Wake Up Crew Highlights: March 27, 2023
House of the Week – 3/24/23
Jazzie the Jay Day and The Day Home Team Pet of the Week
MUNDANE MYSTERIES: Why Do We Wear Green On St. Patrick’s Day?
Whether you’re Irish or not, Happy St. Patrick’s Day! Today’s the day when people around the world get decked out in green to flaunt their Irish pride & celebrate the legacy of St. Patrick. But take a look at the earliest depictions of the famous Christian missionary and you’ll notice something strange: He’s typically shown wearing blue, not green. So, why do we wear green on St. Patrick’s Day?
As difficult as it might be to imagine, Ireland wasn’t always associated with green. In 1541, King Henry VIII, wanting to cement England’s centuries-old reign over the island nation, declared himself king of Ireland & even gave it a new coat of arms: a gold harp against a blue background. More than 200 years later, when King George III established an order of knights called the Order of St. Patrick, blue’s connection to Ireland became even more pronounced: the order’s official color was a shade of sky blue that came to be known as “St. Patrick’s blue.”
Meanwhile, Irish nationalists were looking for ways to separate themselves, politically & chromatically, from the English. The color green first appeared during the Great Irish Rebellion of 1641, when military commander Owen Roe O’Neill brandished a green flag with a harp to represent the Confederation of Kilkenny, which was trying to put an end to Protestant control of the region. Then, in the 1790s, the Society of United Irishmen—a revolutionary group advocating for republicanism—donned uniforms of green shirts, green & white striped pants, and felt hats with green cockades (or rosettes). The era also gave rise to patriotic poems and ballads, many of which used the color green, along with Ireland’s rich natural landscapes, as an emblem of Irish pride & resilience.
Over time, green became strongly symbolic of Ireland in general, and St. Patrick’s use of the (green) shamrock to explain the holy trinity in his teachings had a more lasting influence than his association with the color blue from the Order of St. Patrick. Green became a part of Ireland’s national flag in 1848 and, as droves of Irish immigrants arrived in America throughout the 19th century, they brought with them the tradition of wearing green to celebrate his feast day.
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Wake Up Crew Highlights: March 17, 2023
House of the Week – 3/17/23
MUNDANE MYSTERIES: Why Are There No Snakes In Ireland?
With the arrival of another St. Patrick’s Day, let’s investigate one of the all-time biggest bits of lore surrounding the Emerald Isle: why are there no snakes in Ireland?
Legend says St. Patrick used the power of his faith to drive all of Ireland’s snakes into the sea…which would’ve been impressive image, if it had happened. But sadly, there’s no way that it could have. Because there never were any snakes in Ireland, partly for the same reason that there are no native snakes in Hawaii, Iceland, New Zealand, Greenland, or Antarctica. Because Ireland is, well, an island.
Once upon a time, Ireland was connected to a larger landmass. But that was during an ice age that kept the land far too chilly for cold-blooded reptiles. As the last ice age ended around 10,000 years ago, glaciers melted, which poured even more cold water into the impassable expanse between Ireland & its neighbors. Other animals, like wild boars, lynx, and brown bears, all managed to make it across, as did one lone reptile: the common lizard. Snakes, however, missed their chance.
Ireland’s reputation as a serpent-free haven has, strangely enough, turned snake ownership there into a status symbol. There have been numerous reports of large pet snakes escaping or being released. But as of yet, no species has managed to take hold in the wild. And that, in & of itself, is actually a small miracle.
Got a Mundane Mystery you’d like solved? Send me an email: [email protected].
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