Venerable Hilarion the Georgian (Kanchaveli), of Mount Athos

IMPORTANT NOTICE ON IDENTITY: the entry's original stub claimed Hilarion was abbot of Iveron Monastery on Athos — this detail is NOT confirmed by any source. The list of abbots of Iveron Monastery (John the Hagiorite 979/980-1005, Euthymius the Hagiorite 1005-1028, Gregory c.1035-1041, Symeon 1041-1042, George the Hagiorite, etc.) contains no one named Hilarion.

The most likely real-world basis for this entry is **Venerable Hilarion the Georgian (secular name Yessei Kanchaveli/Kanchishvili)**, born in 1776 in the Losiat-Khevi area (Imereti, Georgia). He took monastic vows on Athos, lived at Dionysiou Monastery and later at the Russian St. Panteleimon Monastery (Russikon); he became renowned for cataloguing Georgian manuscripts and visiting Iveron Monastery to obtain Georgian-language books — he later compiled an anthology called "Tsvetnik" (Florilegium). He died on February 14, 1864, at Russikon. He was canonized by the Georgian Orthodox Church on October 17, 2002; added to the Russian Orthodox Church calendar on April 16, 2016.

An alternative, less likely version: the Orthodox Encyclopedia (pravenc.ru), in its article on Iveron Monastery, mentions a certain "Hilarion, who later became steward (oikonomos)" — one of the original Georgian brotherhood (about 8 men) under Abbot John the Hagiorite (by 979). However, no separate hagiography, feast day, or record of glorification survives for this Hilarion — he remains only a brief mention, not a separately venerated saint.

In the absence of unambiguous confirmation, this entry presents the most likely (but not conclusively proven) identification — Venerable Hilarion the Georgian (Kanchaveli) — while noting that his connection to Iveron Monastery was scholarly (cataloguing manuscripts), not as its abbot.