Sheelah's Day, Ireland, dedicated to Sheelah-Na-Gig (Sheela na Gig), Goddess of Fertility

The day following St Patrick's Day is Sheelah's day. Some say she was Patrick's wife (but the Catholic Church would surely not allow this), some say his mother.

Traditionally, shamrocks are again displayed, although last night the shamrock was 'drowned' in the last drink. At the turn of the 20^th century, one sarcastic observer wrote that the holiday's adherents "are not so anxious to determine who 'Sheelah' was, as they are earnest in her celebration"<WBR>. He tells us that revellers would take the shamrock they had been wearing since St Patrick's day, the day before, plop it in the drink, and drown it in the last glass, at the end of the night's drinking.

Sheelah is an old Irish term for a slovenly or muddling woman, particularly an old one. In Australia, with its very Irish background, the term 'sheila' is still common (though culturally self-conscious, ie, rarely used these days except jocularly and somewhat mockingly of old Aussie manners) slang for 'woman'. Perhaps the day after St Patrick's obtained the name without any reference to the calendar of saints ...

Wilsonz Almanac~