St Patricks Day Clipart

St. Patrick’s Day began as a Catholic feast day to honor Ireland’s patron saint. Saint Patrick was a 5th century missionary and bishop who helped spread Christianity throughout Ireland. As legend goes, his use of the shamrock explained the Holy Trinity concept to Gaelic pagans. After his death on March 17th, 461 AD, Patrick was made a saint and the day carries his name. By the 9th century, March 17th was firmly established in Ireland as a day commemorating Saint Patrick’s works.

Over time, the religious day transformed into a broader cultural celebration of Irish heritage. When Irish immigrants came to America, they brought St. Patrick’s traditions with them. Boston held its first St. Patrick’s Day parade in 1737 and New York City eventually made its parade the largest in the world. As more people claimed Irish ancestry, March 17th morphed into a more secular holiday reveling in general Irish culture beyond just the Catholic saint. Now St. Patrick’s Day is celebrated internationally in the Americas, Japan, Australia and beyond showcasing Ireland’s widespread cultural impact.

Traditions and Customs

Many symbolic traditions have become attached to St. Patrick’s Day festivities over the years:

• Wearing green – Green attire pays tribute to the “Emerald Isle,” from green shirts and dresses to silly hats and beads.
• Eating Irish foods – Corned beef, cabbage, Irish soda bread, potatoes, and alcohol like Guinness beer.
• Shamrocks – The three-leaf clover St. Patrick allegedly used to explain Christianity’s Holy Trinity.
• Parades – Marching bands, dancers, floats and marching groups. Major parades occur in Dublin, NYC, Boston, New Orleans.
• Dancing – Performances and lessons for jigs, reels and step dancing traditional to Celtic music.

More recent traditions include drinking green beer, parties, wearing Leprechaun costumes or gear with “Kiss Me I’m Irish” expressions.

Religious Connections

While now more secularized, St. Patrick’s Day retains its religious and Catholic origins:

• It falls during Lent’s fasting exceptions and counts as a feast day honoring a saint.
• Many still attend special masses, prayer breakfasts or other Catholic ceremonies for the occasion.
• Certain churches such as St Patrick’s Cathedral in New York incorporate large celebrations.
• Examples of Saint Patrick’s prayers or blessings may be incorporated into religious services.
• Irish Catholics use the holiday to connect with homeland traditions and heritage.

So amidst the leprechaun hats and green beer floats a current of Catholic devotion towards Ireland’s patron saint.

Global Celebrations

Beyond Ireland which treats it as a national holiday, St. Patrick’s Day storms the world every March 17th:

• United States – Huge celebrations especially by Irish-Americans with major parades, parties and wearing green. Also used commercially to sell Irish-themed merchandise.
• Canada – Similar to US including Toronto’s large parade. Montreal dyes its river green.
• Britain – Manchester hosts one of Europe’s biggest St Patrick’s Day parades drawing Irish expats.
• Japan – Massive parties for students studying abroad and appreciation of Irish culture. Bars sponsor events.
• Australia – Festivals like Adelaide’s celebrating Irish immigrants’ contributions and historic bonds with Ireland.

Wherever Irish communities migrated, they brought robust St. Patrick’s Day activities with them. More places join in, appreciative towards Irish cultural history.

Cultural Significance

For Irish descendants across the globe, St Patrick’s Day provides community and ethnic identity:

• It strengthens their connection to Irish roots and ancestral homeland traditions despite distance or generations overseas.
• The use of national symbols instills cultural pride and solidarity.
• Shared celebrations reinforce kinship with other people of similar heritage.
• Passing such Irish cultural touchstones to their own children continues heritage preservation.

So wearing green, making soda bread, and marching in St Patrick’s Day events ties one back to Ireland no matter how far history’s storms have blown the diaspora. That families separated by oceans all celebrate simultaneously creates potent feelings of community belonging.

