The Irish potato famine is often credited for the wave of Irish immigrants to the U.S. in the 1840s, but the Irish had been coming to the Americas as early as colonial times. From the 1840s to the 1860s, the Irish constituted one third of all immigrants. According to the Census Bureau, today over 34 million Americans claim Irish heritage. That is more than seven times the population of Ireland and makes Irish heritage the second most frequently claimed ancestry in the United States.
St. Patrick’s Day in Ireland was traditionally a minor religious holiday to celebrate the patron saint of Ireland, but when the holiday was exported to the U.S., with its substantial Irish population, it became a show of Irish identity and solidarity.
And the traditions created in America – parades, packed pubs and green as far as the eye can see – have been adopted back in Ireland. The festivities translate into big bucks with spring tourism and Guinness sales. On average, Guinness sells 5.5 million pints worldwide per day and on St. Patrick’s it more than doubles to 13 million. Just another example of the luck of the Irish.
Sources – news.nationalgeographic. com and loc.gov
Compiled by Christina Lieffring, staff reporter, clieffri@jccc.edu.