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Iestyn (sometimes recorded as Iestin or the Latin form Justinus) was a Welsh hermit and confessor in the 6th or 7th century who is venerated as a saint. He was the founder of two churches, one in
Iestyn (sometimes recorded as Iestin or the Latin form Justinus) was a Welsh hermit and confessor in the 6th or 7th century who is venerated as a saint. He was the founder of two churches, one in Gwynedd
Gwynedd (; ) is a Local government in Wales#Principal areas, county and preserved county (latter with differing boundaries; includes the Isle of Anglesey) in the North West Wales, north-west of Wales. It shares borders with Powys, Conwy County B ...
and another in Anglesey
Anglesey (; cy, (Ynys) Môn ) is an island off the north-west coast of Wales. It forms a Local government in Wales, principal area known as the Isle of Anglesey, that includes Holy Island, Anglesey, Holy Island across the narrow Cymyran Strai ...
, both in north Wales.
Life and commemoration
Iestyn's dates of birth and death are not recorded. According to some sources, he flourished in the early 6th century; according to others, he was active in the 7th century. He is said to have been the son of Geraint ab Erbin, a ruler ofDumnonia
Dumnonia is the Latinised name for a Brythonic kingdom that existed in Sub-Roman Britain between the late 4th and late 8th centuries CE in the more westerly parts of present-day South West England. It was centred in the area of modern Devon, ...
(a Celtic kingdom in what is now southwest England). His brothers were recorded as including Cador
Cador (''Latin'': Cadorius) was a legendary Duke of Cornwall, known chiefly through Geoffrey of Monmouth's pseudohistorical ''Historia Regum Britanniae'' and previous manuscript sources such as the Life of Carantoc.
Early sources present Ca ...
, Duke of Cornwall, and Cyngar (another saint who is commemorated in the name of the church at Llangefni
Llangefni (meaning "church on the River Cefni", ) is the county town of Anglesey in Wales and contains the principal offices of the Isle of Anglesey County Council. United Kingdom Census 2011 recorded Llangefni's population as 5,116 people, mak ...
, Anglesey). Iestyn, a hermit and confessor who was probably a follower of the Anglesey saint Cybi
Saint Cuby (in Cornish) or Saint Cybi (in Welsh) was a 6th-century Cornish bishop, saint and, briefly, king, who worked largely in Cornwall and North Wales: his biography is recorded in two slightly variant medieval 'lives'.
Life in Cornw ...
, founded two churches in north Wales: one at Llaniestyn, Gwynedd
Llaniestyn is a village and former civil parish in the Welsh county of Gwynedd. The parish was abolished in 1934, and divided between Tudweiliog and Botwnnog
Botwnnog is a village and community in Gwynedd in Wales, located on the Llŷn Pen ...
, and another ( St Iestyn's Church, Llaniestyn) in Anglesey
Anglesey (; cy, (Ynys) Môn ) is an island off the north-west coast of Wales. It forms a Local government in Wales, principal area known as the Isle of Anglesey, that includes Holy Island, Anglesey, Holy Island across the narrow Cymyran Strai ...
. The Anglesey church contains a late 14th-century carved effigy stone of him wearing a hooded cloak with a brooch, holding a staff in his right hand and an inscribed scroll in his left. The inscription, in Latin, says that Iestyn lies here and notes also the names of the donors of the effigy. It may originally have been used as a shrine for the saint. He may also have founded the church at St Just in Roseland
St Just in Roseland ( kw, Lannsiek) is a village and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. The village is south of Truro and north of St Mawes, a small village within the parish of St Just in Roseland. The 2011 Census recorded ...
, in a part of modern-day Cornwall
Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlan ...
within his father's influence, and has also been linked with a church in Brittany
Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica during the period o ...
, in northern France.
His feast day is not included in the Welsh calendars of saints, but was marked at his church on Anglesey on 12 April and 10 October, and at his church in Caernarfonshire on 10 October.
See also
Other Anglesey saints commemorated in local churches include: *St Cwyllog Saint Cwyllog (or Cywyllog)Baring-Gould, p. 279. was a Christian holy woman who was active in Anglesey, Wales, in the early 6th century. The daughter, sister and niece of saints, she is said to have founded St Cwyllog's Church, Llangwyllog, in the m ...
at St Cwyllog's Church, Llangwyllog
* St Eleth at St Eleth's Church, Amlwch
* St Peulan at St Peulan's Church, Llanbeulan
St Peulan's Church, Llanbeulan is a redundant Anglican church in Llanbeulan, in Anglesey, north Wales. The nave, which is the oldest part of the building, dates from the 12th century, with a chancel and side chapel added in the 14th century. T ...
* St Tyfrydog at St Tyfrydog's Church, Llandyfrydog
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Iestyn 6th-century Welsh people 7th-century Welsh people 7th-century Christian saints Medieval Welsh saints People from Anglesey