A protomartyr (Koine Greek, prôtos 'first' + mártus 'martyr') is the first Christian martyr in a country or among a particular group, such as a religious order. Similarly, the phrase the Protomartyr (with no other qualification of country or region) can mean Saint Stephen, the first martyr of the Christian Church. Saint Thecla the Protomartyr, the first female martyr of the Christian Church, is known as "apostle and protomartyr among women".Michael F. Bird, Scott Harrower, The Cambridge Companion to the Apostolic Fathers, Cambridge University Press (2021), p. 183; see also St. Thekla, Protomartyr and Equal to the Apostles (antiochian.org).
Name Year Place first...Stephen c. 34 Jerusalem —Thecla1st centuryIconiumamong womenFirst Martyrs of the Church of Rome 64 Romein RomeSandukht1st centuryArmeniain ArmeniaPolyeuctus259Melitenein MeliteneAlbanThurston, Herbert. "St. Alban." The Catholic Encyclopedia. Vol. 1. New York: Robert Appleton Company, 1907.3rd/4th c. St Albansin Great BritainDenis of Paris3rd centuryParisin Gallia LugdunensisVincent of Saragossa 304Valenciain SpainRajden the First-MartyrMachitadze, Archpriest Zakaria (2006), "St. Razhden, Protomartyr of the Georgian Church (†457)", in The Lives of the Georgian Saints . pravoslavie.ru. Retrieved on 2011-12-18. 457 Tsromi from Georgia / under the Sasanian Empire Odran 5th c. Ireland in IrelandBoniface754Germanyin German lands Adalbert of Prague 997 Prussia in the Duchy of PolandFive Martyr Brothers1003Polandin Poland and Camaldolese Gerard of Csanád 1046 Buda Patron saint of Hungary Theodore the Varangian and his son John10th c.Kievin all Rus lands The Franciscan protomartyrs 1220 Morocco of the Franciscan orderPeter of Verona1252Italyof the Dominican Order Child Martyrs of TlaxcalaProto-martyrs of the Americas 1527Mexicoin the AmericasJuan de Padilla 1542Kansasin what is now the United StatesLuis Cáncer 1549Tampa Bay, Florida in Florida Antonio de Valdivieso1549Leónin Nicaragua Peter Baptist and companions 1627 Nagasaki in Japan Philip of Jesus 1627Nagasakifrom MexicoPhilip of Jesus, one of the companions of Peter Baptist, was long known as the first Mexican saint. This has technically no longer been the case since the canonization of the Child Martyrs of Tlaxcala by Pope Francis in 2017.Lorenzo Ruiz 1637 Nagasaki from the PhilippinesAndrew of Phu Yen 1641 Kẻ Chàm, Vietnamin VietnamAndré de Soveral1645Canguaretamain BrazilFrancis Ferdinand de Capillas 1648 Fujian, China in the Chinese Empire Pedro Calungsod 1672 Tumon, Guam in GuamDevasahayam1752Aralvaimozhi, Travancore in IndiaJuvenaly1796Quinhagak, Alaskain Alaska Andrew Kim Taegon 1846Seoul in Korea James Hannington 1885 Uganda in Eastern Equatorial AfricaPeter Chanel1841Futunain OceaniaVladimir Bogoyavlensky 1918 Moscow under the Soviet UnionMarcello Maruzzo and Luis Navarro1981Los Amates in Guatemala
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