Aileran

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Saint Aileran (died 29 December 664), an Irish saint, was generally known as "the Wise", and was one of the most distinguished professors at the School of Clonard in the seventh century. He died of the Yellow Plague, and his death is chronicled in the "Annals of Ulster".

His early life is not recorded, but he was attracted to the School of Clonard by the fame of Saint Finnian and his disciples. He became rector of the school in 650. Because of his knowledge of the works of Origen, Philo, St. Jerome, St. Augustine, and others, he can be called a master of Latin and Greek.

According to Colgan, numerous works can be ascribed to Saint Aileran, including the "Fourth Life of Saint Patrick," a Latin-Irish litany, and the "Lives of Saint Brigid and Saint Fechin of Fore". The best known work of Saint Aileran is his tract on the genealogy of Jesus, according to Saint Matthew. Another work of his is titled "A Short Moral Explanation of the Sacred Names", which could be a fragment of a larger work.

His feast day is December 20.

This article incorporates text from the public-domain Catholic Encyclopedia of 1913.