK and join with Ireland. The people who don’t celebrate probably want Northern Ireland to remain part of the UK.
Many parades and special events take place all around the world to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day. Surprisingly, the biggest parade takes place in New York, where more than 2 million people celebrate on the streets. Tokyo also holds a parade as well as a special Irish sports day.
The national color of Ireland is green (Ireland’s nickname is ‘The Emerald Isle‘). Many people wear green clothes on St Patrick’s Day to join in the celebrations.
The national flower of Ireland is the shamrock – a 3-leaf clover.
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- A shamrock (a 3-leaf clover)
Northern Ireland (part of the UK)
The official flag of Northern Ireland is ‘The Union Flag’, however ‘The St. Patrick’s Saltire’ is also sometimes used.
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- St. Patrick Saltire
Ireland (Not part of the UK)
The national flag of Ireland is the ‘Irish tricolour’.
The Irish Tricolour
Each color has a special meaning – The green represents the Gaelic tradition of Ireland; The orange represents the followers of William of Orange in Ireland; The white represents the hope for peace between the two groups.
