Irish whiskey was, they'll tell you in Ireland, the first whiskey. The word "whiskey" is Irish. "Uisge," in Gaelic, is water. "Beatha" is life. Water of life — "aqua vitae" in Latin, a catchall phrase for liquor in the dim old days — was therefore "uisge beatha." Pronounced "oosh-keba." Shortened to "oosh-ke." Whiskey!

St. Patrick’s Day falls on a Monday this year, but you can get into shenanigans all weekend. A parade in Gaithersburg, a large festival on The Wharf, an Irish Village at the Guinness brewery in Baltimore and live music at Irish bars are just a few highlights from our list below.