Monday 23 March 2020

Saint Mocholla, March 23


March 23 sees the recording of a number of obscure female saints on the Irish calendars. Along with an elusive Saint Lasair and the Daughters of Feradach, we also find a Saint Mocholla.  I find this interesting because Mocholla is normally regarded as one of the forms of the name Colum, which is a male name. Even more curious is the fact that we have a female Saint Columba recorded two days hence on March 25. Canon O'Hanlon can only produce a single sentence on today's holy lady:
St. Mocholla, Virgin.

This day, the Martyrology of Donegal, as also the Bollandists,  have on record a festival, in honour of St. Mocholla, Virgin. 
 All I can add is that her name is also recorded in the lovely verse of the Martyrology of Gorman as mo Cholla chaemh chruthgel, 'my Colla, dear, white-formed' but is missing from the earlier martyrologies of Oengus and Tallaght.


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