Hagiographical texts from Synaxaria, edited by K. Kekelidze

Summary

This dossier concerns anonymous hagiographical texts from Georgian synaxaria, as edited by K. Kekelidze. Synaxaria are liturgical collections of saints' lives arranged by calendar date, used in Georgian churches for devotional reading on feast days. The individual hagiographies may originate earlier than the manuscripts, which date between the 10th and 18th centuries. Kekelidze's edition lacks critical apparatus, making it difficult to assess textual variation. The texts follow standard hagiographic patterns, such as martyrdom accounts set during the Diocletianic persecutions. They reflect the liturgical and communal life of the Georgian Orthodox tradition, preserving local and universal saints' cults.

These texts are important for understanding the liturgical and devotional life of the medieval Georgian Church. They illustrate how hagiography was adapted for local use, preserving both universal and regional saints. The edition by Kekelidze, though lacking critical apparatus, provides access to a rich manuscript tradition. The texts relate to broader Byzantine and Eastern Christian hagiographic corpora, showing the spread and adaptation of saint cults across linguistic and cultural boundaries.

Historical context

The texts are preserved in Georgian synaxaria, compiled between the 10th and 18th centuries, though the individual hagiographies may be older. The Georgian Church, part of Eastern Orthodox Christianity, developed its own liturgical and literary traditions, often translating and adapting Greek and Syriac sources. Synaxaria were used for public reading during services, reinforcing communal identity and piety. The manuscripts (e.g., A-193 and A-626) indicate a complex transmission with multiple recensions. Kekelidze's edition does not provide precise dating for each entry, so the original composition dates remain uncertain. The hagiographies often follow standard patterns, such as martyrdom under Roman emperors like Diocletian and Maximian, reflecting the influence of earlier Byzantine hagiography. The Georgian context shows a vibrant Christian culture that integrated local saints with broader Orthodox traditions.

Annotation and terms

6 commentary units 1 sense1 background1 term1 structure1 caution1 reception 0 derived notes 1 open questions 1 narrative

What the kinds mean

sense — what the passage says
background — historical or institutional context the text presupposes
term — a Coptic word and the rendering chosen for it
structure — the passage's function in the work
caution — uncertainty or a contested reading
reception — later use — liturgy, canon law, daughter versions

Pipeline notes

limitThe English is a machine draft produced passage by passage from the transcribed Coptic; no human has verified it. The commentary is model-written and cites only keys the pipeline could resolve.
registerRegister: hagiography in Old Georgian; the English keeps the liturgical formulae and the vocatives rather than normalising them.
structurePassages: 1 narrative.
sourceSource edition: titus — This text is part of the TITUS edition of Hagiographical Texts from Synaxaria, ed. by K. Kekelidze. Copyright TITUS Project, Frankfurt a/M, 21.8.2015. No parts of this document may be republished in any form without prior permission by the copyright holder.

Term index

Coptic	Rendering	Count	First
no glossary terms recorded

ghsyn:1 · narrativehigh

Source

მარტვილობა ევფრასია ქალწულისა Manuscripts: Ms. A-193, 140; Ms. A-626, 256-257 წმიდა მოწამე ევფრასიაჲ იყო ქალაქით ნიკომიდიაჲთ მაქსიმიანესზე მეფისა ნათესავთა წარჩინებულთაჲ, სახითა პატიოსანი და წმიდაჲ. ხოლო რამეთუ არა თავს იდვა გებაჲ კერპთაჲ, იგუემა ფრიად და, ვითარ თჳსსავე სიმტკიცესა ზედა ეგო, მიეცა იგი გინებად კაცსა ბარბაროზსა, რომლისა მიერცა წარეკუეთა თავი ღონითა ესევითარითა: რამეთუ ჰრქუა მას ვითარმედ უკუეთუ განეყენოს მისგან, მისცეს მას წამალი, რომელი იცხოს და მახჳლისაგან და ლახურისა ბრძოლთაჲსა მოუწყვლელად ეგოს, და უკუეთუ გამოცადოს საქმით, ცნას ჭეშმარიტებაჲ მისი. ესე ჰრქუა და ქედი თჳსი წარუპყრა მახჳლსა.ხოლო მას ეგონა, ვითარმედ ჭეშმარიტსა იტყჳს, და ძლიერად უხეთქნა მახჳლითა, და ესრეთ წარეკუეთა თავი მისი უბიწოჲ."

English

The Martyrdom of the Virgin Euphrasia Manuscripts: Ms. A-193, 140; Ms. A-626, 256-257 The holy martyr Euphrasia was from the city of Nicomedia, of the noble kin of the emperor Maximian, honorable and holy in form. But because she did not accept the worship of idols, she was greatly persecuted, and, as she persisted in her own steadfastness, she was given over for defilement to a barbarian man, by whose hand her head was cut off in the following manner: For he said to her that if she would yield to him, he would give her a salve which, when applied, would render her invulnerable to the sword and to the wounds of battle, and if she would test it by deed, she would know its truth. He said this and presented his own neck to the sword. But she thought that he spoke the truth, and she struck him mightily with the sword, and thus her own innocent head was cut off.

Commentary

sensetextმარტვილობა ევფრასია ქალწულისა

The title 'Martyrdom of the Virgin Euphrasia' identifies the genre as a martyrdom account, typical of synaxarial hagiography.

source edition: Hagiographical texts from Synaxaria, edited by K. Kekelidze

backgroundbackgroundნიკომიდიაჲ

Nicomedia was an important city in Bithynia and a frequent setting for Diocletianic persecutions; Maximian (here 'Maximianes') was co-emperor with Diocletian.

termglossaryქალწულისა

The Georgian term 'ქალწულისა' (virgin) underscores Euphrasia's chastity, a key virtue in hagiography, and her refusal of defilement.

structuretext

The narrative follows a standard pattern: introduction of the saint, persecution for refusing idolatry, a trick by the persecutor, and a paradoxical martyrdom.

source edition: Hagiographical texts from Synaxaria, edited by K. Kekelidze

cautiontextწარეკუეთა თავი

The phrase 'her head was cut off' is ambiguous: it could mean Euphrasia's head was cut off by the barbarian's sword, or that she inadvertently beheaded herself while striking him. The English draft opts for the latter, but the Georgian allows both readings.

receptiontext

This text is preserved in two Georgian manuscripts (A-193 and A-626) from the synaxarial tradition, indicating its liturgical use in commemorating martyrs.

source edition: Hagiographical texts from Synaxaria, edited by K. Kekelidze

Open questions · 1

The Georgian does not explicitly state whether Euphrasia's head was cut off by the barbarian's sword or by her own action in striking him; the English draft interprets it as self-inflicted.

Citation. Tergwame, “Hagiographical texts from Synaxaria, edited by K. Kekelidze”, ghsyn:1, machine-draft, 2026. https://naxiai.com/christian/works/ghsyn#s1

Colophon. Source: titus · licence: This text is part of the TITUS edition of Hagiographical Texts from Synaxaria, ed. by K. Kekelidze. Copyright TITUS Project, Frankfurt a/M, 21.8.2015. No parts of this document may be republished in any form without prior permission by the copyright holder. · model: deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash:floor · provider: Relace · cost: $0.0010 · generated 2026-11-15.