St. Nilus of Rossano

Nilus of Rossano, SaintSaint Nilus of Rossano, detail of a fresco by Domenichino, early 1600s; in the chapel of Saint Nilus, part of the abbey of Grottaferrata, near Rome, Italy.

St. Nilus of Rossano (born c. 905, Rossano, Calabria, Kingdom of Naples [Italy]—died December 29, 1005, Abbey of Santa Agata, near Rome; feast day September 26) was an abbot and promoter of Greek monasticism in Italy who founded several communities of monks in the region of Calabria following the Greek rule of St. Basil of Caesarea. A supporter of the regular successors to the papal crown in their controversies with antipopes, he also helped establish (1004) the noted abbey of Grottaferrata, near Rome, that remains today the centre of Greek monasticism and liturgy in Italy.

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Citation Information
Article Title: St. Nilus of Rossano
Website Name: Encyclopaedia Britannica
Publisher: Encyclopaedia Britannica, Inc.
Date Published: 29 March 2024
Access Date: March 14, 2025