Saint Non
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| Non | |
|---|---|
| Born | 5th century, probably Pembrokeshire |
| Died | 6th century, Brittany or Cornwall |
| Venerated in | Anglican Communion; Roman Catholic Church |
| Major shrine | Dirinon, Finistère |
| Feast | 3 March |
 Saints Portal |
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Non (also Nonna or Nonnita) was, according to Christian tradition, the mother of Saint David (Dewi Sant), the patron saint of Wales.
Her legend states that she was seduced by a chieftain named Sant or Sanctus and gave birth to David. Variations on her story state that she was either married to Sant before David's birth or after the birth of the saint. Subsequently, she would travel to Cornwall and ultimately end her days in a Breton convent.[1]
Rhigyfarch, the late 11th century author of David's vita, wrote that the saint was the son of sanctus rex ceredigionis, where Sanctus has been interpreted as a proper name and its owner honoured by Welsh Christians as Sandde, King of Ceredigion. However, this Latin phrase can equally well mean simply "holy king of Ceredigion". David was conceived through violence and his mother, Non, the daughter of the nobleman Cynyr of Caer Goch (in Pembrokeshire), gave birth to him on a cliff top in the middle of a violent storm. The pain of birth was said to have been so intense that Non's fingers left marks as she grasped a rock, and as David was born, a bolt of lightning is said to split the rock in two. It is also believed that the two split pieces of rock were the foundation stones for St. David's Cathedral and St Non's Chapel.[2]
[edit] Veneration
The place where she gave birth to Saint David in South Wales is now named Capel Non.[2] Non's relics were initially venerated in Cornwall. However, these were destroyed during the Reformation.[3]
[edit] References
[edit] External links
- Saint Non in A Dictionary of Saintly Women (1905), which contains a fair-sized hagiography for her.
- Early British Kingdoms: St Non
