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Venerable (Monastic)11th century

Venerable George of Mount Athos

c. 1009 – 1065

Also known as George the Athonite · George the Hagiorite

A Georgian raised in the monastic life from childhood who became a great light of the Iveron monastery on Athos, completing the translation of the Scriptures and the service-books into the Georgian tongue.

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Commemorated as

Our Venerable Father George the Hagiorite of Iviron

Life

George the Hagiorite (also called George of Athos or George of Iviron) was an eleventh-century Georgian monk, abbot, and translator whose work established the Iveron monastery on Mount Athos as a leading center of Georgian Orthodox learning. Raised in the monastic life from childhood, he became renowned for rendering the Scriptures and the service-books of the Church into the Georgian tongue.

Born into an aristocratic family in the southern Georgian province of Trialeti, he was educated from boyhood in Georgian monasteries and later in Constantinople, where he mastered Greek and Byzantine theology. After tonsure and travels through Jerusalem and the Black Mountain near Antioch, he settled at Iviron on Athos, where he served as hegumen and devoted himself to translation and monastic reform until his death in 1065.

Troparion1 hymnReadHide
TroparionTone 8

By a flood of tears you made the desert fertile,
and your longing for God brought forth fruits in abundance.
By the radiance of miracles you illumined the whole universe!
O our holy father George, pray to Christ our God to save our souls!

Text used with permission of the Orthodox Church in America (oca.org).

Timeline7 momentsReadHide
  1. c. 1009Born in TrialetiBorn in Trialeti, a southern province of the Kingdom of Georgia, to the nobleman Jacob and his wife Mariam.
  2. c. 1016Sent at about age seven to theSent at about age seven to the monastery of Tadzrisi to begin his education; after three years moved to Khakhuli.
  3. c. 1022Sent to ConstantinopleSent to Constantinople, where he mastered Greek and Byzantine theology.
  4. 1034Returned to Georgia and took monastic tonsureReturned to Georgia and took monastic tonsure at Khakhuli; afterward made a pilgrimage to Jerusalem and became a disciple of George the Recluse on the Black Mountain near Antioch.
  5. 1040Established himself at the Iviron monastery onEstablished himself at the Iviron monastery on Mount Athos.
  6. c. 1044Consecrated hegumen of Iviron upon the deathConsecrated hegumen of Iviron upon the death of his predecessor Stephanos.
  7. 1065Died at AthensDied at Athens; the Athonite monks interred him at the Iviron monastery.

Contributions & Legacy

5 contributionsReadHide

Early Life and Education

George was born around 1009 in Trialeti, a southern province of the Kingdom of Georgia, into the aristocratic family of Jacob — sometime an envoy of King Bagrat III of Georgia to Iran — and his wife Mariam.

At about the age of seven he was sent to the monastery of Tadzrisi to begin his education, and after three years moved to Khakhuli. Around 1022 he was sent to Constantinople, where he mastered Greek and acquired a profound knowledge of Byzantine theology before returning to Georgia in 1034.

Monastic Life and the Iviron Abbacy

On returning to Georgia in 1034 George took monastic tonsure at Khakhuli. He then made a pilgrimage to Jerusalem and spent a period as the disciple of another Georgian monk, George the Recluse, on the Black Mountain near Antioch.

In 1040 he established himself at the Iviron monastery on Mount Athos — its name meaning 'of the Georgians.' About four years later, upon the death of the hegumen Stephanos, George was consecrated as his successor. As abbot he reorganized and refurbished the cloister and developed it into a vibrant center of Georgian Orthodox culture.

Translations and Writings

George was among the foremost translators of the Georgian tradition. He produced an updated translation of the Gospels and rendered extensive material from Greek into Georgian, including the Psalms, works of exegesis, synaxaria, and the writings of the Fathers of the Church — among them Basil of Caesarea, Gregory of Nyssa, Athanasius, and John of Damascus. He also revised the work of his predecessors and translated anti-Latin writings attributed to Photius.

His principal original composition is the Vitae of Our Blessed Fathers John and Euthymius, written after 1040 — a manuscript of some twelve thousand words that serves as both a history and a praise of the Iviron community and its Georgian founders.

Relics & Shrines

George died at Athens in 1065 while on a journey, and the Athonite monks interred him at the Iviron monastery on Mount Athos, the community he had led and enriched.

Veneration

George the Hagiorite was canonized by the Georgian Orthodox Church. He is commemorated on June 27; the Georgian Church also keeps his memory on July 10.

Works & Further ReadingReadHide

Notable Works

  • Translation of the Gospels into Georgian — An updated Georgian translation of the Gospels, part of his broader work of rendering the Scriptures and service-books of the Church into Georgian.
  • The Vitae of Our Blessed Fathers John and Euthymius — His major original work, composed after 1040; a manuscript of some 12,000 words that is both a history and a praise of the Iviron monastic community.
  • Translations of the Church Fathers — Georgian translations of patristic writings, including works of Basil of Caesarea, Gregory of Nyssa, Athanasius, and John of Damascus, alongside the Psalms, exegetical works, and synaxaria.
Family1 relativeShowHide
His uncles, who raised and taught him at Khakhuli.
Saints Georgethe Scribe and Savva of Khakhuli
Companions3 figuresShowHide
Georgian elder on the Black Mountain near Antioch under whom George lived as a disciple after his pilgrimage to Jerusalem.
Saint Georgethe God-Bearer of the Black Mountain
Georgian monk and translator of Iveron, whose relics he later translated to the catholicon's ossuary.
Saint ArseniusBishop of Ninotsminda
Abbot of Khakhuli, to whom by tradition he came for his blessing.
Venerable Macarius the FasterAbbot of Khakhuli
Related Saints8 saintsShowHide

Saints connected to his life, mission, and place in Orthodox tradition.

His disciple and biographer, who composed the Life of George the Hagiorite.
George Mtsireof Georgia
The Georgian founders of Iveron, whose Life George wrote and whose work of translation and the Iviron abbacy he continued.
Saint Euthymiusthe New and the Georgian Fathers of Iveron
Georgian founder of the Iveron monastery that George later led as hegumen.
Saint John (Tornike)of Mount Athos
Georgian saint of the Khakhuli monastery where George was educated and later took monastic tonsure.
Saint Johnof Khakhuli the Oqropiri
Whom his Life calls 'the great Basil' and an enlightener of his country, securing his memory.
Saint Basil of KhakhuliSon of King Bagrat III
The abbess to whom he was brought at seven, who spent three years forming him in the spiritual life.
Venerable SabianaAbbess of Samtskhe
Who led Khakhuli, where he received his monastic formation before Iviron.
Saint Hilarionof Tvali
A namesake of the same Iveron monastery, commemorated June 27; the two are distinct.
Venerable Georgethe Builder of Iveron

Browse similar saints by calling and place.

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Sources: OCA Synaxarion (oca.org), Lives of the Saints