Early Church and Middle Ages Many hymn writers in the early Church gained prominence and achieved
canonisation.
Saint John of Damascus ( or 676 – 749) was noted for his work as a hymn writer; some of the most popular English hymns which are translations of his works include
Come ye faithful, raise the strain,
Let us rise in early morning and
The day of resurrection, all associated with the season of
Eastertide and all translated by
John Mason Neale. Most early hymnists were anonymous, so it is uncertain how many of them were women.
Saint Hildegard of Bingen (1098–1179) is the earliest known female hymnist outside hymnists recorded in the Bible.
Post-Reformation Many leaders of the Reformation, including
Martin Luther (1483–1546) himself, were hymn writers;
Luther's work included "Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott" ("
A mighty fortress is our God") and "
Christ lag in Todesbanden (Christ Jesus lay in death's strong bonds)". Lutherans continued to compose hymns, and some of the popular hymn writers of the 16th and 17th centuries included the three
saints commemorated in the
American Lutheran Calendar of Saints on 26 October:
Philipp Nicolai (1556–1608),
Johann Heermann (1585–1647), and
Paul Gerhardt (1607–76).
Michael Praetorius (1571–1621), and
Johann Crüger (1598–1662) also gained renown as German Lutheran hymn writers of that era. In the English-speaking world, the art of writing hymns was brought to prominence by the approximately 750 hymns composed by
Isaac Watts (1674–1748), followed by the almost tenfold Watts' output composed a generation later by co-founder of
Methodism,
Charles Wesley (1707–88).
Nineteenth, twentieth and twenty-first centuries Major modern publishers include the
Jubilate Group and
Stainer & Bell in the UK; CanticaNOVA Publications, World Library Publications and
Oregon Catholic Press in the US; and Willow Publishing in Australia. Leading British hymn writers have included
John Henry Newman (1801–1890),
John Mason Neale (1818–1866),
Timothy Dudley-Smith (1926–2024),
Michael Perry (1942–96),
Michael Saward (1932–2015),
Christopher Idle (born 1938),
Fred Pratt Green (1903–2000), as well as
James Quinn (1919–2010) and
Brian Foley (1919–2000). More recent evangelical hymn/songwriters have included
Stuart Townend (born 1963),
Keith Getty (born 1974) and his wife
Kristyn Getty (born 1980). Other modern hymn writers include French-American
Lucien Deiss (1921–2007) and Australian duo
James McAuley (1917–76) and
Richard Connolly (born 1927). In the 21st century,
Lu Xiaomin composed over 1,800 songs of praise for Chinese house churches, called the
Canaan Hymns. ==Hymn writers who have been canonised==