The Nicene Age · AD 313–400
Hosius of Cordova
c. 256 – c. 359 · Bishop of Cordova · President of Nicaea · Cordova, Hispania
The Nicene Age
Who Hosius of Cordova was
The most influential churchman of the early fourth century in the West and the emperor’s ecclesiastical adviser: a Spanish bishop and confessor of the Great Persecution who became Constantine’s trusted agent, carried his letter to Alexandria trying to quiet the Arian quarrel, and — by the strong tradition — presided over the Council of Nicaea in 325, where the word homoousios was adopted, quite possibly at his suggestion. For decades the standard-bearer of Nicene orthodoxy, he was at last, over a hundred years old, coerced by the Arian Constantius into a compromising signature before his death — a fall his admirers mourned and his enemies trumpeted. The bridge between the Latin West and the Greek councils.
Also listed in bishops beyond the great sees.
Common questions
When did Hosius live?
Hosius of Cordova is dated c. 256 – c. 359 in the archive, which places Hosius in the Nicene Age (AD 313–400). The dating is traditional and approximate; the archive marks it as uncertain rather than fixing a year the sources do not give.
What did Hosius write?
Hosius of Cordova has 1 catalogued writing in the archive: The Canons of the Council of Elvira.
Which early sources mention Hosius?
Hosius of Cordova is named in 5 primary-source passages catalogued here, drawn from The Council of Elvira, The council of Elvira, The council of Nicaea and Athanasius of Alexandria. Every passage is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
Where was Hosius from?
The archive associates Hosius of Cordova with Cordova, Hispania. The sources record more than one location, so the places are listed in the order the record moves through them.
Writings (1)
The Canons of the Council of Elvira
c. AD 300–324Eighty-one canons, subscribed by the nineteen bishops alone.Read the interlinear source text →
Primary-source mentions (5)
Every passage below is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
The subscription list of the Council of Elvira (Codex Pithianus, as printed by Hefele)
c. AD 305Hosius of Corduba, Sabinus of Hispalis, Camerinus of Tucci, Sinaginus of Epagra, Secundinus of Castulo, Pardus of Mentesa, Flavian of Eliberis, Cantonius of Urci, Liberius of Emerita, Valerius of Caesaraugusta, Decentius of Legio, Melantius of Toledo, Januarius of Fibularia, Vincent of Ossonoba, Quintianus of Elbora, Successus of Eliocroca, Eutychian of Basti, and Patricius of Malacca.The Council of Elvira · Subscriptions of the Council of Elvira · source text
Elvira subscription list (second signatory, decades before Nicaea)
c. AD 306Osius episcopus Cordubensis — Hosius, bishop of Corduba.The council of Elvira · Elvira subscriptions · source text
Nicaea subscription list ('Osius of Corduba' at the head)
c. AD 325Osius episcopus civitatis Cordubensis — Hosius, bishop of the city of Corduba.The council of Nicaea · Nicaea subscriptions · source text
History of the Arians 42–45
c. AD 350Hosius… of whom need I say more? For he is not an obscure person, but of all men the most illustrious… When was there a council held in which he did not take the lead, and by right speaking convince every one?Athanasius of Alexandria · 42–45 · source text
Chronicle II.40 (the centenarian's fall at Sirmium, weighed by a Gallic moralist)
c. AD 403Connected in the archive
People
- Constantine the Great
- Alexander of Alexandria
- Arius
- Emperor Constantius II
- Felix of Acci
- Sylvester I of Rome
- James of Nisibis
- Spyridon of Trimythous
- Sabinus of Hispalis
- Julius I of Rome
- Paphnutius the Confessor
- Potamius of Lisbon
- Flavian of Eliberis
- Decentius of Legio
- Melantius of Toletum
- Liberius of Emerita
Named alongside Hosius in the sources
These figures are placed with Hosius by the record — in a council roll, a martyr-act, a letter or a history — without Hosius naming them in return.
- Camerinus of Tucci
- Cantonius of Urci
- Eutychian of Basti
- Januarius of Fibularia
- Pardus of Mentesa
- Patricius of Malaca
- Quintianus of Elbora
- Secundinus of Castulo
- Sinaginus of Epagra
- Successus of Eliocroca
- Vincent of Ossonoba
Events in this lifetime
- AD 301 · Hripsime and her company, AD 301
- AD 303 · The Great Persecution begins, AD 303
- AD 303 · The search of the church at Cirta, AD 303
- AD 306 · The Council of Elvira, AD 306
- AD 311 · Galerius’ edict of Serdica, AD 311
- AD 313 · The Edict of Milan, AD 313
- AD 314 · The Council of Arles, AD 314
- AD 320 · Silvanus tried before Zenophilus, AD 320
- AD 325 · The Council of Nicaea, AD 325
- AD 339 · The persecution of Shapur II, AD 339
- AD 343 · The Council of Serdica, AD 343
Place
Places served
The 2 places the sources put Hosius, in the order the record moves through them. This is what the sources attest, not a reconstructed route.