This is a list of saints of Scotland, which includes saints from

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 ...

, associated with, or particularly

venerated Veneration (; ), or veneration of saints, is the act of honoring a saint, a person who has been identified as having a high degree of sanctity or holiness. Angels are shown similar veneration in many religions. Veneration of saints is practiced, ...

in the

Kingdom of Scotland The Kingdom of Scotland was a sovereign state in northwest Europe, traditionally said to have been founded in 843. Its territories expanded and shrank, but it came to occupy the northern third of the island of Great Britain, sharing a Anglo-Sc ...

. One of the main features of Medieval Scotland was the

Veneration of Saints Veneration (; ), or veneration of saints, is the act of honoring a saint, a person who has been identified as having a high degree of sanctity or holiness. Angels are shown similar veneration in many religions. Veneration of saints is practiced, ...

. Saints of Irish origin who were particularly revered included various figures called St. Fælan and St. Colman, and saints Findbarr and Finan. Columba remained a major figure into the fourteenth century and a new foundation at the site of his bones was endowed by

William I William I may refer to: Kings * William the Conqueror (–1087), also known as William I, King of England * William I of Sicily (died 1166) * William I of Scotland (died 1214), known as William the Lion * William I of the Netherlands and Luxembour ...

(r. 1165–1214) at

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 ...

.M. Lynch, ''Scotland: A New History'' (Random House, 2011), , p. 76.B. Webster, ''Medieval Scotland: the Making of an Identity'' (New York City, NY: St. Martin's Press, 1997), , pp. 52–3. In Strathclyde the most important saint was St. Kentigern, whose cult (under the pet name St. Mungo) became focused in Glasgow.A. Macquarrie, ''Medieval Scotland: Kinship and Nation'' (Thrupp: Sutton, 2004), , p. 46. In Lothian it was St. Cuthbert, whose relics were carried across Northumbria after Lindisfarne was sacked by the Vikings before being installed in Durham Cathedral. After his

martyr A martyr (, ''mártys'', 'witness' Word stem, stem , ''martyr-'') is someone who suffers persecution and death for advocating, renouncing, or refusing to renounce or advocate, a religious belief or other cause as demanded by an external party. In ...

dom around 1115, a cult emerged in Orkney, Shetland and northern Scotland around

Magnus Erlendsson, Earl of Orkney Saint Magnus Erlendsson, Earl of Orkney, sometimes known as Magnus the Martyr, was Earl of Orkney from 1106 to about 1117. Magnus's grandparents, Thorfinn the Mighty, Jarl of Orkney and his wife Ingibiorg Finnsdottir, had two sons, Erlend an ...

Veneration of Saint Andrew

St Andrew Andrew the Apostle ( ; ; ; ) was an apostle of Jesus. According to the New Testament, he was a fisherman and one of the Apostles in the New Testament, Twelve Apostles chosen by Jesus. The title First-Called () used by the Eastern Orthodox Chu ...

is the

patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, Eastern Orthodoxy or Oriental Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, fa ...

of Scotland and has a long history of veneration there. The cult of St Andrew was established on the east coast at Kilrymont by the Pictish kings as early as the eighth century.G. W. S. Barrow, ''Robert Bruce and the Community of the Realm of Scotland'' (Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 4th edn., 2005), , p. 11. The shrine, which from the twelfth century was said to have contained the relics of the saint brought to Scotland by

Saint Regulus Saint Regulus or Saint Rule (Old Irish: ''Riagal'') was a legendary 4th century monk or bishop of Patras, Greece who in AD 345 is said to have fled to Scotland with the bones of Saint Andrew, and deposited them at St Andrews. His feast day in ...

.B. Webster, ''Medieval Scotland: the Making of an Identity'' (New York City, NY: St. Martin's Press, 1997), , p. 55.

