Clement of Ohrid

Saint Clement of Ohrid (Greek: Κλήμης, gen. Greek: Κλήμεντος, Serbian, Bulgarian and Macedonian: Свети Климент Охридски, [sveˈti ˈkliment ˈoxridski], Slovak: svätý Kliment Ochridský / Sloviensky) (ca. 840 – 916) was a medieval Bulgarian saint, scholar, writer and enlightener of the Slavs. He was one of the most prominent disciples of Saints Cyril and Methodius and is often associated with the creation of the Glagolitic and Cyrillic scripts, especially their popularisation among Christianised Slavs. He was the founder of the Ohrid Literary School and is regarded as a patron of education and language by some Slavic people. He is regarded to be the first bishop of the Bulgarian Orthodox Church, one of the seven Apostles of the Bulgarian Empire (Bulgaria), the patron saint of the Republic of Macedonia, the city of Ohrid and the Macedonian Orthodox Church.

Origin

According to his hagiography by Theophylact of Ohrid, Clement knew the life of Methodius like no one other. That is why most scholars think he was born in Byzantine empire in the territory where Methodius served during his political career, i.e. somewhere in Southern Macedonia. According to others, the area of Southern Macedonia, where he was born, was then part of Bulgaria. The Short Life of St. Clement by Theophylact of Ohrid testimonies his Slavic origin, calling him the first bishop, who used to preach in Bulgarian language, while "The Ohrid Legend" written by Demetrios Chomatenos calls him a Bulgarian, who was born somewhere in Macedonia. Because of that some scholars label him as Bulgarian Slav.

Ohrid

Coordinates: 41°07′01″N 20°48′06″E / 41.11694°N 20.80167°E / 41.11694; 20.80167

Ohrid (/ɒx.rid/, Macedonian: Охрид [ˈɔxrid]) is a city in the Republic of Macedonia and the seat of Ohrid Municipality. It is the largest city on Lake Ohrid and the eighth-largest city in the country with over 42,000 inhabitants as of 2002. Ohrid is notable for once having had 365 churches, one for each day of the year, and has been referred to as a "Jerusalem (of the Balkans)". The city is rich in picturesque houses and monuments, and tourism is predominant. It is located southwest of Skopje, west of Resen and Bitola. In 1979 and in 1980, Ohrid and Lake Ohrid were accepted as Cultural and Natural World Heritage Sites by UNESCO. In fact, Ohrid is one of only 28 sites that are part of UNESCO's World Heritage that are both Cultural and Natural sites.

Name

In antiquity the city was known under the ancient Greek name Λύχνιδος (Lychnidos) and Latin Lychnidus, probably meaning "city of light", from λυχνίς (lychnis, gen. lychnidos), "a precious stone that emits light", from λύχνος (lychnos), "lamp, portable light". By 879 AD, the town was no longer called Lychnidos but was referred to by the Slavs as Ohrid, possibly from the Slavic words vo hrid, meaning "on the hill", as the ancient town of Lychnidos was at the top of the hill. In Macedonian and the other South Slavic languages, the name of the city is Ohrid (Охрид). In Albanian, the city is known as Ohër or Ohri and in modern Greek Ochrida (Οχρίδα, Ωχρίδα) and Achrida (Αχρίδα).