The Anonymous Saint in the Armenian Tradition Alexi(an)os the Voluntary Pauper or the Anonymous ‘Man of God’?

Abstract

This paper will outline the Armenian tradition of the story of the Man of God who became known in Byzantium and the West as St Alexius (Alexis) the Man of God. The Armenian legend has been preserved in two main versions – as a short synaxaric text, such as the ones found in the synaxaries M1512, M1502 of the Matenadaran, and a fuller Life, preserved in fewer manuscripts (M789, M792). The article will also discuss some specific features of the Armenian text, such as its style, the conspicuous absence of personal names and other details that might allow us to trace the origins of this textual tradition, as well as the possible relations of the Armenian Life to the extant Syriac and Greek texts of the saint’s Life.