Commán of Roscommon or Coman mac Faelchon (son of Faelchon) was an Irish saint, the founder,
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 ...
and
bishop
A bishop is an ordained member of the clergy who is entrusted with a position of Episcopal polity, authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance and administration of di ...
of
Roscommon
Roscommon (; ; ) is the county town and the largest town in County Roscommon in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is roughly in the centre of Ireland, near the meeting of the N60 road (Ireland), N60, N61 road (Ireland), N61 and N63 road (Irelan ...
, fl. 550.
Life
He was a member of the Cinel Domaingen, a branch of the
Sogain
The Soghain were a people of ancient Ireland. The 17th-century scholar Dubhaltach Mac Fhirbhisigh identified them as part of a larger group called the Cruithin. Mac Fhirbhisigh stated that the Cruithin included "the Dál nAraidi, Dál Araidhi ...
of Connacht. He studied at the monastic school of
Clonard in County Meath">Clonard Abbey">Clonard in County Meath, where he became associated with Saint Finnian of Clonard">County_Meath.html" ;"title="Clonard Abbey">Clonard in County Meath">Clonard Abbey">Clonard in County Meath, where he became associated with Saint Finnian of Clonard. About 550, after completing his education, he founded a monastery on the east bank of the River Suck, at a wood (''ros'') which was called after him (Roscommon, ''Ros Comain'').
Ros Comain was situated on Magh nAi (later known as ''the plains of Roscommon''/''the plains of
Boyle
Boyle may refer to:
Places United States
* Boyle, Kansas, an unincorporated community
* Boyle, Mississippi, a town
*Boyle County, Kentucky
*Boyle Heights, Los Angeles, a neighborhood
Elsewhere
* Boyle (crater), a lunar crater
* 11967 Boyle, ...
''), homeland of the
Ui Briuin Kings of Connacht
The Kings of Connacht were rulers of the ''cóiced'' (variously translated as portion, fifth, province) of Connacht, which lies west of the River Shannon, Ireland. However, the name only became applied to it in the early medieval era, being name ...
. He successfully sought their patronage, ensuring his influence within their spheres of power.
His successors are named in the
Irish annals
A number of Irish annals, of which the earliest was the Chronicle of Ireland, were compiled up to and shortly after the end of the 17th century. Annals were originally a means by which monks determined the yearly chronology of feast days. Over ti ...
between the years 782 and 1135.
He has been linked with the foundation of Kilcommon in
County Mayo
County Mayo (; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. In the West Region, Ireland, West of Ireland, in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Connacht, it is named after the village of Mayo, County Mayo, Mayo, now ge ...
and the early monastic church at Leithglin,
County Carlow
County Carlow ( ; ) is a Counties of Ireland, county located in the Southern Region, Ireland, Southern Region of Ireland, within the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster. Carlow is the List of Irish counties by area, second smallest and t ...
. He composed a rule for monks, which came to be observed by many religious bodies in Connacht.
His
feast day
The calendar of saints is the traditional Christian method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the day as the feast day or feast of said saint. The word "feast" in this context does n ...
is 26 December.
See also
*
Coman(s), Comman(s), Commane (Gaelic: O'Comain) Irish surname
References
* ''Saint Coman of Roscommon:A Sixth-Century East Galway Missionary'', Joseph Mannion, in ''Gurteen Journal 2005'', pp. 17–19.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Coman mac Faelchon
6th-century Irish bishops
People from County Galway
People from County Roscommon