Saint Medan was a saint, apparently of the early British or Irish period, whose existence and name are inferred from the name

Kirkmaiden Kirkmaiden is a parish in the Rhins of Galloway, the most southerly in Scotland; the present Church of Scotland parish has the same name as and is approximately coterminous with the original Catholicism, pre-Reformation parish. The parish takes ...

Wigtownshire Wigtownshire or the County of Wigtown (, ) is one of the Counties of Scotland, historic counties of Scotland, covering an area in the south-west of the country. Until 1975, Wigtownshire was an counties of Scotland, administrative county used for ...

, but who is also associated with

Angus Angus may refer to: *Angus, Scotland, a council area of Scotland, and formerly a province, sheriffdom, county and district of Scotland * Angus, Canada, a community in Essa, Ontario Animals * Angus cattle, various breeds of beef cattle Media * ...

and

Aberdeenshire Aberdeenshire (; ) is one of the 32 Subdivisions of Scotland#council areas of Scotland, council areas of Scotland. It takes its name from the Shires of Scotland, historic county of Aberdeenshire (historic), Aberdeenshire, which had substantial ...

The occurrence and legend of Medan

There is a

both in the Rinns of

Galloway Galloway ( ; ; ) is a region in southwestern Scotland comprising the counties of Scotland, historic counties of Wigtownshire and Kirkcudbrightshire. It is administered as part of the council areas of Scotland, council area of Dumfries and Gallow ...

and also on the other side of

Luce Bay Luce Bay is a large bay in Wigtownshire in southern Scotland. The bay is 20 miles wide at its mouth and is bounded by the Rhins of Galloway to the west and the Machars to the east. The Scares are rocky islets at the mouth of the bay. Bombi ...

in the parish of Glasserton near Monreith in the

Machars The Machars () is a peninsula in the historical county of Wigtownshire in Galloway in the south-west of Scotland. Its name (in Scots and English) is derived from the Gaelic word ''Machair'' meaning low-lying or level land, known as "links" on ...

– both in

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

. A legend relates how the saint with her nuns is said to have travelled from the one location to the other across Luce Bay, using a rock as a boat.

Who was Medan?

Medan's identity, name, sex and origin are all disputed.MacQueen, John. ''Place-Names in the Rhinns of Galloway and Luce Valley'', Stranraer and District Local History Trust. 2002 pp. 50 & 51 Some points about the name suggest problems in transmission. First, the name "Medan" sounds similar to the English word "maiden": this may mean that an originally masculine name was interpreted later as a woman's. Second, the name may well begin with the

Gaelic Gaelic (pronounced for Irish Gaelic and for Scots Gaelic) is an adjective that means "pertaining to the Gaels". It may refer to: Languages * Gaelic languages or Goidelic languages, a linguistic group that is one of the two branches of the Insul ...

element "mo" meaning "my" – an honorific or a diminutive. The name has been related to several women saints recorded elsewhere. The element "edan" is similar to "Etáin", a name occurring once in the 15th century in Scotland, and argued as the virgin saint of Tumna near Boyle in

County Roscommon County Roscommon () is a Counties of Ireland, county in Republic of Ireland, Ireland. It is part of the province of Connacht and the Northern and Western Region. It is the List of Irish counties by area, 11th largest Irish county by area and Li ...

in the diocese of Elphin – though another authority derives ''Cill Medoin'' in the diocese of

Tuam Tuam (; , meaning 'mound' or 'burial-place') is a town in Ireland and the second-largest settlement in County Galway. It is west of the midland Region, Ireland, midlands of Ireland, about north of Galway city. The town is in a civil parishe ...

not from an apocryphal saint Etáin but prosaically from the Irish for "middle church". Again, the name may be a version of Modwena (Moninne or Darerca), who was abbess of ''Cill Sléibe Cuilinn'' in Killevy near

Slieve Gullion Slieve Gullion ( or ''Sliabh Cuilinn'', "Culann's mountain") is a mountain in the south of County Armagh, Northern Ireland. The mountain is the heart of the Ring of Gullion and is the List of Irish counties by highest point, highest point in t ...

and died on 5 July 517 or 519; it is said that she founded a number of churches in Scotland. There is a 1901 dedication to a female St Medan in

Troon Troon (Scottish Gaelic: ''An Truthail'') is a town and sea port in South Ayrshire, situated on the west coast of Ayrshire in Scotland, about north of Ayr and northwest of Glasgow Prestwick Airport. Troon has a port with ferry and freight serv ...

