- Adomnán
Infobox Saint
name=Saint Adomnán of Iona
birth_date=627/8
death_date=704
feast_day=23 September
venerated_in=Roman Catholic Church
imagesize=
caption=
birth_place= ProbablyCounty Donegal ,Ireland
death_place=Iona ,Scotland
titles=
beatified_date=
beatified_place=
beatified_by=
canonized_date= N/A
canonized_place=
canonized_by=
attributes=
patronage=Diocese of Raphoe
major_shrine=
suppressed_date=
issues=
prayer=
prayer_attrib=Saint Adomnán of Iona (627/8 – 704) was
abbot ofIona (679-704),hagiographer , statesman and clerical lawyer; he was the author of the most important "Vita " of SaintColumba and promulgator of the "Law of Innocents", "lex innocentium", also called "Cáin Adomnáin ", "Law of Adomnán". InIreland , a popularanglicised form of his name is "Saint Eunan" from the Gaelic "Naomh Adhamhnán".Life
Adomnán was a descendant of
Colmán mac Sétna , a cousin ofSaint Columba and the ancestor, through his son Ainmire, of the kings ofCenél Conaill . He was the son ofRónán mac Tinne by Ronat, a woman from the (northern)Uí Néill lineage known as the "Cenél nÉnda". Adomnán's birthplace is not known, although it is presumed that he was born in the territory of his kin-group, the Cenél Conaill, whose territory lay in modernCounty Donegal . Some of Adomnán's childhood anecdotes seem to confirm at least an upbringing in this area.It is thought that Adomnán may have begun his monastic career at a Columban monastery called
Druim Tuamma , but any Columban foundation in northernIreland orDál Riata is a possibility, althoughDurrow is a stronger possibility than most. He probably joined the Columban "familia" (i.e. the federation of monasteries under the leadership ofIona Abbey ) around the year 640. Some modern commentators believe that he could not have come to Iona until sometime after the year 669, the year of the accession of Abbot Failbe, the first abbot of whom Adomnán gives any information. However, Richard Sharpe argues that he probably came to Iona during the abbacy of Ségéne (d. 652). Whenever or wherever Adomnán received his education, Adomnán attained a level of learning rare in Early Medieval northern Europe. It has been suggested by Alfred Smyth that Adomnán spent some years teaching and studying atDurrow , and while this is not accepted by all scholars, remains a strong possibility.In 679, Adomnán became the ninth abbot of Iona after Columba. Abbot Adomnán enjoyed a friendship with King
Aldfrith of Northumbria . In 684, Aldfrith had been staying with Adomnán in Iona. In 686, after the death of Aldfrith's brother KingEcgfrith of Northumbria and Aldfrith's succession to the kingship, Adomnán was inNorthumbria on the request of KingFínsnechta Fledach ofBrega , in order to gain the freedom of sixtyGaels who had been captured in a Northumbrian raid two years before. This Adomnán achieved. Adomnán, in keeping with Ionan tradition, made several more trips to the lands of the English during his abbacy, including one the following year. It is sometimes thought, after the account given by Bede, that it was during his visits to Northumbria, under the influence of Abbot Ceolfrith of Jarrow, that Adomnán decided to adopt the Roman dating ofEaster that had been agreed some years before at theSynod of Whitby . Bede implies that this led to a schism at Iona, whereby Adomnán became alienated from the Iona brethren, and went to Ireland to convince the Irish of the Roman dating. Bede's account is however rarely believed by historians working in the area, although it is clear that Adomnán did adopt that Roman dating, and moreover, probably did argue the case for it in Ireland.In 697, it is generally believed that Adomnán promulgated the "
Cáin Adomnáin ", meaning literally the "Canons" or "Law of Adomnán". The "Cáin Adomnáin" was promulgated amongst a gathering of Irish, Dal Ríatan and Pictish notables at theSynod of Birr . It is a set of laws designed, among other things, to guarantee the safety and immunity of various types of non-combatant in warfare. For this reason it is also known as the "Law of Innocents". It is the earliest initiative of this kind recorded from Europe, and as such is often regarded, however dubiously, as a proto-type for theGeneva Convention and theUniversal Declaration of Human Rights .Works
Adomnán's most important work, and the one for which he is best known, is the "Vita Columbae" (i.e. "Life of Columba"), a hagiography of Iona's founder, Saint Columba. The source is by far the most important surviving work written in early medieval Scotland, and is a vital source for our knowledge of the Picts, as well as a great insight into the life of Iona and the early medieval Gaelic monk. However, the "Vita" was not his only work. Adomnán also wrote the treatise "
De Locis Sanctis " (i.e. "On Holy Places"), an account of the great Christian holy places and centres of pilgrimage. Adomnán got much of his information from a Frankish bishop calledArculf , who had personally visited theEgypt ,Rome ,Constantinople and theHoly Land , and visited Iona afterwards. Adomnán thought the work so important that he gave a copy to the scholar-kingAldfrith ofNorthumbria (685-704). Also attributed to him is a good deal of Gaelic poetry, including a celebration of the Pictish King Bridei's (671-93) victory of the Northumbrians at theBattle of Dunnichen (685).Adomnán died in 704, and became a saint in Scottish and Irish tradition, as well as one of the most important figures in either Scottish or Irish history. His death and
feast day are commemorated onSeptember 23 . Along withSt. Columba , he is joint patron of theDiocese of Raphoe , which encompasses the bulk ofCounty Donegal in the north west ofIreland .Legacy
In his native Donegal, the saint has given his name to several institutions and buildings including:
*St Eunan's Cathedral inLetterkenny ,Co. Donegal ; the current seat of the Bishop of Raphoe,
*St Eunan's College , a prestigious secondary school in Letterkenny,
*St Eunan's NS , a national school in the small village ofLaghey , just south ofDonegal Town ,
*St Eunan's GAA , a GAA club in Letterkenny, Co. DonegalBibliography
* Sharpe, Richard, "Adomnán of Iona: Life of St. Columba", (London, 1995), pp. 43-65
* Smyth, Alfred, "Warlords and Holymen", (London, 1984)External links
*Citation
last=Adamnan
first=
author-link=Adomnán
date=c. 700
editor-last=Reeves
editor-first=William
contribution=
title=The Life of Saint Columba
volume=
edition=
publisher=Edmonston and Douglas
publication-date=1874
publication-place=Edinburgh
pages=
url=http://books.google.com/books?id=8VULAAAAYAAJ
access-date=2008-08-09
*Citation
last=St. Adamnan
first=
author-link=Adomnán
date=c. 700
editor-last=Fowler
editor-first=Joseph Thomas
contribution=
title=Prophecies Miracles and Visions of St. Columba
volume=
edition=
publisher=Henry Frowde
publication-date=1895
publication-place=London
pages=
url=http://books.google.com/books?id=rJpjAAAAMAAJ
access-date=2008-08-09
* [http://members.aol.com/michellezi/biography/Adomnan.html Resources for Adomnán]
* [http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01135c.htm Catholic Encyclopedia]
* [http://encyclopedia.jrank.org/ADA_AIZ/ADAMNAN_or_ADOMNAN_c_624_704_.html Encyclopedia Britannica: Adamnan, or Adomnan]
Wikimedia Foundation. 2010.