The Monastery of Iviron (Georgian: ათონის ივერთა მონასტერი, romanized: atonis iverta monast'eri ; Greek: Μονή Ιβήρων, romanized: Monḗ Ivirōn) is an Eastern Orthodox monastery in the monastic community of Mount Athos in northern Greece. The monastery was built under the supervision of two Georgian monks, John the Iberian and John Tornike, between AD 980–983. It is regarded as the historic Georgian monastery on Mount Athos and was traditionally inhabited by Georgian Orthodox monks.[1]
Ἡ Ἱερὰ Πατριαρχικὴ καὶ Σταυροπηγιακὴ Μονὴ Ἰβήρων | |
 Monastery as seen from a nearby trail | |
  Location within Mount Athos | |
| Monastery information | |
|---|---|
| Denomination | Eastern Orthodoxy |
| Established | between 980-983 |
| Dedicated to | Dormition of the Theotokos |
| Archdiocese | Constantinople (Stavropegial) |
| People | |
| Founders | John the Iberian and John Tornike |
| Abbot | Archimandrite Nathanael |
| Archbishop | Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew of Constantinople |
| Important associated figures | George of Athos, John Tornike, John the Iberian, Gabriel the Iberian Euthymius of Athos, Archimandrite Averchie |
| Architecture | |
| Status | Open and functioning |
| Heritage designation | UNESCO World Heritage Site |
| Designated date | 1988 |
| Site | |
| Location | Mount Athos |
| Country | Greece |
| Coordinates | 40°14′44″N 24°17′05″E / 40.2455°N 24.2848°E |
| Public access | Men only, with an access permit (διαμονητήριον) |
| Website | Iveron at the Mount Athos website |
History
editThe monastery was built under the supervision of two Georgian monks, John the Iberian and John Tornike between AD 980–83 and housed Georgian clergy and priests. It was founded on the site of the former Monastery of Clement. John the Iberian was appointed as the abbot of the newly founded monastery in 980. In 1005, Euthymius the Iberian became the secondary abbot of Iviron Monastery.[2] In Greek, Iviron literally means "of the Iberians".
In the Middle Ages, the monastery became a center of Georgian religious culture. A large group of Georgian scholars and calligraphers was active at the monastery. Under their guidance, extensive cultural and creative activities flourished: original works were composed, and significant Byzantine theological texts were translated into Georgian. The monastery received substantial financial support from Georgian monarchs. Today, it is mainly inhabited by Greek monks, although at the beginning of the 20th century, there were still 48 Georgian monks.[3]
The monastery ranks third in the Athonite hierarchy of 20 sovereign monasteries.[4]
Notable people
edit- John Tornike (died 985)
- John the Iberian (died c. 1002)
- Gabriel the Iberian (c. 10th century)
- Euthymius of Athos (c. 955-1028)
- George the Hagiorite (1009-1065)
- Archimandrite Averchie (1806/1818–?), Aromanian monk and schoolteacher
Gallery
edit-
View of the main monastery complex
-
View of the sea
References
edit- ^ Leonty, Hieromonk (Kozlov); V. I. Silogava; V. G. Chentsova (2009). "Iveron Monastery". Orthodox Encyclopedia (in Russian). Vol. 21. Moscow: Pravoslavnaya Entsiklopediya. pp. 24–60. ISBN 978-5-89572-038-7.
- ^ Speake, Graham (2014). Mount Athos: renewal in paradise. Limni, Evia, Greece: Denise Harvey. pp. 52–53. ISBN 978-960-7120-34-2. OCLC 903320491.
- ^ Encyclopedia "Georgia". Vol. 1. Tbilisi. 1997. p. 368. Retrieved 2025-12-02.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ "The administration of Mount Athos". Archived from the original on 2016-03-11. Retrieved 2016-04-06.
