Saint Columba

Life story

Columba, in Irish Colum Cille, was born around 521 at Gartan in County Donegal into a royal lineage. He studied under monastic teachers, among them Finnian, was ordained priest, and founded several monasteries in Ireland, including Derry and Durrow.

Around 563 he left Ireland for the island of Iona, off the west coast of Scotland, with a band of companions. A later legend says he went as penance after a conflict over a copy of a Psalter, but this detail is not reliable. On the island he founded a monastery that would become a major religious and scholarly centre of the region.

From Iona he and his monks set out to preach among the Picts in northern Scotland. According to the biography by Adomnán, he met King Bridei near Inverness. That biography was written about a century after his death and contains many traditional elements.

He died on 9 June 597 on Iona, by Adomnán's account while copying the Psalter. His monastery remained an important missionary centre for centuries. He is one of the patron saints of Ireland. In later generations Iona sent out monks who founded further communities in Scotland and northern England; Lindisfarne was founded in 635 by Aidan, who came from Iona at the invitation of King Oswald. Bede describes the influence of Columba's monastery on the Christianisation of northern Britain. He is also remembered in later traditions as a scribe and as a founder who valued books, and his feast is kept on 9 June.

Works and witness

• Founded monasteries in Ireland, including Derry and Durrow
• Around 563, established a monastery on the island of Iona
• Preached among the Picts in northern Scotland
• His life was written by Adomnán about a century after his death

Patron of

Ireland (co-patron)

Saints from the same country

Saint Patrick, Saint Brigid of Ireland, Saint Columbanus, Saint Oliver Plunkett

References

• Adomnán, Life of Columba
• Bede, Ecclesiastical History of the English People
• Martyrologium Romanum

Written by Anawim from documented history. Some details about ancient saints rest on tradition and are marked as such.