PH Festivals Shine in Ireland’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade

A member of the Limerick Filipino Community beams at the crowd during the Saint Patrick’s Day parade in Limerick. (Sean Curtin / True Media photo)

LONDON 27 March 2019 — Filipinos in Ireland joined thousands in celebrating this year’s Saint Patrick’s Day celebration by showcasing different Philippine festivals in various parades that took place in several Irish cities such as Dublin, Cork, Kilkenny, Limerick, and Galway. 

The Saint Patrick’s Day parades simultaneously took place on 17 March 2019.

“Our participation in this treasured Irish tradition means so much more than simply sharing our culture with the Irish people,” said Ambassador to the United Kingdom Antonio M. Lagdameo. “Our Filipino community’s participation in the St. Patrick’s Day festivities shows how well Filipinos have integrated in Irish society and how deeply we have enriched each other’s cultures.”

To date, there are around 15,000 Filipinos who live and work in Ireland, most of whom are healthcare professionals. 

Saint Patrick’s Day is the largest cultural and religious celebration in Ireland, which commemorates the death of Ireland’s foremost patron saint.  In recent years, the celebration has become a festival of culture with the participation of several diaspora communities that continue to thrive and flourish in Ireland. END

Street dancers from the Galway Filipino Irish Community are decked in green, white, and orange as they wave the Philippine flag high during the Saint Patrick’s Day parade in Galway. (Joe O’Shaughnessy photo)

The Filipino Cork Community performs the Masskara Festival during the Saint Patrick’s Day parade in Cork. (Clare Keogh photo)

For more information, visit www.londonpe.dfa.gov.ph or https://www.facebook.com/pg/PHLinUK

and @philippinesinuk on Twitter.