The Nicene Age · AD 313–400
Rufinus of Aquileia
b. c. AD 344/345 Concordia; d. 411 in Sicily (held at the timeline’s ceiling) · Presbyter · Monk · Translator · Historian · Concordia → Aquileia → Egypt → Jerusalem → Rome → Sicily
The Nicene Age
Who Rufinus of Aquileia was
Jerome’s friend, then his most bitter opponent, and the man who put Greek Christian literature into Latin — Origen, the Pseudo-Clementines, Eusebius. His translation of the Ecclesiastical History condensed Eusebius’ ten books into nine and added two of his own covering 325 to 395, and those two books are a contemporary witness in their own right: he is the earliest source for Frumentius in Ethiopia, for Queen Mavia’s revolt, and for the destruction of the Serapeum, which he seems to have known at first or second hand. He heard the Ethiopian story directly from Aedesius at Tyre. Held at the archive’s AD 400 ceiling, as Augustine, Jerome and Chrysostom are.
Also listed in desert fathers & mothers.
Common questions
When did Rufinus live?
Rufinus of Aquileia is dated b. c. AD 344/345 Concordia; d. 411 in Sicily (held at the timeline’s ceiling) in the archive, which places Rufinus 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 Rufinus write?
Rufinus of Aquileia has 1 catalogued writing in the archive: Ecclesiastical History (translation of Eusebius, with two added books).
Which early sources mention Rufinus?
Rufinus of Aquileia is named in 2 primary-source passages catalogued here, drawn from Jerome of Stridon and Gennadius of Marseilles. Every passage is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
Where was Rufinus from?
The archive associates Rufinus of Aquileia with Concordia, Aquileia, Egypt, Jerusalem, Rome, Sicily. The sources record more than one location, so the places are listed in the order the record moves through them.
Writings (1)
Ecclesiastical History (translation of Eusebius, with two added books)
c. AD 402–403; the added books cover 325–395Mavia, the queen of the Saracens, began to rock the towns and cities on the borders of Palestine and Arabia with fierce attacks.Read the interlinear source text →
Primary-source mentions (2)
Every passage below is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
Apology against Rufinus, and the letters of the Origenist quarrel
c. AD 402[Jerome’s attack is the fullest external evidence for Rufinus’ life, and the least friendly.]Jerome of Stridon · Apology against Rufinus · source text
On Illustrious Men 17
c. AD 490[Gennadius lists his translations and his own works.]Gennadius of Marseilles · On Illustrious Men 17 · source text
Connected in the archive
People
Named alongside Rufinus in the sources
This figure is placed with Rufinus by the record — in a council roll, a martyr-act, a letter or a history — without Rufinus naming them in return.
Events in this lifetime
- AD 339 · The persecution of Shapur II, AD 339
- AD 343 · The Council of Serdica, AD 343
- AD 361 · Julian’s pagan restoration, AD 361
- AD 366 · Damasus and the catacomb epigrams, AD 366
- AD 367 · Athanasius lists the 27 NT books, AD 367
- AD 372 · The martyrdom of Sabbas the Goth, AD 372
- AD 378 · Queen Mavia’s revolt, AD 378
- AD 380 · The Edict of Thessalonica, AD 380
- AD 381 · The Council of Constantinople, AD 381
- AD 381 · The Council of Aquileia, AD 381
- AD 384 · The Altar of Victory petition, AD 384
- AD 390 · Thessalonica and the penance of Theodosius, AD 390
- AD 397 · Carthage confirms the canon, AD 397
Place
Places served
The 6 places the sources put Rufinus, in the order the record moves through them. This is what the sources attest, not a reconstructed route.