St. Cianán, or Kenan, (died 24 November 489) was a Bishop of Duleek in

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

. He was descended from the royal blood of the kings of

Munster Munster ( gle, an Mhumhain or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, in the south of Ireland. In early Ireland, the Kingdom of Munster was one of the kingdoms of Gaelic Ireland ruled by a "king of over-kings" ( ga, rí ruirech). Following th ...

. His feast day is 24 November.

Life

He was a pupil of the monk Nathan. As a youth, he was one of the fifty hostages whom the princes of Ireland gave to king

Lóegaire mac Néill Lóegaire ('' floruit'' fifth century) (reigned 428–458 AD, according to the Annals of the Four Masters of the Kingdom of Ireland)(died c. 462), also Lóeguire, is said to have been a son of Niall of the Nine Hostages. The Irish annals and king ...

, by whom he was set free at the intercession of Bishop

Ciarán Ciarán ( Irish spelling) or Ciaran (Scottish Gaelic spelling) is a traditionally male given name of Irish origin. It means "little dark one" or "little dark-haired one", produced by appending a diminutive suffix to ''ciar'' ("black", "dark ...

. He then went into Gaul, and passed some time at

Tours Tours ( , ) is one of the largest cities in the region of Centre-Val de Loire, France. It is the prefecture of the department of Indre-et-Loire. The commune of Tours had 136,463 inhabitants as of 2018 while the population of the whole metr ...

in the monastery of St. Martin.Butler, Alban. ''The Lives of the Saints'', Volume XI, 1866
/ref> Returning to his native country, he converted great numbers to

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesu ...

in Connacht. Then he went to

Leinster Leinster ( ; ga, Laighin or ) is one of the provinces of Ireland, situated in the southeast and east of Ireland. The province comprises the ancient Kingdoms of Meath, Leinster and Osraige. Following the 12th-century Norman invasion of Ir ...

, and founded a church in a place called to this day the Wood of Cianán. At length he went into the territory of Eoghan (

Tír Eoghain Tír Eoghain (), also known as Tyrone, was a kingdom and later earldom of Gaelic Ireland, comprising parts of present-day County Tyrone, County Armagh, County Londonderry and County Donegal (Raphoe). The kingdom represented the core homeland of ...

), who was his mother Eithne's uncle. There he broke down a pagan altar and an idol and on the place built a

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words '' Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρ ...

church. According to manuscripts extant in the library at Cambridge, Cianán built here a church of stone, on that account called Damliag, corrupted into

Duleek Duleek (; ) is a small town in County Meath, Ireland. Duleek takes its name from the Irish word ''daimh liag'', meaning house of stones and referring to an early stone-built church, St Cianán's Church, the ruins of which are still visible in D ...

. It was the site of the first stone church in Ireland.Duleek Heritage Trail
/ref> He died on 24 November, in 489. Modern research indicates he may have been the origin behind the tribal name of

Ciannachta The Ciannachta were a population group of early historic Ireland. They claimed descent from the legendary figure Tadc mac Céin. Modern research indicates Saint Cianán and his followers may have been the origin behind the tribal name as it is ...

. It also could explain the confusion over the site of his stone church being located in accounts within the territory of Eoghan, in north Ulster, while actually at Duleek in County Meath. A branch of the Ciannachta settled in Keenaght, County Londonderry, and may have carried the association with them. Duleek having suffered greatly by several fires and devastations of the Danes, its episcopal see was united to the

diocese of Meath The Diocese of Meath ( ga, Deoise na Mí) is an Irish diocese which took its name after the ancient Kingdom of Meath. In the Roman Catholic Church it still exists as a separate diocese, but in the Church of Ireland it has been united with other ...

References

Sources

James Ussher James Ussher (or Usher; 4 January 1581 – 21 March 1656) was the Church of Ireland Archbishop of Armagh and Primate of All Ireland between 1625 and 1656. He was a prolific scholar and church leader, who today is most famous for his iden ...

, Antiq. 1. 29, and Primord. p. 1070. *Usher, Ind. Chron. ad ann. 450. 489 deaths People from County Meath 5th-century Irish bishops Medieval Irish saints 5th-century Christian saints Year of birth unknown Bishops of Duleek {{Ireland-saint-stub