carrot & stick

March 9, 2005 10:07 AM

St. Paddy's Day? Or St. Patty's Day? The latter makes me grind my teeth. But I'm seeing it more often. (Google calls it even, more or less.)
posted by stupidsexyFlanders to Writing & Language (13 answers total)

I would think, if you have to shorten it, it would be "Patty" since he was Saint Patrick, not Padrick.

If you're a politician in Boston and you want an excuse to give all your Irish friends a day off you'd call it "Evacuation Day."
posted by bondcliff at 10:12 AM on March 9, 2005

St. Patty's Day? Who, exactly, says this? I've never heard it in my life.

(PS, I'm Irish (as in born and reared there))
posted by ascullion at 10:12 AM on March 9, 2005

Among some Paddy is a acceptable nickname for men named Patrick (generally guys at least fifty years old wearing those tweedy driving caps, IME.).
Among others it's a time-honored slur against Irish-Americans.

So that's two reasons I think it would be the correct abbreviation of St. Patrick's Day.

Every Patty I knew used it as a shortened form of Patricia. I can only imagine calling a guy that if it was with the intention to mock their masculinity or something.

But, I'm Buffalo-Irish (and only half at that), not Boston or Ireland, and we're quite a bit more assimilated, I think, so YMMV.

On preview: Odds are he wasn't actually named Patrick, either. He was a citizen of the Roman empire, Latin doesn't even have a letter "K." It was more likely to be Patricius or something. (and several pages say his name was really the improbable Maewyn Succat). Patrick or Padrick are just different versions of the same name, Irish and Anglicized, after all.
posted by Kellydamnit at 10:27 AM on March 9, 2005

Traditionally, "Paddy" is the diminutive of Patrick or Padraig, whereas "Patty," is short for "Patricia."
posted by jonmc at 10:28 AM on March 9, 2005

I vote for "Paddy" as it is the true shortened version of Patrick, although most Americans abbreviate it to "Patty".

(ascullion, many Americans refer to St. Patrick's Day this way.)
posted by Specklet at 10:30 AM on March 9, 2005

A quick but IMO more accurate Google test: 1350 hits for "irishman slang paddy", with the first page being hits about Irishmen being called "Paddy"; 150 for "irishman slang patty", with the first page being hits about Irishmen, slang, and women named Patty.

OED2 is clear: the first sense of the second entry for "paddy" is slang for Irishman, with an etymology of "Irish pet-form of Padraig or Patrick", first citation 1780. Nothing in "Patty" for same. MWCD11 concurs. See also "paddy-wagon".
posted by mendel at 10:58 AM on March 9, 2005

Totally Paddy (which is not primarily a slur for Irish-Americans but for Irish-Irishes and also a diminuative used with love). We all know what it's really called though, right? Amateur Hour.
posted by Divine_Wino at 11:33 AM on March 9, 2005

St. Pat's, when I shorten it at all.
But I'd lean toward Paddy when faced with these two options.
posted by me3dia at 12:28 PM on March 9, 2005

Growing up in Boston, it was my understanding that the slur part of "Paddy" was associated with a use like "Paddywagon".
posted by R. Mutt at 12:47 PM on March 9, 2005

Paddy is a slur. I'm an Italo-American born on St. Patrick's Day. I almost became 'Pasquale' which usually becomes Pat. My mom came to her senses and named me Peter. I avoid the 'controversy' by always saying 'St. Patrick's Day.' There is always a party in my honor...
posted by fixedgear at 1:35 PM on March 9, 2005

St. Patricks's.
and
St. Paddy's.
and
St. Pats.

Confusing, sure, but I've never known anything different.
posted by Jimbob at 2:23 PM on March 9, 2005

My parents always insisted that "Patty" was a masculine while "Patti" was feminine.
posted by NortonDC at 6:01 PM on March 9, 2005

I'm punkbitch and I endorse jonmc's Padraig/Paddy answer.
posted by punkbitch at 6:34 PM on March 9, 2005