Which of the disciples of Jesus has the epithet 'the Zealot'?

To distinguish Simon from Simon Peter, he was either known as Simon the Zealot or Simon the Canaanite. The Gospel of Luke and the Acts of the Apostles call him 'Simon Zelotes' (Luke 6:15; Acts 1:13 King James Version') or 'Simon the Zealot' (New International Version), depending on the translation.

The term 'Canaanite', as used in the Gospels of Matthew and Mark, has led people to assume Simon was from Canaan or Cana, but the Hebrew text proves this to be a mistranslation. In Hebrew, Simon was referred to as 'qanai', which means 'zealous'. The reason for the Canaanite confusion is easy to forgive since the term stems from the same Hebrew word. Unfortunately, no one knows why Simon was singled out as being zealous. In contemporary English, zealous means enthusiastic or to have a strong passion, but in Greek, it was also a synonym for 'jealous'.

The Bible does not record how Simon was called to be a disciple, but a book of the Apocrypha known as the 'Syriac Infancy Gospel', which records the childhood of Jesus, contains a story about a boy named Simon who was bitten by a snake. Jesus, who was only a child himself, healed the boy and said, 'you shall be my disciple'. The story is concluded with 'this is Simon the Cananite, of whom mention is made in the Gospel'.

Simon the Zealot, like all the disciples, is regarded as a saint. He shares a feast day with Saint Jude on 28th October. He is the patron saint of sawyers and tanners, perhaps alluding to his profession.