St. Patrick’s Day Symbols

Particular Irish symbols get prominent play on St Patrick’s celebrations for decorative purposes:

• Shamrocks – The three leaf clovers St. Patrick himself allegedly used to teach about Christianity’s Holy Trinity concept.
• Leprechauns – Cute fairy creatures from Celtic folklore pictured as小old men in green suits usually up to mischievous pranks. Their gold pots come from Irish myths.
• Pots of gold – Folktales of leprechauns hiding gold treasure captured imagination. Serves as loose symbol for Ireland’s natural beauty.
• Rainbows – Tie into the “luck of the Irish” concept along with the proverbial pot of gold at the end.
• Harp – The Irish harp symbol featured on Ireland’s Presidential flag represents Gaelic cultural heritage.

Decorative use gives these festive symbols seasonal flair.

St. Patrick’s Day Parades

Major parades have become iconic St Patrick’s Day mainstays:

The New York City Parade dates back over 250 years with 150,000 marchers. As the world’s largest, it often features Irish leaders and status displays.

Dublin’s Festival Parade runs for 5 days with music, street performances, dance and pageantry by Irish groups.

Boston’s Parade channels early American Irish settlement as the second oldest US parade. Politicians join veterans, police, bands and civic groups in marching.

New Orleans adds local flavor by including New Orleans high school bands, jazz musicians and parade floats in the festivities with huge crowds.

These major parades attract tourism with their elaborate celebratory atmospheres that rowdily embrace history.

St. Patrick’s Day Clipart Intro

Clipart refers to public domain or royalty-free illustrations used in graphic design, websites, desktop publishing and crafts. St. Patrick’s Day clipart provides decorative images around related themes like leprechauns, shamrocks, rainbows, pots of gold, Irish harps, etc. Vector-based clipart creates sharp clean graphics with solid blocks of color. Raster-based St. Patrick’s Day clipart replicates a painterly texture. With legal reuse, such festive artwork easily dresses up St. Patrick’s Day school projects, party flyers, websites, social media posts, crafts and videos with colorful Irish flair.

Types of St. Patrick’s Day Clipart

Specific St. Patrick’s Day clipart niches provide assorted graphics:

• Irish cultural symbols – shamrocks, rainbows, leprechauns, gold pots
• Decorative backgrounds – green hills, Celtic knots, flags, hats
• Signs/ Messages – Irish blessing texts, “Kiss me I’m Irish”
• Characters – leprechauns, St Patrick portrait, Irish dancers
• Assorted paraphernalia – beer mugs, pipes, bowler hat, four leaf clovers

Clipart also comes themed for St. Patrick’s Day in general, Irish pride, St. Patrick’s Day parties, parades, recipes, and related activities like Irish dance or dressing up leprechaun dolls. This diversity makes decorating for March 17th easy and fun!

Incorporating St. Patrick’s Day Clipart

St. Patrick’s Day clipart takes projects up an illustrative notch with Irish personality:

• Spruce up printed or digital parade flyers, event ads, party invitations
• Pepper school reports, crafts or projects with thematic flair
• Design e-cards for Facebook well wishes and virtual cheers
• Launch homepage hijinks with some clipart leprechaun mischief
• Toss symbolic accents onto websites, landing pages and blogs
• Fashion DIY paper goods like cups, signs, banners and shirts

Leprechauns add a dash of cheekiness while harps and shamrocks dial up cultural spirit. With the right clipart choices, suddenly everything looks ready for the wearing o’ the green!

As St. Patrick’s Day has evolved into a secular ethnic pride event, riotous celebrations now span the globe in grand parade style. Festive clipart helps decorate anything needing some Irish ornamentation or symbolic emerald magic. So grab some lucky charms, print or post that cheerful clipart, and get ready to dance an Irish jig under March rainbows!

In this page clipartix present 77 st patricks day clipart images free for designing activities. Lets download St Patricks Day Clipart that you want to use for works or personal uses.