Developments in the Early Middle Ages

By the twelfth century it had become known simply as St. Andrews and it became increasingly associated with Scottish national identity and the royal family. Queen Margaret was canonised in 1250 and after the ceremonial transfer of her remains to

Dunfermline Abbey Dunfermline Abbey is a Church of Scotland parish church in Dunfermline, Fife, Scotland. The church occupies the site of the ancient chancel and transepts of a large medieval Benedictine abbey, which was confiscated and sacked in 1560 during the S ...

emerged as one of the most revered national saints. In the late medieval period, as the doctrine of

Purgatory In Christianity, Purgatory (, borrowed into English language, English via Anglo-Norman language, Anglo-Norman and Old French) is a passing Intermediate state (Christianity), intermediate state after physical death for purifying or purging a soul ...

gained in importance in the period, the number of chapelries, priests and masses for the dead within them grew rapidly,Andrew D. M. Barrell, ''Medieval Scotland'' (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2000), , p. 254. along with the number of altars to saints, with St. Mary's in Dundee having perhaps 48 and St Giles' in Edinburgh over 50,P. J. Bawcutt and J. H. Williams, ''A Companion to Medieval Scottish Poetry'' (Woodbridge: Brewer, 2006), , pp. 26–9. as did the number of saints celebrated in Scotland, with about 90 being added to the

missal A missal is a liturgical book containing instructions and texts necessary for the celebration of Mass throughout the liturgical year. Versions differ across liturgical tradition, period, and purpose, with some missals intended to enable a priest ...

used in St Nicholas church in Aberdeen.C. Peters, ''Women in Early Modern Britain, 1450–1640'' (Palgrave Macmillan, 2004), , p. 147.

Impact of the Reformation

The

Reformation The Reformation, also known as the Protestant Reformation or the European Reformation, was a time of major Theology, theological movement in Western Christianity in 16th-century Europe that posed a religious and political challenge to the p ...

made the veneration of saints illegal and removed almost all evidence of saints and shrines from churches,J. D. Mackie, B. Lenman and G. Parker, A History of Scotland (London: Penguin, 1991), , p. 153. although Catholicism continued as a minority religion. The period created only one Catholic saint, the convert and martyr John Ogilvie (1569–1615).J. Buckley, F. C. Bauerschmidt, T. Pomplun, eds, ''The Blackwell Companion to Catholicism'' (London: John Wiley & Sons, 2010), , p. 164.

List of Saints

A *

Adomnán Adomnán or Adamnán of Iona (; , ''Adomnanus''; 624 – 704), also known as Eunan ( ; from ), was an abbot of Iona Abbey ( 679–704), hagiographer, statesman, canon jurist, and Christian saint, saint. He was the author of the ''Life ...

Adrian of May Saint Adrian of May (sometimes given as "Magridin") (d. 875) was a martyr-saint of ancient Scotland, whose cult (religious practice), cult became popular in the 14th century. He is commemorated on 3 December. He may have been a bishop of Archbishop ...

* Almus *

Andrew the Apostle Andrew the Apostle ( ; ; ; ) was an apostle of Jesus. According to the New Testament, he was a fisherman and one of the Apostles in the New Testament, Twelve Apostles chosen by Jesus. The title First-Called () used by the Eastern Orthodox Chu ...

B * Barvitus * Blane *

Saint Findbarr of Barra In Christian belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and denomination. In Anglican, Oriental Ortho ...

C *

Cainnech of Aghaboe Cainnech of Aghaboe (515/16–600), also known as Saint Canice in Ireland, Saint Kenneth in Scotland, Saint Kenny and in Latin Sanctus Canicus, was an Irish abbot, monastic founder, priest and missionary during the early medieval period. Cainn ...

* Cathan *

Cathróe (bishop of the Scots) Cathróe is the twelfth alleged Bishop of St. Andrews according to the bishop-list of Walter Bower. He is one of 4 bishops-elect listed by Bower; that is, he is the second of Giric (bishop of the Scots), Giric, Cathróe, Eadmer of Canterbury, Eadm ...

* Colman *

Columba Columba () or Colmcille (7 December 521 – 9 June 597 AD) was an Irish abbot and missionary evangelist credited with spreading Christianity in what is today Scotland at the start of the Hiberno-Scottish mission. He founded the important abbey ...

Conran of Orkney Saint Conran of Orkney was a 7th-century Bishop of Orkney Orkney (), also known as the Orkney Islands, is an archipelago off the north coast of mainland Scotland. The plural name the Orkneys is also sometimes used, but locals now consider ...

Constantine of Strathclyde Constantine was reputedly the son and successor of King Riderch Hael of Alt Clut, the Brittonic kingdom later known as Strathclyde. (The modern English name of Alt Clut is Dumbarton Rock.) He appears only in the '' Life of St. Kentigern'' by ...

Conval Saint Conval (Conwall) (died c.630) was an Irish-born missionary who, according to legend recorded in the ''Aberdeen Breviary'', as he was praying on the sea shore "to be borne, by whatsoever means, to the regions beyond the sea", was miraculous ...

