Winter Festival Celebrates Ireland’s Matron Saint Brigid in County Kildare, January 27- February 6, 2024

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This winter, Ireland is celebrating the extraordinary life of St Brigid, Ireland matron saint and beloved figure who bridged the Celtic and Christian traditions of the island.  Brigid 1500 is an 11-day festival of music, cuisine, art and spirituality taking place January 27 to February 6, 2024, in County Kildare,  birth place of Brigid, who died 1,500 years ago on February 1, 524 AD. Read about St. Brigid here.

The festival brings together some of Ireland's leading artists, performers, enthusiasts, communities and visitors to celebrate St Brigid in a contemporary way with a culturally rich program of events that align with the values St Brigid championed during her life, such as faith and spirituality, peace and hospitality and arts and education.  See the full calendar of events. 

Highlights of Brigid 1500 include:

Mother Earth: A Day of Food and Music, featuring renowned female chefs including Darina Allen, Majken Bech-Bailey and Chantelle Nicholson, takes place on January 27.

A St Brigid’s day concert on February 1 featuring Irish artists Eleanor McEvoy, Moya Brennan, Mary Coughlan, Gemma Hayes, Una Healy, The Henry Girls, Lisa Lambe and Nell Mescal. 

A Pause for Peace will call upon people worldwide to observe a one-minute silence, and a musical evening featuring songs of social justice and freedom. 

Specially commissioned St Brigid art pieces are being unveiled as part of the program along with an artists’ exhibition, honorary window displays and theatre programs. 


Light shows will feature prominently in the festival. A candlelight pilgrimage and ritual at St Brigid’s well takes places on January 31 and two grand fiery processional events will take place in the towns of Maynooth and Kildare. The tower on the Hill of Allen will be bathed in white light to symbolize hope for the new year. 

Kildare in Ireland’s Ancient East is the place most associated with the saint as it was there that she founded a nunnery. 


A visit to Kildare should include stopping at St Brigid’s Cathedral and Round Tower and the Solas Bhride Center and Hermitage to enjoy a virtual reality tour of the town’s history. Here you will meet not only St Brigid but also the pre-Christian goddess Brigid, as well as other characters from Ireland’s Celtic mythology and medieval past, according to Ireland.com.

 St Brigid’s Day and the Celtic festival of Imbolc, which marks the beginning of spring, are traditionally marked on February 1 but there is also a public holiday on the first Monday of February.  In Ireland it is customary to make a St Brigid’s cross from rushes or straw to display in the home as protection from fire and evil. 

“Like many of Ireland’s other Christian feast days, Brigid predates Christianity – her roots lie in the Celtic festival of Imbolc, the feast of the goddess Brigid, celebrated at least five millennia ago. In old Irish, Imbolc means "in the belly", a reference to lambing and the renewal spring promises,” according to the Embassy of Ireland, USA.

The Boston area has two Roman Catholic churches named in Brigid’s honor: St. Brigid of Kildare Church in South Boston, dating to 1908, and St. Brigid in Lexington, dating back to 1886.

For more information about visiting Ireland, go to ireland.com

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