Lá an Phádraig sona, or for those of us who aren’t blessed with the Irish tongue, happy St Patrick’s Day! This day celebrates Irishness in all its many wondrous forms – and many of us associate this holiday with the traditional symbol of Ireland, the shamrock. Fascinate your friends and bewitch your colleagues with these fascinating and fun shamrock facts!
Shamrocks Only Have Three Leaves
If you see anyone on St Patrick’s Day going about with a four-leaf clover, it’s your job to tell them to think again! Any true St Patricks Day gifts should only have a three-leaf shamrock. Shamrocks have three leaves, while lucky clovers have four.
Shamrocks Aren’t the Official Symbol of Ireland
While the shamrock is synonymous with Ireland, it’s only an unofficial symbol. It’s the symbol of St Patrick and definitely makes one think of the beautiful green fields of Ireland, but the official symbol of Ireland is actually the Irish harp.
Shamrock Is A Summer Plant
You’ll see clovers pop up in fields and verges all over Ireland in the summer months, beautiful in their whiteness, bobbing along with the wind. The name shamrock comes from Irish Gaelic ‘seamrog’, which can mean ‘summer plant’, although it doesn’t specifically refer to a single one of the hundreds of clover species. Clover is a super-powered pollinator, loved by bees and butterflies, and it’s a great addition for any garden.
The Shamrock was St Patrick’s Teaching Tool
St Patrick is famous for spreading Christianity throughout Ireland in the fifth century. How did he do it? He simply looked to his feet, plucked a shamrock stem, and used the three leaves to teach the Irish Celts about the Holy Trinity – the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Not only is the shamrock a stylish and thoughtful gift on St Patrick’s Day like the items you can find at https://www.shamrockgift.com/st-patricks-day, but it is educational as well!
The Shamrock was Special to Druids
St Patrick was onto a winning idea using the shamrock to spread Christianity. Druids thought that the three-leafed clover was a lucky charm that could ward off evil spirits, while the Celts thought that three was a special, magical number with a lot of power and represented the different stages of life.