Well, St Andrews Day has been and gone and not a peep from anyone!
It's being recognised as a holiday - sort of ... (see here) ... but there has been no celebration at all. Why do you think our patron saint is generally ignored yet come St Patricks Day the whole world seems to turn green? I think St Paddys Day is a success because of the marketing team at Guinness!
Have there been any St Andy's Day celebrations in any country?
Last edited by Mac on Sat Dec 02, 2006 7:13 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Hi Mac,
St Andrews day is the most important day in my life as i turned a big -- yesterday ha ha not telling how old i was but it should be a speical day for all scots.
Hi Catherine,
Had a fantastic time my mum was going to call me Andrew but called me after my papa instead and i cant wait till next year so i can get a day of for my birthday. And thanks for the best wishes on my Brithday Cheers Jimmy.
Last edited by Jimmym on Sun Dec 03, 2006 12:08 am, edited 1 time in total.
I am on placement at a primary school in Cumnock and I expected at least St Andrew to be mentioned somewhere along the day, but no - not a peep. I will have my own class next year whilst on teaching probation and I am certain WE WILL be celebrating the life of St Andrew. Any ideas apart from painting saltires?
I stayed in Dumfries for 15 years and my children got St Andrews day off every year it was only when we moved to the Borders that I realised that Dumfries and Galloway is one of the minority in still celebrating our national day. They also used to have a big firework display on St Andrews night but I do think that has long gone ............the usual cuts in resources. Last year when My son was in primary 7 his class had celebrated St Andrews Day, they had everyone learning to do some country dancing and some of the bards poetry.They had a special lunch Scotch Broth , Haggis Tatties and Turnip with oatcakes and cheese to finish all washed down with some Irn Bru and they had one of the pupils play the bagpipes. My son wore his kilt to school. They had a great time. So although we didnt get the day off they had a fun day at school instead.
My daughter Bonnie has a double dose of St Andrew in her ancestry as my wife is from a Greek Cypriot family and of course St Andrew is the patron saint of Greece. Coincidentally the Greek flag is white and blue also. St Andrews day will never be celebrated worldwide like St Pat's because due to the opressive nature of Irelands history it was necessary for the Irish to assert their independence in any way possible and to cling to any celebration of Irishness. Like the citizens of the USA the Irish did not have homgeneous ancestries (in fact the Irish probably have less Celtic blood than most other European Celtic nations) so that any symbol of their nationality has been overemphasised in an effort to proclaim their existance. We Scots have always been the most pragmatic of people which is why we have probably had a more profound influence on the establishment of the old British Empire than anyone else but have not felt the need to assert our origins to anything like the degree of our smaller island relatives. Wee Ali
A belated "Happy Birthday" to you Jimmy
