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Today is the day to celebrate all things Irish, St. Patrick's Day! Shamrocks, green beer, corned beef & cabbage all come to mind when I think about this day. Though I've never had corned beef and I don't actively seek out green beer, I am fascinated by how this day is celebrated in the United States.
Here's a look at St. Patrick's Day by the numbers:
- 174% more beer and 153% more spirits are sold on March 17th than on an average day in America.
- Overall, Americans spend $5.87 billion celebrating St. Patrick's Day.
- It takes 60 pounds of dye to turn the Chicago River green, and it lasts just five hours.
- 32% of men admit to binge drinking on St. Patrick's Day.
- Cabbage shipments increase 25% the week of St. Patrick's Day.
- 31.5 million Americans claim at least some Irish heritage. That's number-two, behind German.
- There are nine cities in America named Dublin. (Shout out to Dublin, OH.)
These facts and figures are provided by WalletHub.
My name is Matt Appleby and I do take pride in my Irish heritage. I'm (approximately) half Irish on my Mother's side, The Boylans. Boylan - Anglicized form of Gaelic Ó Baoighealláin. It was the name of a sept of Dartry, County Monaghan. That sounds fancy, right? Well wait just a minute. The name Boylan means (according to one internet source) the approved original Irish spelling of Boylan is Ua (grandson of) Baoigheal (a hostage). Isn't that special! Still I'm proud of my family and intend on diving deep into my ancestry soon.
For the record the surname Appleby was first used in the Scottish/English Borderlands by an ancient Scottish people called the Strathclyde- Britons. It was a name for someone who lived in various places so named in England and Scotland. Appleby is derived from the old Norse apall, or "apple" combined with byr, meaning "farm."