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<!DOCTYPE html> <html lang="en"> <head> <title>CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA: St. Adamnan (Eunan)</title><script src="https://dtyry4ejybx0.cloudfront.net/js/cmp/cleanmediacmp.js?ver=0104" async="true"></script><script defer data-domain="newadvent.org" src="https://plausible.io/js/script.js"></script><link rel="canonical" href="https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01135c.htm"> <meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1"> <meta name="description" content="Irish-born abbot of Iona, and St. Columba's biographer"> <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8"><link rel="alternate" type="application/rss+xml" title="RSS" href="http://feeds.newadvent.org/bestoftheweb?format=xml"><link rel="icon" href="../images/icon1.ico" type="image/x-icon"><link rel="shortcut icon" href="../images/icon1.ico" type="image/x-icon"><meta name="robots" content="noodp"><link type="text/css" rel="stylesheet" href="../utility/screen6.css" media="screen"></head> <body class="cathen" id="01135c.htm">  <br/> <div id="capitalcity"><table summary="Logo" cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 width="100%"><tr valign="bottom"><td align="left"><a href="../"><img height=36 width=153 border="0" alt="New Advent" src="../images/logo.gif"></a></td><td align="right"> <form id="searchbox_000299817191393086628:ifmbhlr-8x0" action="../utility/search.htm">  <input type="hidden" name="safe" value="active"> <input type="hidden" name="cx" value="000299817191393086628:ifmbhlr-8x0"/> <input type="hidden" name="cof" value="FORID:9"/>  <label for="searchQuery" id="searchQueryLabel">Search:</label> <input id="searchQuery" name="q" type="text" size="25" aria-labelledby="searchQueryLabel"/>  <label for="submitButton" id="submitButtonLabel" class="visually-hidden">Submit Search</label> <input id="submitButton" type="submit" name="sa" value="Search" aria-labelledby="submitButtonLabel"/> </form> <table summary="Spacer" cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0><tr><td height="2"></td></tr></table> <table summary="Tabs" cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0><tr> <td bgcolor="#ffffff"></td> <td class="tab"><a class="tab_color_on_beige" href="../"> Home </a></td> <td class="tab"><a class="tab_white_on_color" href="../cathen/index.html"> Encyclopedia </a></td> <td class="tab"><a class="tab_color_on_beige" href="../summa/index.html"> Summa </a></td> <td class="tab"><a class="tab_color_on_beige" href="../fathers/index.html"> Fathers </a></td> <td class="tab"><a class="tab_color_on_beige" href="../bible/gen001.htm"> Bible </a></td> <td class="tab"><a class="tab_color_on_beige" href="../library/index.html"> Library </a></td> </tr></table> </td> </tr></table><table summary="Alphabetical index" width="100%" cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0><tr><td class="bar_white_on_color"> <a href="../cathen/a.htm"> A </a><a href="../cathen/b.htm"> B </a><a href="../cathen/c.htm"> C </a><a href="../cathen/d.htm"> D </a><a href="../cathen/e.htm"> E </a><a href="../cathen/f.htm"> F </a><a href="../cathen/g.htm"> G </a><a href="../cathen/h.htm"> H </a><a href="../cathen/i.htm"> I </a><a href="../cathen/j.htm"> J </a><a href="../cathen/k.htm"> K </a><a href="../cathen/l.htm"> L </a><a href="../cathen/m.htm"> M </a><a href="../cathen/n.htm"> N </a><a href="../cathen/o.htm"> O </a><a href="../cathen/p.htm"> P </a><a href="../cathen/q.htm"> Q </a><a href="../cathen/r.htm"> R </a><a href="../cathen/s.htm"> S </a><a href="../cathen/t.htm"> T </a><a href="../cathen/u.htm"> U </a><a href="../cathen/v.htm"> V </a><a href="../cathen/w.htm"> W </a><a href="../cathen/x.htm"> X </a><a href="../cathen/y.htm"> Y </a><a href="../cathen/z.htm"> Z </a> </td></tr></table></div> <div id="mobilecity" style="text-align: center; "><a href="../"><img height=24 width=102 border="0" alt="New Advent" src="../images/logo.gif"></a></div>  <div id="mi5"><span class="breadcrumbs"><a href="../">Home</a> > <a href="../cathen">Catholic Encyclopedia</a> > <a href="../cathen/a.htm">A</a> > St. Adamnan</span></div> <div id="springfield2"> <div class='catholicadnet-728x90' id='cathen-728x90-top' style='display: flex; height: 100px; align-items: center; justify-content: center; '></div> <h1>St. Adamnan</h1> <p><em><a href="https://gumroad.com/l/na2"><strong>Please help support the mission of New Advent</strong> and get the full contents of this website as an instant download. Includes the Catholic Encyclopedia, Church Fathers, Summa, Bible and more  all for only $19.99...</a></em></p> <p>(Or Eunan).