5 Surprising Facts About St. Patrick’s Day

The first St. Patrick's Day parade wasn't celebrated in Ireland, but in Boston, Massachusetts in 1737. New York's first parade, which remains the biggest in the US, began in 1762.

Hold on to your shillelaghs: shamrocks don't really exist. What we consider shamrocks are members of a number of 3 - leaf plants like wood sorrel or white and yellow clover.

Blue was the original color associated with St. Patrick, not green. Green became associated with Ireland because of the greenness of the 'Emerald Isle' and the shamrock itself.

While New York has the biggest St. Patty's Day parade in the country, Chicago wins the prize for 'Most Irish Spirit.' The city of Chicago uses a mixture of vegetable dye and other compounds to dye the waters of the Chicago River green each year.

It probably wasn't a secret, but not many people know that the one - day St. Patrick's original name was Maewyn Succat. Maewyn chose the name 'Patricius,' meaning 'nobleman' in Latin, when he became a bishop.