Augustine of Hippo

354 – 430 · died at about 76^[1][2]

Philosophy & Thought

Fun Facts About Augustine of Hippo

• Augustine of Hippo is the patron saint of brewers, printers and theologians, and he is invoked against sore eyes.^[1]
• Augustine and his friends once stole pears from a neighbor's garden though he was not hungry, a sin he agonized over in his Confessions.^[1]
• Augustine never mastered Greek: his first Greek teacher was a brutal man who constantly beat his students, so Augustine rebelled and refused to study.^[1]
• Augustine said his conversion began when he heard a child's voice say "take up and read," then opened a book of St. Paul's writings at random.^[1][3][4]
• Reading Cicero's dialogue Hortensius, now lost, as a student in Carthage first sparked Augustine's interest in philosophy.^[1][5][6]
• Before converting to Christianity, Augustine spent ten years as a Manichaean, though only at the lowest rank of "auditor."^[1]
• Augustine of Hippo lived to about 76, from 354 until 430.^[1][2]

Augustine of Hippo, also well-known as Saint Augustine, was a Christian theologian and philosopher from Thagaste, Numidia Cirtensis and the Bishop of Hippo Regius. He is generally regarded as one of the most influential philosophers in the history of the Western world, and is viewed as one of the most important Church Fathers of the Latin Church in the Patristic Period.^[1]

Contemporaries

Attila the Hun

24 yr overlap

Questions About Augustine of Hippo

When was Augustine of Hippo born?

Augustine of Hippo was born in 354 and died in 430.

How old was Augustine of Hippo at death?

Augustine of Hippo died in 430 at about 76 years old (354–430).

What was Augustine of Hippo known for?

Augustine of Hippo was known for: Theologian, author of Confessions. Augustine of Hippo, also well-known as Saint Augustine, was a Christian theologian and philosopher from Thagaste, Numidia Cirtensis and the Bishop of Hippo Regius. He is generally regarded as one of the most influential philosophers in the history of the Western world, and is viewed as one of the most important Church Fathers of the Latin Church in the Patristic Period.

Who was alive at the same time as Augustine of Hippo?

Augustine of Hippo's closest contemporary was Attila the Hun. Their lives overlapped for 24 years.