Ayrshire Ayrshire (, ) is a Counties of Scotland, historic county and registration county, in south-west Scotland, located on the shores of the Firth of Clyde. The lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area of Ayrshire and Arran covers the entirety ...

. There are other perhaps stronger arguments for the name being that of a man. The name is similar to a man's name, Muadán, which occurs in commemorations on both sides of the Irish Sea, including

Glendaruel Glendaruel (Scottish Gaelic, Gaelic: ''Gleann Dà Ruadhail'') is a glen in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. The main settlement in Glendaruel is the Clachan of Glendaruel. Features The present Kilmodan Church was built in the Clachan of Glendaruel ...

Argyll Argyll (; archaically Argyle; , ), sometimes called Argyllshire, is a Shires of Scotland, historic county and registration county of western Scotland. The county ceased to be used for local government purposes in 1975 and most of the area ...

, and has been glossed as a version of "my

Aedan Aidan, Aiden and Ayden are anglicised versions of the Irish male given name ''Aodhán''. The Irish language female equivalent is ''Aodhnait''. Etymology and spelling The name is derived from the name ''Aodhán'', which is a pet form of '' Aod ...

": 16 saints bore the name Aedan, including the well-known Aedan of Lindisfarne. Again, a male saint named Medan was buried at

Bodmin Bodmin () is a town and civil parish in Cornwall, England, United Kingdom. It is situated south-west of Bodmin Moor. The extent of the civil parish corresponds fairly closely to that of the town so is mostly urban in character. It is bordered ...

and perhaps commemorated at Tregavethan, both in

Cornwall Cornwall (; or ) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South West England. It is also one of the Celtic nations and the homeland of the Cornish people. The county is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, ...

. A male Modan is the saint of

Rosneath Rosneath () is a village in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. It sits on the western shore of the Gare Loch, northwest of the tip of the Rosneath Peninsula. It is about by road from the village of Kilcreggan, which is sited on the southern shore ...

Falkirk Falkirk ( ; ; ) is a town in the Central Lowlands of Scotland, historically within the county of Stirlingshire. It lies in the Forth Valley, northwest of Edinburgh and northeast of Glasgow. Falkirk had a resident population of 32,422 at the ...

, Kirkton of Airlie in

Forfar Forfar (; , ) is the county town of Angus, Scotland, and the administrative centre for Angus Council, with a new multi-million-pound office complex located on the outskirts of the town. As of 2021, the town had a population of 16,280. The town ...

Fraserburgh Fraserburgh (; ), locally known as the Broch, is a town in Aberdeenshire (unitary), Aberdeenshire, Scotland, with a population recorded in the United Kingdom Census 2011, 2011 Census as 13,100. It lies in Buchan in the northeastern corner of th ...

and Fintray in

, and Freswick in

Caithness Caithness (; ; ) is a Shires of Scotland, historic county, registration county and Lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area of Scotland. There are two towns, being Wick, Caithness, Wick, which was the county town, and Thurso. The count ...

. The church at Kingoldrum in

, which was given to

Arbroath Abbey Arbroath Abbey, in the Scottish town of Arbroath, was founded in 1178 by William I of Scotland, King William the Lion for a group of Tironensian Benedictine monks from Kelso Abbey. It was consecration, consecrated in 1197 with a dedication to th ...

in 1211-14 by

William the Lion William the Lion (), sometimes styled William I (; ) and also known by the nickname ; e.g. Annals of Ulster, s.a. 1214.6; Annals of Loch Cé, s.a. 1213.10. ( 1142 – 4 December 1214), reigned as King of Alba from 1165 to 1214. His almost 49 ...

, was dedicated to St Medan; not far from it is a St Medan's Well, and it is thought that originally it was a Celtic establishment. St Medan is also said to have been one of the three companions of St

Drostan Saint Drostan (d. early 7th century), also known as Drustan, was the founder and abbot of the monastery of Old Deer in Aberdeenshire. His relics were later translated to the church at New Aberdour and his holy well lies nearby. Biography Dros ...

, the evangeliser of

and founder of

Deer Abbey Deer Abbey was a Cistercian monastery in Buchan, Scotland. It was founded by 1219 under the patronage William Comyn, jure uxoris Earl of Buchan, who is also buried there. History There was an earlier community of Scottish monks or priests, ...

. St Medan's Cave, Kirkmaiden is situated at the foot of the degraded cliffline.

Other information

Near the Kirkmaiden at Monreith in the

there is a golf course named St Medan's.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Medan 6th-century Christian saints Medieval Scottish saints