Page "Bede" Paragraph 2

Almost everything that is known of Bede's life is contained in the last chapter of his Historia Ecclesiastica, a history of the church in England.

It was completed in about 731, and Bede implies that he was then in his fifty-ninth year, which would give a likely birth date of about 672 – 673.

A minor source of information is the letter by his disciple Cuthbert which relates Bede's death.

Bede, in the Historia, gives his birthplace as " on the lands of this monastery ".

He is referring to the twinned monasteries of Monkwearmouth and Jarrow, near modern-day Newcastle, claimed as his birthplace, there is also a tradition that he was born at Monkton, two miles from the monastery at Jarrow.

Bede says nothing of his origins, but his connections with men of noble ancestry suggest that his own family was well-to-do.

Bede's first abbot was Benedict Biscop, and the names " Biscop " and " Beda " both appear in a king list of the kings of Lindsey from around 800, further suggesting that Bede came from a noble family.

The name " Bede " was not a common one at the time.

The Liber Vitae of Durham Cathedral includes a list of priests ; two are named Bede, and one of these is presumably Bede himself.

Some manuscripts of the Life of Cuthbert, one of Bede's own works, mention that Cuthbert's own priest was named Bede ; it is possible that this priest is the other name listed in the Liber Vitae.

These occurrences, along with a Bieda who is mentioned in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle under the year 501, are the only appearances of the name in early sources.

The name probably derives from the Old English bēd, or prayer ; if Bede was given the name at his birth, then his family had probably always planned for him to enter the clergy.