Adomnan's Life of Columba

BL With revised Latin text and English translation

BL New historical notes and rewritten Introduction

Columba is one of the best-known saints of the early Celtic church; through his foundation of the abbey of Iona he had a far-reaching influence on medieval Christianity. In about 700, a century after his death, the Life of Columba was written by Adomnan, ninth abbot of Iona. It has long been valued as the major primary source on the subject, for the light it throws on early medieval Scotland and Ireland, and as an important work of literature.

The 1961 edition of the Life, by Alan and Marjorie Anderson, has long been unavailable. Marjorie Anderson has now revised both the Latin text and the English translation, provided new historical notes, and rewritten the Introduction to take account of recent work in the area. This new edition of a source indispensable for the study of the early medieval church meets a major scholarly need.