On March 17th, the world will turn green as over 70 million people around the world celebrate St Patrick’s Day, the celebration of one of the patron saints of Ireland from Dublin to Dubai, London to Lima, Peru to Paris, Sydney to Stockholm, Moscow to Montserrat, and, of course, Malta.

Celebrations of St Patrick’s Day range from parades (with two such parades planned for the 15th March in Valletta and Floriana), to the ‘greening’ of iconic landmarks and sights. As the world prepares to mark St Patrick’s 2015 with GUINNESS at the heart of the celebrations, here are some interesting facts:

Did you know?

• St Patrick’s name wasn’t Patrick. His real name was actually Maewyn Succat.
• For many years, blue was the colour most often associated with St Patrick. Green was considered unlucky. St Patrick’s blue was considered symbolic of Ireland for many centuries and the Irish Presidential Standard is still blue.
• St Patrick’s Day isn’t just a national holiday in Ireland. It’s also a national holiday on the island of Montserrat in the Caribbean, a tiny island with around 4,000 inhabitants which became home to a large number of Irish emigrants in the 17th century.
• St Patrick’s Day has been celebrated in space – twice. In 2011, the International Space Station hosted a St Paddy’s Day celebration with Irish-American astronaut Catherine Coleman playing a hundred-year-old flute and a tin whistle while floating weightlessly in space. In 2013, astronaut Chris Hadfield celebrated St Patrick’s Day by photographing Ireland from space while singing Danny Boy.
• The first parade held to honour St. Patrick's Day took place not in Ireland but in the United States. Today, parades take place throughout the world in celebration of the patron saint of Ireland from Munich in Germany, London, Manchester, Birmingham and Belfast in the UK to Buenos Aires in Argentina, Tokyo in Japan, Sydney in Australia, as well as our very own Valletta in Malta.

Top GUINNESS Facts

• Over 13 million pints of GUINNESS are enjoyed around the world on St Patrick’s Day. 
• GUINNESS has 8,744 years left on the lease of St James Gate Brewery in Ireland, at the current production rate, that is enough to brew over 9 trillion pints
• On average, one Irish pub a day opens around the world
• GUINNESS is brewed in 50 countries, including at St. James's Gate, Dublin.
• St James's Gate Brewery brews 4.5 million hectolitres of GUINNESS every year.

Make sure you enjoy an authentically Irish celebration this year with GUINNESS and this helpful guide to Irish phrases that will get you through the celebrations this St. Patrick’s Day.

• Pionta GUINNESS, le do thoil. (Pyun-tah GUINNESS, leh duh huh-il): A pint of GUINNESS, please.
• Lá Fhéile Pádraig Sona Duit!  (Law Ale-yeh Pawd-rig Sunna Ditch): Happy St. Patrick's Day! (singular)
• Ádh na nÉireannach  (Awe nah Nay-ron-okh): Luck of the Irish
• Sláinte!  (Sloyn-cheh): Cheers!
• Go raibh maith agat.  (Guh rev mah a-gut): Thank you.
• Tá fáilte romhat.  (Taw foyle-cheh roh-ot): You're welcome.

Guinness is imported, marketed and distributed in Malta by Farsons Beverage Imports Company Limited, a member of the Farsons Group.