DigiNepal · festivals
Saint Patrick's Day (Lá Fhéile Pádraig (Irish)). Region: Ireland, Irish diaspora worldwide. Tradition: Christian and Irish cultural. Calendar: Gregorian (17 March). Dates: Ireland 2026: Tuesday 17 March 2026 [official, source IE]; Ireland 2027: Wednesday 17 March 2027 [official, source IE]; Ireland 2028: Friday 17 March 2028 [official, source IE]. History and significance: Saint Patrick's Day honours the patron saint of Ireland, a fifth century missionary, on the traditional date of his death. It became a celebration of Irish culture with parades in Dublin, New York and cities worldwide. Green clothing and the shamrock are its symbols. Key rituals and foods: Parades, wearing green, Irish music and dance; foods include soda bread and Irish stew. Date basis: official = matches a government gazetted holiday list; computed = calculated from the calendar system (tithi astronomy with skyfield and JPL DE421, Hijri Umm al-Qura, Chinese, Korean and Hebrew calendar libraries, or the fixed rule); expected = Umm al-Qura projection pending moon sighting. Sources: Wikipedia and Wikidata (CC BY-SA, CC0) and government holiday lists, summarised in our own words.