Aaron of Aleth (died after 552), also called ''Saint Aihran'' or ''Eran'' in

Breton Breton most often refers to: *anything associated with Brittany, and generally **Breton people **Breton language, a Southwestern Brittonic Celtic language of the Indo-European language family, spoken in Brittany ** Breton (horse), a breed **Gale ...

, was a

hermit A hermit, also known as an eremite (adjectival form: hermitic or eremitic) or solitary, is a person who lives in seclusion. Eremitism plays a role in a variety of religions. Description In Christianity, the term was originally applied to a Chr ...

monk A monk (; from , ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a man who is a member of a religious order and lives in a monastery. A monk usually lives his life in prayer and contemplation. The concept is ancient and can be seen in many reli ...

and

abbot Abbot is an ecclesiastical title given to the head of an independent monastery for men in various Western Christian traditions. The name is derived from ''abba'', the Aramaic form of the Hebrew ''ab'', and means "father". The female equivale ...

at a monastery on

Cézembre Cézembre is an island in Brittany, in the Ille-et-Vilaine ''Département in France, département'' of France, near Saint-Malo. The island is uninhabited, with a surface area of approximately 18 hectares (44 acres), a length of , and a maximum w ...

, a small island near Aleth, opposite

Saint-Malo Saint-Malo (, , ; Gallo language, Gallo: ; ) is a historic French port in Ille-et-Vilaine, Brittany (administrative region), Brittany. The Fortification, walled city on the English Channel coast had a long history of piracy, earning much wealth ...

in Brittany, France. Some sources suggest he may have migrated from

Celtic Britain The British Iron Age is a conventional name used in the archaeology of Great Britain, referring to the prehistoric and protohistoric phases of the Iron Age culture of the main island and the smaller islands, typically excluding prehistoric Ire ...

to take up residence in

Armorica In ancient times, Armorica or Aremorica (Gaulish: ; ; ) was a region of Gaul between the Seine and the Loire that includes the Brittany Peninsula, and much of historical Normandy. Name The name ''Armorica'' is a Latinized form of the Gauli ...

n Domnonia. He lived alone near

Lamballe Lamballe (; ; Gallo: ''Lanball'') is a town and a former commune in the Côtes-d'Armor department in Brittany in northwestern France. On 1 January 2019, it was merged into the new commune Lamballe-Armor. It lies on the river Gouessant east ...

and

Pleumeur-Gautier Pleumeur-Gautier (; ) is a commune in the Côtes-d'Armor department of Brittany in northwestern France. Population Inhabitants of Pleumeur-Gautier are called ''pleumeuriens'' in French. See also *Communes of the Côtes-d'Armor department ...

, before finally settling on an island separated from the settlement of Aleth. He attracted many visitors while there, including

Malo Mal, which in Spanish means ''bad or evil'', may also refer to: Places *Malo, Italy, a town *Malo Island, formerly known as St. Bartholomew, Vanuatu *Malo (Solomon Islands), an island * Malo, Washington, Ferry County, Washington, United States * ...

,Monks of Ramsgate. "Saint Aaron". ''Book of Saints'', 1921. CatholicSaints.Info. 27 April 2012
/ref> it is said, in 544, and became their abbot. He died soon afterwards. Malo then succeeded to the spiritual rule of the district subsequently known as Saint-Malo, and was consecrated first

Bishop of Aleth The former Breton and French Catholic Diocese of Saint-Malo (, then ) existed from at least the 7th century until the French Revolution. Its seat was at Aleth until the 12th century, when it was moved to Saint-Malo. Its territory extended ove ...

. Aaron's feast day is 21 June (at Saint-Malo) or 22 June (elsewhere). He is mentioned in ''

Les Vies des Saints de Bretagne ''Les Vies des Saints de Bretagne'' is a book by Guy Alexis Lobineau, O.S.B. It was published in Rennes in 1725. It describes several saints of Brittany, and their feast days. These include the following individuals, listed by feast day The ...

''.Holweck, F. G. ''A Biographical Dictionary of the Saints''. St. Louis, MO: B. Herder Book Co. (1924) The town of Saint-Aaron in Lamballe, France is named after him.

Notes

Sources

* * (contains a reference to Aaron)
Catholic Forum
* Holweck, F. G. ''A Biographical Dictionary of the Saints''. St. Louis, MO: B. Herder Book Co. (1924) {{DEFAULTSORT:Aaron of Aleth Date of birth unknown Date of death unknown Medieval Breton saints Medieval Welsh saints French hermits French abbots 6th-century Breton people 6th-century Christian saints Welsh hermits