He is the primary patron saint of Ireland, but was most likely born in Roman Britain and didn’t make it to the Emerald Isle until he was kidnapped by Irish pirates at the age of 16. Does that mean he was Roman? British? Could St. Patrick have actually been… Italian? Accounts of his birth vary. Even the year isn’t known for sure, although historians generally say he was born around 390.

According to researchers at the History Channel, Patrick was born “in what is now England, Scotland or Wales — interpretations vary widely — to a Christian deacon and his wife. His birthplace doesn’t mean Patrick was a Brit, however, at least not technically. During his lifetime, the British Isles were occupied by the Romans, a group that included Patrick’s parents and thus the saint himself. It is unknown whether his family, thought to have been a part of the Roman aristocracy, was of indigenous Celtic descent or hailed from modern-day Italy.”