Dungal and Donatus of Fiesole: Some Considerations on the “Scotti peregrini” and St. Brigid’s Cult in Italy

Among the Irishmen active in Italy during the Carolingian era, the most famous are undoubtedly Dungal of St. Denis, Pavia, and Bobbio, and Donatus of Fiesole. Both represent the typical features and interests of the “Scotti peregrini” of the time, but the information we have about them is not very certain. The former is a very elusive figure, and until a few decades ago scholars believed that several namesakes were hidden under his name. Donatus is fairly well known as a historical figure, but his literary production and the texts that gravitate around his Vita metrica sanctae Brigidae have not yet been studied in detail. In the present article, I deal with the poem O uenerande pie, a text that would seem to unite the two characters, developing an idea formulated by Mario Esposito. After a philological and historical analysis, I attempt to identify the author and receiver of the poem. I then endeavour to place the poem in the context of the “Scotti peregrini” on the continent and the spread of the cult of St. Brigid in Europe.