Jacob of Edessa
Jacob of Edessa | |
|---|---|
| Saint | |
A Syriac icon of St. Jacob absorbed in study | |
| Native name | ܝܰܥܩܽܘܒ ܐܽܘܪܗܰܝܳܐ |
| Church | Syriac Orthodox Church |
| Diocese | Edessa |
| See | Antioch |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Ya'qub c. 640 AD Aindaba |
| Died | 708 AD Edessa
(modern-day Şanlıurfa, Turkey) |
| Sainthood | |
| Feast day | June 5 |
| Venerated in | Oriental Orthodox Church, especially Syriac Orthodox Church |
Jacob of Edessa or James of Edessa (Syriac: ܝܰܥܩܽܘܒ ܐܽܘܪܗܰܝܳܐ, romanized: Yaʿqub Urhāyā; c. 640 – 5 June 708) was a Syriac Orthodox bishop of Edessa, scholar, and translator. Renowned for his multilingual mastery, he made lasting contributions to biblical revision, canon law, grammar and liturgy, and played a key role in standardizing theological terminology. His synthesis of Greek and Syriac traditions shaped the development of Syriac Christianity and facilitated the transmission of Hellenistic thought into the Islamic world.
Mor Ignatius Zakka I Iwas, the late Syriac Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch, ranked Jacob among the greatest Syriac Orthodox Fathers, alongside Ephrem the Syrian, Jacob Baradaeus, Philoxenus of Mabbug, Severus of Antioch, and Michael the Syrian.