Æbbe of Oxford
Encyclopedia
Æbbe was a saint
venerated in medieval Oxfordshire
. St Ebbe's church in the southern English city of Oxford
had been verifiably dedicated to the saint by 1091. It is believed that she represents a rare southern expression of the cult of the Northumbria
n abbess
and saint, Æbbe of Coldingham, to whom the church at Shelswell
, also in Oxfordshire, was dedicated.
It has also been argued by several historians that Æbbe of Oxford is the same Æbbe as the conjectured abbess-saint who gave her name to nearby Abingdon
("hill of Æbbe").
Saint
A saint is a holy person. In various religions, saints are people who are believed to have exceptional holiness.In Christian usage, "saint" refers to any believer who is "in Christ", and in whom Christ dwells, whether in heaven or in earth...
venerated in medieval Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire
Oxfordshire is a county in the South East region of England, bordering on Warwickshire and Northamptonshire , Buckinghamshire , Berkshire , Wiltshire and Gloucestershire ....
. St Ebbe's church in the southern English city of Oxford
Oxford
The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...
had been verifiably dedicated to the saint by 1091. It is believed that she represents a rare southern expression of the cult of the Northumbria
Northumbria
Northumbria was a medieval kingdom of the Angles, in what is now Northern England and South-East Scotland, becoming subsequently an earldom in a united Anglo-Saxon kingdom of England. The name reflects the approximate southern limit to the kingdom's territory, the Humber Estuary.Northumbria was...
n abbess
Abbess
An abbess is the female superior, or mother superior, of a community of nuns, often an abbey....
and saint, Æbbe of Coldingham, to whom the church at Shelswell
Shelswell
Shelswell is a hamlet in Oxfordshire about south of Brackley in neighbouring Northamptonshire.-Manor:Shelswell's toponym comes from Old English and suggest's that the settlement may originally have been the well belonging to Scield, a Saxon settler. The spring that gave rise to this well is no...
, also in Oxfordshire, was dedicated.
It has also been argued by several historians that Æbbe of Oxford is the same Æbbe as the conjectured abbess-saint who gave her name to nearby Abingdon
Abingdon, Oxfordshire
Abingdon or archaically Abingdon-on-Thames is a market town and civil parish in Oxfordshire, England. It is the seat of the Vale of White Horse district. Previously the county town of Berkshire, Abingdon is one of several places that claim to be Britain's oldest continuously occupied town, with...
("hill of Æbbe").