ABSTRACT
In Ireland the narration of tales as a form of entertainment is of venerable antiquity. In ancient times tales were told by the official scéalaí, or teller of tales, to kings and nobles at the great assemblies or fairs held at Teltown or Carman. The scéalaí had a large repertoire of tales, including narratives about the supernatural world based on ancient Celtic myth. In these mythological tales, the Tuatha Dé Danann (People of the Goddess Danu) are the principal otherworld race. Many of the characters in these tales are Irish manifestations of a Celtic pantheon of divine beings—for example, Danu of the Tuatha Dé Danann, who was an ancient Celtic land goddess.
