Introduction
Saint Noyale, also known as Noaluen, was a semi-legendary 5th-century female Celtic saint, cephalophore and martyr.
Noyale is a popular saint in both Brittany and Cornwall, where she is memorialized at Newlyn East. According to her legend, it is there that a fig tree growing from the south wall of the church grew from her staff. A holy well nearby was the site of her martyrdom. She was one of numerous Celtic settlers who traveled to Brittany during the Anglo-Saxon Invasion of England.
Legend
Her legend is typical of the 5th century cephalophore saints. Noaluen was the daughter of an English king. She was educated and pious. When her father wanted to marry her off; she fled to Brittany, where a local lord also wanted to marry her. She refused him and in a rage he beheaded her. The legend then states that the beheaded saint picked up her head, and led by her maid, returned to England.
A small stone image of her carrying her own head was unearthed in the churchyard at Newlyn East.