St Patrick's Day Bank Holiday 2010

Ireland's patron saint
Saint Patrick was a fifth-century Romano-British missionary, taken to Ireland as a slave as a teenager and returning later as a bishop. 17 March is traditionally held to be the date of his death. He is buried, by tradition, at Downpatrick in County Down.

Where it is a bank holiday
In the UK, 17 March is a bank holiday in Northern Ireland only. It is not a holiday in England, Wales or Scotland, although it is widely marked. In the Republic of Ireland it is a public holiday and the national day.

The shamrock
The story that Patrick used the three-leaved shamrock to explain the Trinity dates from long after his lifetime, first appearing in writing in the eighteenth century. Wearing shamrock on the day is nonetheless the oldest surviving custom attached to it, recorded from the 1680s.

Parades and the greening
Parades in Belfast, Downpatrick and Armagh mark the day in Northern Ireland, and the Irish diaspora has made it one of the most widely celebrated national days in the world. Buildings from the Sydney Opera House to Niagara Falls are lit green for it.

Substitute days
Because it is fixed to 17 March, the holiday moves to the following Monday whenever the date falls on a Saturday or Sunday, so Northern Ireland does not lose the day off.

UK bank holidays 2010