Saint Andrew has been venerated in Scotland for more than 1,000 years. But his feast day didn’t become a popular celebration until the 18th century—and it didn’t originate in Scotland. 

In 1729, a group of Scottish immigrants in Charleston, South Carolina founded a goodwill society named in St. Andrew’s honor. The group soon became famous for their work helping local orphans and widows. A similar society opened in 1756 in New York, and soon they cropped up all over the United States. Today, St. Andrew’s societies exist across the world.

The tradition of celebrating St. Andrew did spread to Scotland, and every year on November 30, St. Andrew’s Day kicks off a season of winter festivals that includes Hogmanay (New Year’s Eve) and Burns Night (Jan 25). Scots welcome winter with traditional food, music, and dancing. Each town adds its own flair to the celebrations, like a torchlight procession in Glasgow, haggis tastings in Oban, or a golfing tournament in East Lothian. 

Saint Andrew was a fisherman from Galilee (modern-day Israel) who became one of Jesus’s 12 disciples. He was martyred for his Christian beliefs. Saint Andrew insisted he was not worthy of being crucified on a T-shaped cross, as Jesus had been, so he was nailed to an X-shaped cross on November 30 in 60 A.D. He has been Scotland’s patron saint since the country gained its independence in 1320, and the Scottish flag features St. Andrew’s emblematic cross.