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Quiz: Are these Paddy's Day celebrations and traditions real or made up?

It’s three days until the big day.
10.01pm, 14 Mar 2026
16.9k
16

WE’RE JUST THREE days away from St Patrick’s Day. 

As always, we will see people donning green, attending their local Paddy’s Day parade and maybe even indulging in a pint or two to celebrate all things Irish. 

But how much do you know about how we and other countries around the world celebrate Ireland’s primary patron saint?

Can you identify which of these traditions and celebrations are real, and which are made up? 

Let us begin with an easy one - it is traditional to wear a sprig of shamrock on St Patrick's Day.
Alamy
True
False
Drowning the shamrock is an old tradition that involves dropping a shamrock into the last glass of whiskey and drinking it after toasting St Patrick.
Alamy
True
False
Boston's annual St Patrick's Day parade is the biggest one held in the United States.
Alamy
True
False
A tradition in the US, wearing green on St Patrick's Day makes you invisible to leprechauns and prevent them from pinching you.
Alamy
True
False
We all know Chicago does it, but which of these other US cities also dyes a body of water green for St Patrick's Day?
Alamy
San Antonio, Texas
Tampa, Florida

Indianapolis, Indiana
All of them
The Wisconsin town of New London changes its name to ‘New Dublin’ for the week leading up to Paddy's Day to celebrate the festivities.
Alamy
True
False
To kick off Tokyo Paddy's Day parade, every year a person dressed as the man himself 'banishes' some Aodaisho snakes from a local park.
Alamy
True
False
In Buenos Aires, they have a 'Desfile de Patatas' (potato parade) on St Patrick's Day before cooking the vegetables and serving them at a street party.
Alamy
True
False
Montserrat is known as the “Emerald Isle of the Caribbean” and also counts Paddy's Day as a national holiday.
Alamy
True
False
In the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador, pubs and bars serve nothing but Guinness on St Patrick's Day.
Alamy
True
False
Answer all the questions to see your result!
Alamy
You scored out of !
You're St Patrick!
Well done on knowing so much about how we celebrate your day!
Share your result:
Alamy
You scored out of !
You're St Brigid!
You're our other important saint, but unfortunately it's yer man's big day today.
Share your result:
Alamy
You scored out of !
You're a leprechaun
The fact that you don't exist might explain how badly you've done in this quiz.
Share your result:
Alamy
You scored out of !
You're a snake
Begone.
Share your result:

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