Editing Ninian (section)

{{short description|5th-century bishop, missionary, and saint}}
{{other uses}}
{{Distinguish|Nennius}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2019}}
{{Infobox saint
|honorific_prefix= [[Saint]] 
|name=Ninian
|birth_date=
|death_date= AD 432
|feast_day=16 September
|venerated_in={{ubl|[[Catholicism]]|[[Eastern Orthodoxy]]|[[Anglican Communion]]}}
|image=Ninian of Whithorn.jpg
|imagesize=
|caption=Saint Ninian as intercessor ("Ora pro nobis, Sancte Niniane"). [[Donor portrait]] in the ''Book of Hours of the Virgin and Saint Ninian'', 15th century
|contribution=
|titles=Apostle to the Southern Picts
|beatified_date=
|beatified_place=
|beatified_by=
|canonized_date=
|canonized_place=
|canonized_by=
|attributes=Episcopal, Bell of St Ninian<ref name="Huddleston">{{cite web |last1=Huddleston |first1=G |title=St. Ninian |url=http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/11084a.htm |website=The Catholic Encyclopedia |publisher=Robert Appleton Company | location = New York | date=1911}}</ref>
|patronage=
|major_shrine=[[Whithorn Priory]]
|suppressed_date=
|issues=
}}

'''Ninian''' is a [[Christianity|Christian]] saint, first mentioned in the 8th century as being an early [[missionary]] among the [[Picts|Pictish]] peoples of what is now [[Scotland]]. For this reason, he is known as the '''Apostle to the Southern Picts''', and there are numerous dedications to him in those parts of Scotland with a Pictish heritage, throughout the [[Scottish Lowlands]], and in parts of Northern [[England]] with a [[Northumbria]]n heritage. He is also known as '''Ringan''' in Scotland, and as '''Trynnian''' in Northern England.

Ninian's major shrine was at [[Whithorn]] in [[Galloway]], where he is associated with the [[Candida Casa]] ([[Latin]] for 'White House'). Nothing is known about his teachings, and there is no unchallenged authority for information about his life.

Ninian's identity is uncertain, and historians have identified the name "Ninian" with other historical figures. A popular hypothesis proposed by [[Thomas Owen Clancy]], a researcher and professor of Celtic studies, posits that Ninian can be identified with three other historical figures: Saint [[Finnian of Moville]], Saint [[Finnian of Clonard]], and Saint [[Finbarr of Cork]]. Linguistic variations across the territories associated with each saint have provided evidence that the Ninian preserved in literary tradition originated from this individual.<ref>O'Neill, Pamela. (2007). "Six degrees of whiteness: "Finbarr, Finnian, Finnian, Ninian, Candida Casa and Hwiterne." JAMEA (2007) vol. 3. pp. 259-268. https://api.researchrepository.uwa.edu.au/portalfiles/portal/14262963/O_Neill._Six_Degrees_of_Whiteness_Finbarr_Finnian_Finnian_Ninian_Candida_Casa_and_Hwiterne.pdf</ref> This article discusses the particulars and origins of what has come to be known as the "traditional" stories of Saint Ninian.