Chama (archbishop of Kalocsa)

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Chama, also known as Sayna or Chemma (Hungarian Csama or Soma), was a Hungarian church leader in the 12th century. He served as Bishop of Eger from about 1158 to around 1166, after which he became Archbishop of Kalocsa, holding that position until around 1171. He succeeded Mikó as archbishop and had earlier succeeded Lucas as Bishop of Eger.

There are many uncertainties about his life. One early duty suggests he helped with rededicating the Szentjobb Abbey sometime between 1158 and 1162. A charter connected to this event mentions an attack on the monastery and the excommunication of the attackers by Archbishop Lucas, but the charter’s authenticity is debated because the original is lost and later copies may be unreliable.

Chama is confirmed as Bishop of Eger in two contemporary documents from 1165 and 1166 (the 1166 one calls him Chemma). He moved to Kalocsa between 1166 and 1169, becoming archbishop after Mikó. He took part in national affairs, including accompanying King Stephen III on a campaign to Dalmatia in the late 1160s to reclaim lands from Emperor Manuel. He was a witness when Stephen III confirmed Šibenik’s privileges in 1169 (or 1167), showing Dalmatia had come under Hungarian influence after the campaign. He again appears in connection with a 1169–1171 concordat with the Holy See, in which the king renounced control over church appointments.

A curious issue in later scholarship concerns a short initial in a document that some once read as Cosmas, leading some writers to imagine a different archbishop. Most historians identify that supposed Cosmas with Chama.

Chama is last mentioned as Archbishop of Kalocsa in 1171. After King Stephen III died in 1172, Béla III became king and sought papal help to have Archbishop Lucas crown him. The pope authorized the Archbishop of Kalocsa to perform the coronation, which might have been done by Chama if he were still alive, though the next clearly known archbishop appears in 1176.