Marnock or Marnock of Kilmarnock (died AD 625), also known as Marnan of Narnach, Marnanus, Marnocalso or originally Ernin () was a

Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

monk A monk (, from el, μοναχός, ''monachos'', "single, solitary" via Latin ) is a person who practices religious asceticism by monastic living, either alone or with any number of other monks. A monk may be a person who decides to dedica ...

bishop A bishop is an ordained clergy member who is entrusted with a position of authority and oversight in a religious institution. In Christianity, bishops are normally responsible for the governance of dioceses. The role or office of bishop is ...

and saint.

Biography

Details on the life of Marnock that have survived to the present day are limited, though some facts are known. Marnock was born in

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

, most likely in the late 6th century. He became a monk on the

abbey An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christian monks and nuns. The conce ...

Iona Iona (; gd, Ì Chaluim Chille (IPA: �iːˈxaɫ̪ɯimˈçiʎə, sometimes simply ''Ì''; sco, Iona) is a small island in the Inner Hebrides, off the Ross of Mull on the western coast of Scotland. It is mainly known for Iona Abbey, though the ...

where he became a student and disciple of

Columba Columba or Colmcille; gd, Calum Cille; gv, Colum Keeilley; non, Kolban or at least partly reinterpreted as (7 December 521 – 9 June 597 AD) was an Irish abbot and missionary evangelist credited with spreading Christianity in what is tod ...

. He later left the monastery to become a missionary bishop on the Scottish mainland. It is widely accepted that Marnock died at Annandale in 625, however at least one account gives his place of death and burial site as ''Inchmarnoch'' near

Aboyne Aboyne ( sco, Abyne, gd, Abèidh) is a village on the edge of the Highlands in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, on the River Dee, approximately west of Aberdeen. It has a swimming pool at Aboyne Academy, all-weather tennis courts, a bowling green an ...

Aberdeenshire Aberdeenshire ( sco, Aiberdeenshire; gd, Siorrachd Obar Dheathain) is one of the 32 council areas of Scotland. It takes its name from the County of Aberdeen which has substantially different boundaries. The Aberdeenshire Council area incl ...

Veneration and legacy

A strong cult of veneration developed for Marnock after his death, particularly in the region of the

Scottish Borders The Scottish Borders ( sco, the Mairches, 'the Marches'; gd, Crìochan na h-Alba) is one of 32 council areas of Scotland. It borders the City of Edinburgh, Dumfries and Galloway, East Lothian, Midlothian, South Lanarkshire, West Lot ...

. Marnock's head was kept as a

relic In religion, a relic is an object or article of religious significance from the past. It usually consists of the physical remains of a saint or the personal effects of the saint or venerated person preserved for purposes of veneration as a tang ...

at Kilmarnock, where a tradition emerged where it was washed each Sunday, with the resulting wash water given to the sick to effect miraculous cures. The strength of Marnock's cult in the centuries that followed his death is demonstrated in the great number of locations, in

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to th ...

as well as in

, named in his honour, including: * Ardmonoch, a locality within

Kilfinan Kilfinan is a hamlet on the Cowal peninsula in Argyll and Bute, Scotland. Located on the eastern side of Loch Fyne, the hamlet is northwest of the village of Tighnabruaich. Kilfinan is the burial place of the clan chiefs of the Lamonts, in the ...

in Argyll and Bute * Dalmarnock a district within Glasgow * Dalmarnock, a farmsteading near

Dunkeld Dunkeld (, sco, Dunkell, from gd, Dùn Chailleann, "fort of the Caledonians") is a town in Perth and Kinross, Scotland. The location of a historic cathedral, it lies on the north bank of the River Tay, opposite Birnam. Dunkeld lies close to ...

, and the adjacent ''Dalmarnock Beat'', a salmon fishery on the

River Tay The River Tay ( gd, Tatha, ; probably from the conjectured Brythonic ''Tausa'', possibly meaning 'silent one' or 'strong one' or, simply, 'flowing') is the longest river in Scotland and the seventh-longest in Great Britain. The Tay originates i ...

* Inchmarnoch, an island on the River Dee in Aberdeenshire where Marnock established a chapel and, by some accounts, died and was buried * Inchmarnock, an isle at the northern end of the Sound of Bute * Kilmarnock, a town in Ayrshire *

Portmarnock Portmarnock () is a coastal suburban settlement in Fingal, Ireland, with significant beaches, a modest commercial core and inland residential estates, and two golf courses, including one of Ireland's best-known golf clubs. , the population was ...

, a coastal hamlet in Fingal, Ireland * Naomh Mearnóg CLG, a GAA club in Portmarnock * Marnoch, a parish in Aberdeenshire * Marnock Oil Field, at the centre of the

Eastern Trough Area Project The Eastern Trough Area Project, commonly known as ETAP, is a network of nine smaller oil and gas fields in the Central North Sea covering an area up to 35 km in diameter. There are a total of nine different fields, six operated by BP and ...

, 150 miles east of Aberdeen under the North Sea.

References

Scottish Roman Catholic saints Medieval Irish saints Medieval Scottish saints Irish Roman Catholic saints 6th-century Christian saints 7th-century Christian saints 625 deaths Year of birth unknown Christian_missionaries_in_Scotland {{ireland-saint-stub