Editing Hagiography (section)

=== Development ===
Hagiography constituted an important [[literary genre]] in the [[early Christian church]], providing some informational history along with the more inspirational stories and [[legend]]s. A hagiographic account of an individual saint could consist of a biography (''{{lang|la|vita}}''), a description of the saint's deeds or miracles, an account of the saint's martyrdom (''{{lang|la|passio}}''), or be a combination of these.

The genre of lives of the saints first came into being in the [[Roman Empire]] as legends about [[Christianity|Christian]] [[martyr]]s were recorded. The dates of their deaths formed the basis of [[martyrology|martyrologies]]. In the 4th century, there were three main types of catalogs of lives of the saints:
* annual calendar catalogue, or ''[[menaion]]'' (in [[Greek language|Greek]], {{lang|grc|μηναῖον}}, {{Transliteration|grc|menaion}} means "monthly" ([[Adjective|adj]], [[Grammatical gender|neut]]), lit. "lunar"), biographies of the saints to be read at [[sermon]]s;
* ''[[synaxarion]]'' ("something that collects"; Greek {{lang|grc|συναξάριον}}, from {{lang|grc|σύναξις}}, {{Transliteration|grc|synaxis}} i.e. "gathering", "collection", "compilation"), or a short version of lives of the saints, arranged by dates;
* ''[[paterikon]]'' ("that of the Fathers"; Greek {{lang|grc|πατερικόν}}; in Greek and Latin, {{lang|la|pater}} means "father"), or biography of the specific saints, chosen by the catalog compiler.
The earliest lives of saints focused on [[Desert Fathers|desert fathers]] who lived as ascetics from the 4th century onwards. The life of [[Anthony the Great|Anthony of Egypt]] is usually considered the first example of this new genre of Christian biography.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Talbot |first=Alice-Mary |author-link=Alice-Mary Talbot |date=21 November 2012 |title=Hagiography |url=https://academic.oup.com/edited-volume/29470/chapter/247165478 |access-date=2024-04-21 |website=academic.oup.com |doi=10.1093/oxfordhb/9780199252466.013.0082}}</ref> 

In [[Western Europe]], hagiography was one of the more important vehicles for the study of inspirational history during the [[Middle Ages]]. The ''[[Golden Legend]]'' of [[Jacobus de Voragine]] compiled a great deal of medieval hagiographic material, with a strong emphasis on miracle tales. Lives were often written to promote the cult of local or national states, and in particular to develop pilgrimages to visit [[relic]]s. The bronze [[Gniezno Doors]] of [[Gniezno Cathedral]] in Poland are the only [[Romanesque art|Romanesque]] doors in Europe to feature the life of a saint. The life of Saint [[Adalbert of Prague]], who is buried in the cathedral, is shown in 18 scenes, probably based on a lost illuminated copy of one of his Lives.

The [[Bollandists|Bollandist]] Society continues the study, academic assembly, appraisal and publication of materials relating to the lives of Christian saints (see ''[[Acta Sanctorum]]'').