16 sayings you'll only understand if you're Irish

Each year on March 17, the Irish and Irish-at-heart come out in droves to pubs and parade routes to celebrate the patron saint of Ireland.

In the US, St. Patrick's Day serves as a valid excuse to wear green and drink. But there's enough rich Irish culture to last the whole year round.

We scoured Celtic folklore, online forums, the Bible, and even our favorite Irish pub in New York City to find some beautiful and just plain weird sayings used on the Emerald Isle.

Some of the sayings are historic, out-of-use proverbs with original Irish Gaelic translations (today, as little as 30% of the population in the Republic of Ireland speak Irish). Others are examples of modern slang said in English, the shared official language.