Saint John of Dailam ( syr, ܝܘܚܢܢ ܕܝܠܡܝܐ '), was a 7th-century East Syriac Christian saint and monk, who founded several monasteries in

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia ''Mesopotamíā''; ar, بِلَاد ٱلرَّافِدَيْن or ; syc, ܐܪܡ ܢܗܪ̈ܝܢ, or , ) is a historical region of Western Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the ...

and

Persia Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

. According to the hagiographical ''Syriac Life of John of Dailam'', John was born in Ḥdattā, a town on the confluence of the Upper Zab and the

Tigris The Tigris () is the easternmost of the two great rivers that define Mesopotamia, the other being the Euphrates. The river flows south from the mountains of the Armenian Highlands through the Syrian and Arabian Deserts, and empties into the ...

, in AD 660. He joined the monastery of Bēṯ ʿĀbē at a young age. He was later captured by the

Dailamites The Daylamites or Dailamites (Middle Persian: ''Daylamīgān''; fa, دیلمیان ''Deylamiyān'') were an Iranian people inhabiting the Daylam—the mountainous regions of northern Iran on the southwest coast of the Caspian Sea, now comprisin ...

who were at war with the invading Arabs and was carried away to the

Daylam Daylam, also known in the plural form Daylaman (and variants such as Dailam, Deylam, and Deilam), was the name of a mountainous region of inland Gilan, Iran. It was so named for its inhabitants, known as the Daylamites. The Church of the East es ...

region in southern shores of the

Caspian Sea The Caspian Sea is the world's largest inland body of water, often described as the world's largest lake or a full-fledged sea. An endorheic basin, it lies between Europe and Asia; east of the Caucasus, west of the broad steppe of Central Asia ...

. He broke away from captivity and went on preaching in the area spreading Christianity among its inhabitants. The ''Syriac Life'' describes a miraculous intervention by John that saved the life of the daughter of the

Umayyad The Umayyad Caliphate (661–750 CE; , ; ar, ٱلْخِلَافَة ٱلْأُمَوِيَّة, al-Khilāfah al-ʾUmawīyah) was the second of the four major caliphates established after the death of Muhammad. The caliphate was ruled by the ...

Caliph. As a reward the monk asked for a Kharaj-free land in Fars, in south-western Persia, to build a monastery there. The ''Syriac Life'' mentions a visit by John to

Bakhdida Qaraqosh, also known as Al-Hamdaniya or Bakhdida, is an Assyrian city in Iraq within the Nineveh Governorate, located about 32 km (20 mi) southeast of the city of Mosul and 60 km (37 mi) west of Erbil amid agricultural lands, close ...

where he converted its inhabitants to Christianity and founded a monastery which still bears his name. This is however a later addition to the hagiography by a West Syrian author who wished to conceal the "Nestorian" past of the town. On his way to Fars, John miraculously healed the Arab governor of Iraq al-Hajjaj. Upon reaching

Arrajan Arrajan (Argan) was a medieval Persian city located between Fars and Khuzestan, which was settled since Elam period and an important in the Sasanian period until the 11th century. It was the capital of a medieval province of the same name, which ...

, he converted a number of Zoroastrians and founded a monastery there. He also founded another monastery near

Kashkar Kashkar, also known as Kaskar, ( syc, ܟܫܟܪ), was a city in southern Mesopotamia. Its name appears to originate from Syriac ' meaning "citadel" or "town". Other sources connect it to ' "farming". It was originally built on the Tigris, across th ...

which was assigned to the Syriac-speaking community in order to resolve a conflict between the Syriac- and Persian-speaking monks of the region. It was at that monastery that John of Dailam died on 26 January 738.

References

{{authority control 8th-century Christian saints Mesopotamian saints 738 deaths 660 births Syriac Orthodox Church saints Assyrian Church of the East saints Iraqi Christians Iranian Christians Monks of the Church of the East