Friday, March 16, 2012

A Four-Leaf Clover is Not a Shamrock

In honor of St. Patrick's Day, your Indianapolis Observer wishes to point out that a four-leaf clover (while a symbol of good luck) is not an emblem of 17 March, or of Ireland.

According to Wikipedia, a shamrock is said to have been used by Saint Patrick in the 5th century to illustrate the Christian doctrine of the Trinity ("three in one").

Shamrocks, therefore, have three leaves, not four.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

You realize, of course, that you are citing Wikipedia? This is an open source site and most anyone can contribute to the information. While correct on the information on the shamrock, Wikipedia is hardly a credible source you can use in academic research or in official reporting.

Indianapolis Observer said...

Well, yes, since I credited Wikipedia for the info....

But it is congruent with many, many other sources.