Patericon or paterikon (Greek: πατεριχόν), a short form for πατεριχόν βιβλίον ("father's book") is a genre of Byzantine literature of religious character, which were collections of sayings of saints, martyrs and hierarchs, and tales about them. In Russian Orthodoxy this kind of literature is known from the early Slavic literature, first translations, then original texts created in various monasteries.