St. Herman of Solovki (russian: Герман Соловецкий, died 1479) was one of the founders of the

Solovetsky Monastery The Solovetsky Monastery ( rus, Солове́цкий монасты́рь, p=səlɐˈvʲɛtskʲɪj mənɐˈstɨrʲ) is a fortified monastery located on the Solovetsky Islands in the White Sea in northern Russia. It was one of the largest Christ ...

. In total, he lived in

Solovetsky Islands The Solovetsky Islands (russian: Солове́цкие острова́), or Solovki (), are an archipelago located in the Onega Bay of the White Sea, Russia. As an administrative division, the islands are incorporated as Solovetsky District of ...

, at the time, the most remote location, for about 50 years. In 1429 Herman, who was presumably of Karelian origin, met a monk,

Sabbatius Sabbatius of Solovki (russian: Савватий Соловецкий - Savvaty Solovetsky; died September 27, 1435) was one of the founders of the Solovetsky Monastery. Life Savvaty (Sabbatius) was a monk at Kirillo-Belozersky Monastery. Searchi ...

, who previously settled near a

chapel A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common ty ...

on the

Vyg River The Vyg (russian: Выг) is a river in Republic of Karelia. Consists of the Upper Vyg, 135 km long, discharging into Lake Vygozero, and the Lower Vyg, 102 km long, flowing from Lake Vygozero and discharging into Onega Bay of the White ...

. They were both looking for a desolate place, to avoid the crowds. They sailed together to

, where they lived as

hermit A hermit, also known as an eremite (adjectival form: hermitic or eremitic) or solitary, is a person who lives in seclusion. Eremitism plays a role in a variety of religions. Description In Christianity, the term was originally applied to a Ch ...

s. In 1435 Savvatiy died, and Herman returned to the continent, where in 1436 he met Zosima. Together with Zosima, he returned to the islands, and, when eventually the monks started to arrive there,

was founded. Zosima eventually became the

hegumen Hegumen, hegumenos, or igumen ( el, ἡγούμενος, trans. ), is the title for the head of a monastery in the Eastern Orthodox and Eastern Catholic Churches, similar to the title of abbot. The head of a convent of nuns is called a hegumenia ...

of the monastery, which was subordinate to the Eparchy of Novgorod. In 1479, after the death of Zosima, the new hegumen, Arseniy, sent Herman to Novgorod. Herman died in Novgorod at the same year, and his relics were to be moved back to Solovetsky Monastery. However, the monks did not manage to do it during the season, and buried Herman on

Svir River The Svir (, Veps: , Karelian/Finnish: ) is a river in Podporozhsky, Lodeynopolsky, and Volkhovsky districts in the north-east of Leningrad Oblast, Russia. It flows westwards from Lake Onega to Lake Ladoga, thus connecting the two largest ...

. In 1484, the relics were transferred to Solovetsky Monastery. Since 1692, Herman is

venerated Veneration ( la, veneratio; el, τιμάω ), 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. Etymo ...

as a

saint In religious belief, a saint is a person who is recognized as having an exceptional degree of Q-D-Š, holiness, likeness, or closeness to God. However, the use of the term ''saint'' depends on the context and Christian denomination, denominat ...

by the

Russian Orthodox Church , native_name_lang = ru , image = Moscow July 2011-7a.jpg , imagewidth = , alt = , caption = Cathedral of Christ the Saviour in Moscow, Russia , abbreviation = ROC , type ...

. Feast days are 30 July (12 August) ( invention of the relics) and 8 (21) August ( translation of the relics).Преподобный Герман Соловецкий
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References

{{authority control 1479 deaths Russian Orthodox monks Russian saints of the Eastern Orthodox Church White Sea 15th-century Christian saints Year of birth unknown 15th-century Christian monks