Curetán Saint Curetán ( Latin: ''Curitanus'', ''Kiritinus'', or ''Boniface'') was a Scoto-Pictish bishop and saint, (fl. between 690 and 710). He is listed as one of the witnesses in the '' Cáin Adomnáin'', where he is called "Curetan epscop". In th ...

Cuthbert Cuthbert of Lindisfarne () ( – 20 March 687) was a saint of the early Northumbrian church in the Hiberno-Scottish mission, Celtic tradition. He was a monk, bishop and hermit, associated with the monastery, monasteries of Melrose Abbey#Histo ...

D *

David I of Scotland David I or Dauíd mac Maíl Choluim (Scottish Gaelic, Modern Gaelic: ''Daibhidh I mac haoilChaluim''; – 24 May 1153) was a 12th century ruler and saint who was David I as Prince of the Cumbrians, Prince of the Cumbrians from 1113 to 112 ...

* Donald of Ogilvy *

Donnán of Eigg __NOTOC__ Saint Donnán of Eigg (also known as Donan;''The Oxford Dictionary of Saints'', p.135 died 17 April 617) was a Gaelic priest, likely from Ireland, who attempted to introduce Christianity to the Picts of northwestern Scotland during th ...

Dotto ''Dotto'' is a 1958 American television game show that was a combination of a general knowledge quiz and the children's game connect the dots. Jack Narz served as the program's host, with Colgate-Palmolive as its presenting sponsor. ''Dotto'' ro ...

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 ...

* Duthac E *

Magnus Magnus, meaning "Great" in Latin, was used as cognomen of Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus in the first century BC. The best-known use of the name during the Roman Empire is for the fourth-century Western Roman Emperor Magnus Maximus. The name gained wid ...

* Ernan F * Fergus *

Finan of Lindisfarne Finan of Lindisfarne (died 10 or 17 February 661), also known as Saint Finan, was an Irish monk, trained at Iona Abbey in Scotland, who became the second bishop of Lindisfarne from 651 until 661. Life Finan was appointed to Lindisfarne in 651, ...

Fillan of Pittenweem Saint Fillan was a sixth-century Scottish monk active in Fife. His feast day is 20 June. Fillan of Pittenweem is not to be confused with the later Fillan of Munster, who settled at Strath Fillan. Fillan of Pittenweem worked in Aberdour, (where ...

* Fillan *

Finbarr of Cork Saint Finbar, Finbarr, Finnbar, or Finnbarr, in Irish Fionnbharra, very often abbreviated to Barra, (c. 550– 25 September 623) was Bishop of Cork and abbot of a monastery in what is now the city of Cork, Ireland. He is patron saint of ...

G * Gervadius *

Gilbert de Moravia Gilbert de Moravia (died 1245), later known as Saint Gilbert of Dornoch, or Gilbert of Caithness, was the most famous Bishop of Caithness and founder of Dornoch Cathedral. His name may suggest that he came from the semi-Gaelicized family of ...

H *

Himelin Saint Himelin (Hymelin, Himelinus) (died Vissenaken, c. 750 AD) was an Irish or Scottish Paul Kempeneers. Toponymie van Vissenaken. priest who, returning from a pilgrimage to Rome, fell ill when passing through Vissenaken (in present-day part ...

I * Inan K *

Kessog Saint Kessog was an Irish people, Irish missionary of the mid-sixth century active in the Lennox (district), Lennox area and southern Perthshire. Son of the king of Cashel, County Tipperary, Cashel in Ireland, Kessog is said to have worked mirac ...

* Ronald of Orkney L *

Ludan Ludan, also known as Ludain or Luden, was a Scottish people, Scottish pilgrim to Jerusalem. On his return he died at Scherkirchen, near the city of Strasbourg, France, at which time the bells of a local church began to ring.Machan Machan may refer to: People * Machan (surname) *St Machan (died 1170s), 12th-century Scottish saint *Machan Varghese (1960–2011), Malayalam film actor Film * ''Machan'' (2008 film), 2008 Sri Lankan comedy *''Machan'', planned Tamil comedy fil ...

* Machar *

Máel Ruba Máel Ruba ( 642–722) is an Irish saint of the Celtic Church who was active in the Christianisation of the Picts and Gaels of Scotland. Originally a monk from Bangor Abbey, County Down, Gaelic Ireland, he founded the monastic community of A ...

