Saint Patrick, the patron saint of Ireland, is celebrated on March 17th every year. It is a great day of parades and general shenanigans. Irish people are very proud of St. Patrick and the traditions that go hand in hand with his celebratory day. Sprigs of shamrock are often pinned to lapels, and leprechauns can be spotted weaving in and out of the crowds. However, there are a few facts not everyone knows about St. Patrick. Here are 5 things you probably never knew about Ireland’s patron saint!

1. He wasn’t Irish.

St. Patrick is the patron saint of Ireland. He is most popular for converting the pagan Irish people of the fifth century A.D. to Christianity. But although a clear apostle of Ireland, Patrick was actually British. Born and raised in the village of Banna Vemta Burniae Patrick acknowledges Britannia as his country in his writings. But where his birthplace was actually situated is still unsure. Some say it was lowland Scotland while others suggest it sat in Wales. But one thing we can be sure of, it was across the Irish Sea where our patron saint originated.

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2. He never wore a shamrock.

Children up and down the country of Ireland are taught that St. Patrick used the Shamrock to explain the holy trinity to the heathen Irish. The small green clover has three leaves, representing The Father, The Son and The Holy Spirit, so it is very common to pin some pretty seamróg (young clover) to your coat on St. Patrick’s Day before you head off to the parade. But history suggests St. Patrick did not use the shamrock to explain his Christian beliefs. There is no mention of the plant in any of the stories from that time, and it was only referred to later on by English writings about the common myth.

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3. He didn’t wear green.

Every year people dig out anything green to wear on St. Patrick’s Day. The country is awash with green hats and scarves, green outfits, even green water in the rivers that run through Irish cities. But early evidence of St. Patrick suggests the man himself actually wore blue.

Since then, however “St. Patrick’s Blue” has been replaced with green and it looks very unlikely to change. The green stripe in the Irish flag, the emerald fields that smother the landscape and the lucky shamrocks worn on the day all play a part in the popular color choice. Not to mention the fear of being pinched by a cheeky leprechaun if you don’t wear their favorite emerald shade.

4. Patrick means ‘nobleman’

The name Patrick is very popular in Ireland. It comes from the Latin name Patricius meaning ‘nobleman,’ but the popular saint was actually given the name Sucat at birth and only later given the name Patrick.

Ireland is now full of Patrick’s, Padraig’s and Paddy’s, among other derivatives of the name, but it was only after the 17th-century that people began calling their children after Ireland’s famous patron. Before that, it was believed to be too sacred a name to be used for the common Irishman.