1. St. Patrick's Day is observed on March 17 because that is the feast day of St. Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland. It is believed that he died on March 17 in the year 461 AD.
2. The actual color of St. Patrick is blue. Green became associated with St. Patrick's Day during the 19th century. Green, in Irish legends, was worn by fairies and immortals, and also by people to encourage their crops to grow.
3. The very first St. Patrick's Day parade was not in Ireland. It was in Boston in 1737.
4. 34 million Americans have Irish ancestry, according to the 2003 US Census. That's almost nine times the population of Ireland, which has 4.1 million people.
5. Nine of the people who signed our Declaration Of Independence were of Irish origin, and nineteen Presidents of the United States proudly claim Irish heritage -- including our first President, George Washington.
6. One estimate suggests that there are about 10,000 regular three-leaf clovers for every lucky four-leaf clover.
7. Legend says that each leaf of the clover means something: the first is for hope, the second for faith, the third for love and the fourth for luck.
