INNOKENTII VENIAMINOV (John Popov Veniaminov, 1797–1879), known in English as Innocent, was a Russian Orthodox missionary to Alaska, bishop of Siberia and Alaska, and metropolitan of Moscow. Born into a poor clerical family in the village of Anga, near Irkutsk (south-central Siberia), John Popov received his early education from his father, the church sacristan. From 1806 to 1818 he attended the seminary in Irkutsk, where he was an outstanding student. During this period, his surname was changed to Veniaminov.

After his marriage, Veniaminov served as a priest in Irkutsk. When the Russian-American Company called for volunteers to serve as missionary priests, he at first refused, but changed his mind after hearing of the zeal of the Aleuts for the Christian message. In 1823 he set out with his wife, son, brother, and mother for the fourteen-month journey to Unalaska in the Aleutian chain. His first task there was to build...