</p> <p><a href="../cathen/01015c.htm">Abbot</a> of <a href="../cathen/08090a.htm">Iona</a>, born at Drumhome, County Donegal, <a href="../cathen/08098b.htm">Ireland</a>, c. 624; died at the <a href="../cathen/08090a.htm">Abbey of Iona</a>, in 704. He was <a href="../cathen/05295b.htm">educated</a> by the Columban <a href="../cathen/10487b.htm">monks</a> of his native place, subsequently becoming a <a href="../cathen/11144a.htm">novice</a> at <a href="../cathen/08090a.htm">Iona</a> in 650. In 679 he succeeded to the abbacy of <a href="../cathen/08090a.htm">Iona</a>, which position he held up to his death. He was also president-general of all the Columban houses in <a href="../cathen/08098b.htm">Ireland</a>. During his rule he paid three lengthy visits to <a href="../cathen/08098b.htm">Ireland</a>, one of which is memorable for his success in introducing the Roman Paschal observance. On his third visit (697) he assisted at the Synod of Tara, when the <em>Cain Adamnain</em>, or Canon of Adamnan (ed. Kuno Meyer, London, 1905) was adopted, which freed <a href="../cathen/15687b.htm">women</a> and children from the evils inseparable from <a href="../cathen/15546c.htm">war</a>, forbidding them to be killed or made captive in times of strife. It is not improbable, as stated in the "Life of St. Gerald" (d. <a href="../cathen/02581b.htm">Bishop</a> of Mayo, 732), that Adamnan ruled the abbey of Mayo from 697 until 23 Sept., 704, but in <a href="../cathen/08098b.htm">Ireland</a> his memory is inseparably connected with Raphoe, of which he is patron.</p> <div class="CMtag_300x250" style="display: flex; height: 300px; align-items: center; justify-content: center; "></div> <p>From a literary point of view, St. Adamnan takes the very highest place as the biographer of <a href="../cathen/04136a.htm">St. Columba</a> (Columcille), and as the author of a treatise "De Locis Sanctis". Pinkerton describes his "Vita Columbae" as "the most complete piece of biography that all <a href="../cathen/05607b.htm">Europe</a> can boast of, not only at so early a period but even through the whole <a href="../cathen/10285c.htm">Middle Ages</a>". It was printed by <a href="../cathen/04099c.htm">Colgan</a> (from a copy supplied by <a href="../cathen/15612c.htm">Father Stephen White, S.J.</a>), and by the <a href="../cathen/02630a.htm">Bollandists</a>, but it was left for a nineteenth-century <a href="../cathen/08098b.htm">Irish</a> scholar (Dr. Reeves, Protestant <a href="../cathen/02581b.htm">Bishop</a> of Down, Connor and Dromore) to issue, in 1837, the most admirable of all existing editions. <a href="../cathen/02384a.htm">St. Bede</a> highly praises the tract "De Locis Sanctis", the autograph copy of which was presented by St. Adamnan to King Aldfrid of Northumbria, who had studied in <a href="../cathen/08098b.htm">Ireland</a>. The "Four Masters" tells us that he was "tearful, penitent, fond of <a href="../cathen/12345b.htm">prayer</a>, diligent and ascetic, and learned in the clear understanding of the <a href="../cathen/13635b.htm">Holy Scriptures of God</a>." His <a href="../cathen/06021b.htm">feast</a> is celebrated 23 September.</p> <div class="pub"><h2>About this page</h2><p id="apa"><strong>APA citation.</strong> <span id="apaauthor">Grattan-Flood, W.</span> <span id="apayear">(1907).</span> <span id="apaarticle">St. Adamnan.</span> In <span id="apawork">The Catholic Encyclopedia.</span> <span id="apapublisher">New York: Robert Appleton Company.</span> <span id="apaurl">http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01135c.htm</span></p><p id="mla"><strong>MLA citation.</strong> <span id="mlaauthor">Grattan-Flood, William.</span> <span id="mlaarticle">"St. Adamnan."</span> <span id="mlawork">The Catholic Encyclopedia.</span> <span id="mlavolume">Vol. 1.</span> <span id="mlapublisher">New York: Robert Appleton Company,</span> <span id="mlayear">1907.</span> <span id="mlaurl"><http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/01135c.htm>.</span></p><p id="transcription"><strong>Transcription.</strong> <span id="transcriber">This article was transcribed for New Advent by Joseph and Marie Gallagher.</span> <span id="dedication">With gratitude for the kind assistance of the Central Catholic Library, Merrion Square, Dublin, Ireland.</span></p><p id="approbation"><strong>Ecclesiastical approbation.</strong> <span id="nihil"><em>Nihil Obstat.</em> March 1, 1907. Remy Lafort, S.T.D., Censor.</span> <span id="imprimatur"><em>Imprimatur.</em> +John Cardinal Farley, Archbishop of New York.</span></p><p id="contactus"><strong>Contact information.</strong> The editor of New Advent is Kevin Knight. My email address is webmaster <em>at</em> newadvent.org. Regrettably, I can't reply to every letter, but I greatly appreciate your feedback — especially notifications about typographical errors and inappropriate ads.</p></div> <div class='catholicadnet-728x90' id='cathen-728x90-verybottom' style='display: flex; height: 100px; align-items: center; justify-content: center; '></div> </div> <div id="ogdenville"><table summary="Bottom bar" width="100%" cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0><tr><td class="bar_white_on_color"><center><strong>Copyright © 2023 by <a href="../utility/contactus.htm">New Advent LLC</a>. 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