Saint Ia of Cornwall (also known as ''Eia'', ''Hia'' or ''Hya'') was an evangelist and

martyr A martyr (, ''mártys'', "witness", or , ''marturia'', 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 externa ...

of the 5th or 6th centuries in

Cornwall Cornwall (; kw, Kernow ) is a historic county and ceremonial county in South West England. It is recognised as one of the Celtic nations, and is the homeland of the Cornish people. Cornwall is bordered to the north and west by the Atlantic ...

. She is said to have been an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

princess, the sister of

Erc of Slane Erc mac Dega ( la, Ercus; kw, Erth), also known (incorrectly) as Herygh, was an Irish saint. He was active in Cornwall. Tradition ascribes the foundation of the original monastery on the Hill of Slane to him. Early life Erc, son of Dago, is b ...

and a student of Saint Baricus.

Legend

Ia went to the seashore to depart for Cornwall from her native Ireland along with other saints. Finding that they had gone without her, fearing that she was too young for such a hazardous journey, she was grief-stricken and began to pray. As she prayed, she noticed a small leaf floating on the water and touched it with a rod to see if it would sink. As she watched, it grew bigger and bigger. Trusting God, she embarked upon the leaf and was carried across the

Irish Sea The Irish Sea or , gv, Y Keayn Yernagh, sco, Erse Sie, gd, Muir Èireann , Ulster-Scots: ''Airish Sea'', cy, Môr Iwerddon . is an extensive body of water that separates the islands of Ireland and Great Britain. It is linked to the Ce ...

. She reached Cornwall before the others, where she joined

Saint Gwinear Saint Gwinear was a Celtic martyr, one of only two early Cornish saints whose biographies survived the Reformation. The ''Life of Gwinear'' was written in the early 14th century by a priest named Anselm, and has sometimes been printed among Sai ...

and

Felec of Cornwall Felec or Felix was an obscure 5th- or 6th-century British saint active in Cornwall. The church of St Felicitas and St Piala's Church, Phillack near Hayle is dedicated to Saint Felec (as he appears in a 10th-century Vatican codex). Later generati ...

. Legend holds that they had up to 777 companions. She is said to have founded an oratory in a clearing in a wood on the site of the existing Parish Church that is dedicated to her. Ia was martyred under "King Teudar" (i.e.,

Tewdwr Mawr Tewdwr Mawr ( Breton for "Theodore the Great"; kw, Teudar Maur or '; cy, Tewdr; la, Theodorus; french: Thierry; mid-6th century) was an early medieval king in Armorica (now Cornouaille, France) and Cornwall. Life Tewdwr was a member of the roy ...

Penwith Penwith (; kw, Pennwydh) is an area of Cornwall, England, United Kingdom, located on the peninsula of the same name. It is also the name of a former Non-metropolitan district, local government district, whose council was based in Penzance. ...

) on the

River Hayle A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of wa ...

and buried at what is now St Ives, where St Ia's Church—of which she is now the

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

—was erected over her grave. The town built up around it, and the nearby Catholic church is dedicated to the Sacred Heart and St Ia. Her

feast day The calendar of saints is the traditional Christian method of organizing a liturgical year by associating each day with one or more saints and referring to the day as the feast day or feast of said saint. The word "feast" in this context d ...

is 3 February. A now ruined chapel near

Troon Troon is a town 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 freight services and a yacht marina. Up until January 2016, P&O Ferrie ...

was also dedicated to her. The church of

Plouyé Plouyé (; "Parish of Ia") is a commune in the Finistère department of Brittany in northwestern France. Population Inhabitants of Plouyé are called in French ''Plouyéziens''. See also *Communes of the Finistère department The followi ...

Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, Historical region, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known ...

was probably dedicated originally to this saint as well. John Leland gives details from a Latin

hagiography A hagiography (; ) is a biography of a saint or an ecclesiastical leader, as well as, by extension, an adulatory and idealized biography of a founder, saint, monk, nun or icon in any of the world's religions. Early Christian hagiographies migh ...

of Ia, which is no longer extant.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ia of Cornwall Late Ancient Christian female saints 5th-century Christian saints 5th-century Christian martyrs 6th-century Christian saints Medieval Irish saints of Cornwall People from County Meath St Ives, Cornwall Year of death unknown Year of birth unknown Irish princesses 5th-century Irish women 6th-century Irish women 5th-century Irish people 5th-century English women 5th-century English people 6th-century Irish people 6th-century English women 6th-century English people Female saints of medieval Ireland