SAMANNUD

A city in the middle of the Egyptian Delta some 5 miles (8 km) east of al-Mahallah al-Kubra in the Gharbiyyah province. Greek documents give the name of the city as Sebennytos and in Coptic it was known as jemnou] (Djemnouti).

Sebennytos/Samannud has a very old Christian tradition. ATHANASIUS I reported that the city had a Melitian bishop in 325 (Munier, 1943, p. 3) and the name of the city appears often in early martyrological literature. The martyr Saint ANUB, for instance, was said to have passed through Samannud on his way from Atrib. Anub found that the churches in the city had been destroyed and that a temple had been built in their place. In the fourteenth century, when the SYNAXARION was composed, Anub’s body was in Samannud. There is still a church of Anub in the city.

The earliest attested bishop of Samannud after the ARAB CONQUEST OF EGYPT in the seventh century was not in office until the early eighth century. The increased activity of the Gaianites (see GAIANUS) and BARSANUPHIANS at the end of the seventh and the beginning of the eighth century may be responsible for the absence of Samannud in Coptic orthodox literature for this period.

One of the most famous bishops of Samannud was John, who was in office between 1235 and 1257. A literary man, John wrote grammatical works, copied manuscripts, and composed hymns.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

• Amélineau, E. La Géographie de l’Egypte a l’époque copte, pp. 411-12. Paris, 1893.
• Munier, H. Recueil des listes épiscopales de l’église copte. Cairo, 1943.

RANDALL STEWART