Saint Margaret of Scotland Saint Margaret of Scotland (; , ), also known as Margaret of Wessex, was Queen of Alba from 1070 to 1093 as the wife of King Malcolm III. Margaret was sometimes called "The Pearl of Scotland". She was a member of the House of Wessex and was b ...

Marnock Marnock or Marnock of Kilmarnock (died ), also known as Marnocus, Marnan of Narnach, Marnanus, Marnocalso or originally Ernin () was a Scottish people, Scottish monk, bishop and Christian saint, saint. Biography Details on the life of Marnock ...

Medan Medan ( , ) is the capital city, capital and largest city of the Indonesian Provinces of Indonesia, province of North Sumatra. The nearby Strait of Malacca, Port of Belawan, and Kualanamu International Airport make Medan a regional hub and multi ...

Mirin is a type of rice wine and a common ingredient in Japanese cuisine, Japanese cooking. It is similar to sake but with a lower alcohol (drug), alcohol content and higher sugar content. The sugar content is a complex carbohydrate that forms natur ...

* Modan *

Molaise of Leighlin Saint Molaise of Leighlin, also Laisrén or Laserian (died ca. 639), was an early Irish saint and abbot of Lethglenn or Leithglenn, now Old Leighlin in County Carlow, who is supposed to have lived in the 6th and 7th centuries. In Scotland, he ...

Moluag Saint Moluag (c. 510 – 592; also known as ''Lua'', ''Luan'', ''Luanus'', ''Lugaidh'', ''Moloag'', ''Molluog'', ''Molua'', ''Murlach'', ''Malew''

* Monan *

Mungo Mungo may refer to: People * Mungo (name), a list of people with the given name or surname * Mungo people, an ethnic group in Cameroon Places * Mungo, Angola, a town and municipality * Mungo National Park, Australia * Lake Mungo, Australia * ...

* Munn N *

Nathalan Saint Nathalan (or Nachlan), (died 678) is a saint in the Roman Catholic Church, who was active in the district now known as Aberdeenshire, Scotland. Life Nathalan was born in the village of Tullich, for which he was eventually appointed as bisho ...

Ninian Ninian is a Christian saint, first mentioned in the 8th century as being an early missionary among the Pictish peoples of what is now Scotland. For this reason, he is known as the Apostle to the Southern Picts, and there are numerous dedicatio ...

O * Oda * Odran of Iona * John Ogilvie P *

Psalmodius Saint Psalmodius, also known as ''Psalmet, Sauman, Saumay'', was a 7th-century Christians, Christian hermit. Assumed to have been born to a noble family of Scotia,Alban Butler, ''The Lives of the Fathers, Martyrs, and Other Principal Saints'' (B ...

R *

Regulus Regulus is the brightest object in the constellation Leo (constellation), Leo and one of the List of brightest stars, brightest stars in the night sky. It has the Bayer designation designated α Leonis, which is Latinisation of names, ...

Rufus Rufus is a masculine given name, a surname, an Ancient Roman cognomen and a nickname (from Latin ''wikt:rufus, rufus'', "red"). Notable people with the name include: Given name Politicians * Marcus Caelius Rufus, (28 May 82 BC – after 48 ...

S *

Serf Serfdom was the status of many peasants under feudalism, specifically relating to manorialism and similar systems. It was a condition of debt bondage and indentured servitude with similarities to and differences from slavery. It developed du ...

T * Teneu *

Ternan Saint Ternan (''fl.'' fifth or sixth century) is venerated as the "Bishop of the Picts". Not much is known of his life. Different historians place him either at the mid-fifth century or the latter part of the sixth. Those who place him in the ear ...

Triduana Saint Triduana, also known as Trodline, Tredwell, and in Proto-Norse language, Norse as Trøllhaena, was an early Christian woman, associated with various places in Scotland. She lived at an unknown time, probably between the 4th and 8th centurie ...

W *

Wendelin of Trier Saint Wendelin of Trier (; 554 - 617 AD) was a hermit and abbot. His cultus is wide-spread in German-speaking areas. He is a patron of country folk and herdsmen. He is honored on October 22. Life Because no information about him was availabl ...

William of Perth Saint William of Perth (died c. 1201), also known as Saint William of Rochester or Saint Liam was a Scottish saint who was martyred in England. He is the patron saint of adopted children. Following his death, he gained local acclaim and was c ...

References

{{Catholic Church in Scotland

Veneration of Saint Andrew

Developments in the Early Middle Ages

Impact of the Reformation

List of Saints

See also

References