It's "St. Paddy's"

[Alcachofa]

There's a new (to me) pull down menu at the top, under the CHOW logo. It says "St. Patty's Recipes".

I'm neither Irish nor Catholic, but I believe the nickname for St. Patrick is St. Paddy.

Then again, I say panino when there is only one sandwich involved, so maybe I'm too picky.

[cwdonald]

Actually many irish people find Paddy to be a derogatory name. It is Saint Patrick or Padraig in gaelic. A Paddy wagon referred to a stereotypical irish policeman. The most prevalent theory is based on the term "Paddy" (a common Irish shortening of Patrick, as in the Irish language Patrick is Padraig), which was used ( often as derogatory slang) to refer to Irish people.[3] Irishmen made up a large percentage of the officers of early police forces in many American cities. Thus, this theory suggests that the concentration of Irish in the police forces led to the term "paddy wagon" being used to describe the vehicles driven by police.

[coll]

I was in food sales here in the good ol' USA for the last 30 years, and one of my most successful customers was a hot dog truck named The Paddy Wagon. It had been around since the 1950s, he was the second owner: located in a touristy area on Long Island that hosted many Irish college students over the years. There was some kind of set up with the Dublin colleges. He always found a few pretty young girls to work there every summer. They did very well and I don't remember any mention of insult. They all kept in touch over the years, as a matter of fact.

Oh and my father who was half Irish was an NYC cop in the 50s and 60s, when they had a better sense of humor. I don't remember anyone being anything but amused. People seem to be a little more prickly nowadays.

Funny my maiden name intials were CW and my dad's name was Donald. Is that you Dad, messing with me from beyond the grave?

[Alcachofa]

Paddy, when used in a general sense to refer to "Irish people" can be seen as derogatory. HOWEVER, if it is that person's actual name, it is not.

[coll]

Yep, that's what it explained in the linked article above.

"Isn't "Paddy" a Slur?

While it's true that "paddy" came into fashion as a slur against Irish people in the 19th century, it's also true that Paddy is just a regular old name still in use today. You'll have to go by intent on this one. Calling a person "a paddy" because he's Irish is offensive. Calling a person "Paddy" because his name is Paddy, is not. Calling St. Patrick "Paddy" might upset some people since he's a canonized saint and not just some guy you know.

If someone gets rankled by your use of "St. Paddy," revert back to "St. Patrick," which is more correct, not "St. Patty," which is less. (And don't get into a big fight on St. Patrick's Day. It's a happy day.)"

[squid kun]

Nicely explained here ... http://gawker.com/5990788/its-st-padd...

[coll]

Great one! I love Caity Weaver.

[conniemcd]

Thanks so much for mentioning this. I may never have noticed it otherwise. I'm always looking for recipes for St. Patrick's day.

[carolinadawg]

Apparently, on Chow you'll find recipes for St. Patricia's Day!

[EM23]

Alcachofa is right - it should be "St. Paddy's", Chowhound Team.
I have several cousins named Patrick, and if you ever called one of them Patty, well…

[coll]

You are 100% right! Thanks for noticing this obvious error. Sort of makes you question the authenticity of the recipes themselves.

You made me look (made me buy a penny book!)So, ruebens and corned beef, but no shepherds pie? Faith and begorah!

[EM23]

Coll - you must have missed the recent thread on the Home Cooking board where Jewish deli, pasta, Swiss cheese, nachos and hummus were among the recommended "Irish" dishes.

[coll]

I'm off to look for it right now, I could use a laugh!

[SnackHappy]

I think you have a good point. Patty is the diminutive for Patricia.

[Servorg]

He was lucky enough that his health plan covered "gender" reassignment surgery...