Saint Sulien
Reputed 6th-century founder-abbot of a monastery at Luxulyan in Cornwall
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Saint Sulien, Sulian, or Silin was the reputed 6th-century founder-abbot of a monastery at Luxulyan ("Chapel of Sulien")[1] in Cornwall. His feast day is 29 July. He is likely the same as the Saint Sulien of Cornouaille and Domnonée.[2][3] The prefix "lux" is equivalent to "loc" which means place. It is common in Brittany, but not in Cornwall, which suggests this is a Breton foundation.[4]
Saint Sulien | |
|---|---|
| Born | c. 6th century |
| Died | c. 6th century probably Luxulyan, Cornwall |
| Venerated in | Christianity |
| Feast | 29 July |
Etymology
Sulien is a Welsh variant of the given name "Julian," but has also been interpreted as being derived from the Welsh sul, meaning "sun" + geni, meaning "born," Sulien being the name of a Celtic solar deity.[5]
There have probably been other Christian Celtic saints with the same (or similar) name, and a variant of it is also used as an alias of Saint Tysilio.
Other Saint Suliens
Confusion has arisen between different legends of Celtic saints with the name Sulien (in a variety of spellings). The most commonly encountered are:
- Saint Sulien the Wise, bishop of St Davids.[6]
- Saint Sulinus of East Brittany – feast day 1 October.
- Saint Suliau (of Wales) or Saint Tysilio, a Welsh prince – feast day 8 November.
- Saint Sulien and his brother (or cousin Saint Maël) of Corwen in mid-Wales.
