Shamrock
Shamrock (Irish Seamrog, "little clover"), common name for any of several trifoliate clovers native to Ireland (see Clover). The shamrock was originally chosen as the national emblem of Ireland because of the legend that Saint Patrick used the plant to illustrate the doctrine of the Trinity. Most shamrocks, particularly the small-leaved white clover, have been considered by the Irish as good-luck symbols since earliest times, and this superstition has persisted in modern times among people of many nationalities. Shamrocks or various representations of the plant are worn by celebrants on Saint Patrick's Day, March 17 of each year. The hop clover is widely accepted as the original shamrock picked by Saint Patrick.
Scientific classification: Shamrocks belong to the subfamily Papilionoideae, family Fabaceae (formerly Leguminosae). The white clover is classified as Trifolium repens and the hop clover as Medicago lupulina.
What the Shamrock means
The Shamrock, at one time called the "Seamroy", symbolizes the cross and blessed trinity. Before the Christian era it was a sacred plant of the Druids of Ireland because its leaves formed a triad. The well known legend of the Shamrock connects it definitely to St. Patrick and his teaching. Preaching in the open air on the doctrine of the trinity, he is said to have illustrated the existence of the Three in One by plucking a shamrock from the grass growing at his feet and showing it to his congregation. The legend of the shamrock is also connected with that of the banishment of the serpent tribe from Ireland by a tradition that snakes are never seen on trefoil and that it is a remedy against the stings of snakes and scorpions. The trefoil in Arabia is called shamrakh and was sacred in Iran as an emblem of the Persian triads. The trefoil, as noted above, being a sacred plant among the Druids, and three being a mystical number in the Celtic religion as well as all others, it is probable that St. Patrick must have been aware of the significance
of his illustration.
