Saint John Koukouzeles

John Koukouzeles Papadopoulos (Greek: Ιωάννης Κουκουζέλης Παπαδόπουλος, romanized: Ioannis Koukouzeles Papadopoulos) was a Byzantine composer, singer and reformer of Byzantine chant. He was recognized as a saint by the Eastern Orthodox Church after his death. Among the most illustrious musicians of the Palaiologos dynasty, his music remains held in high esteem by Albanians, Bulgarians, Greeks, Macedonians, Romanians and Serbs. The name "Koukouzeles" was not the composer's surname. His real surname was Papadopoulos. "Koukouzeles" is allegedly derived from the Greek word for broad beans (κουκιά, koukia) and a Slavic/Bulgarian word for cabbage (зеле, zele). Allegedly, the name appeared when Koukouzeles was asked in school about the food he was eating and he replied koukia kai zelie (Greek: κουκιά και ζελίε). This, however, is regarded as a folk etymology. The name is most likely derived from the Greek word koukoutzi (Greek: κουκούτζι, lit. 'seed') along with the common Greek suffix -elis (Greek: -έλης). A relation with the word koukoutseli (Greek: κουκουτσέλι, lit. 'little chicken (?)'), a Greek word which was used to refer to some kind of bird, has also been proposed. Information about Koukouzeles' life and career is unclear and subject to controversy. Even the era in which he lived is disputed. It is conjectured that he lived between the 12th and 15th centuries. According to musicologist Gregorios Stathis, it is unlikely that Koukouzeles lived in the 12th or early 13th centuries, or after the late 14th century, proposing instead that he lived during the late 13th (c. 1270) and early 14th centuries (before 1341). Information about his life is derived mainly from two sources. First, the large body of his musical manuscripts containing his works and secondly from copies of a late, anonymous and problematic work of dubious authority called Life.