Biography
Anthony Dainan
About Anthony Dainan
Anthony Dainan was a young lay helper associated with the Franciscans in Japan. He died with the 26 Nagasaki martyrs on 5 February 1597.
Fróis’s account identifies Anthony as a 13-year-old from Nagasaki. It describes him singing a psalm learned in catechism as he faced death. The scene preserves the memory of a child’s faith within a missionary account of martyrdom.
Later biographies remember schooling with the Jesuits before service among the Franciscans at Osaka. His Chinese father and Japanese mother belong to the received account of his family.
Cristina Osswald places these deaths within a complicated history of missionary rivalry, colonial interests and Japanese political fears. She also argues that religious orders’ accounts often gave prominence to their own members while leaving lay women, men and children in the background. Her criticism calls for attention to how such stories were selected and circulated.
Canonized with his companions on 8 June 1862, he is commemorated on 6 February.
Wondering how to weigh the stories and sources? Learn how to read a saint biography.