Celebrating St. Patrick, the Patron Saint of Engineers

Here’s a little detail about this interesting man

March 17 is a popular holiday celebrated in many countries all over the world.  Most people celebrate the day by wearing a bit (or a lot) of green in their wardrobe.  If you’re caught without some green, you might get pinched.

Most people know all that.  What they don’t know is that the real Patrick, according to multiple sources, is the patron saint of engineers.

How Patrick became the patron saint of engineers

Patrick was a Romano-British Christian missionary and bishop of Ireland in the 5th century.  He’s the main patron saint, among several, of Ireland.

In addition to being the patron saint of engineers, Patrick is also the patron saint of Nigeria, of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, of the state of Missouri, of the city of Boston, and of paralegals.

Bye-bye snakes, and other legends

During his lifetime, Patrick accomplished many feats, including driving snakes out of Ireland.  Legend has it that Patrick was fasting on a mountain and was being bothered by snakes.  So he drove them into the sea, thus ridding the country of these slithery irritants.

A further legend has the saint-to-be teaching the Irish how to use lime mortar instead of dry masonry to build arches.  This and other engineering skills eventually got him named as the patron saint of engineers.

According to Engineers Ireland, students at the University of Missouri’s College of Engineering claimed in 1903 that they were the first to discover that Patrick was an engineer.  Since then, students there have celebrated him during their nine-day annual Engineering Week.

Further legend says that Patrick used a shamrock as a symbol to help him teach the Christian tradition of the holy trinity.  Presumably, that’s how the shamrock came to be associated with our popular holiday.

Everybody loves Saint Patrick’s Day

You don’t have to be an engineer – or live in Boston or go to school in Missouri or dislike snakes – to love celebrating Saint Patrick’s Day.  People all over the place love Saint Patrick’s Day and love showing their love every March 17.  If you do throw a big celebration, like we plan to, be safe and responsible.

Extra Bits

St. Patrick is credited with starting churches, monasteries, and other structures across Ireland, even though he isn’t officially recognized as the patron saint of engineers.

These constructions required engineering skills of the time, contributing to the improvement of architectural procedures in the area.

He is linked to engineering because of the stories about him building bridges and shaping landscapes.

The TGB Team