ABSTRACT
Irish scholars in the early Middle Ages had a keen interest in the origin of the Irish people, and stories concerning successive invasions of the country were already in circulation in manuscripts in the first half of the ninth century, if not earlier. The most fully developed and best-known account of the invasions of Ireland is Lebor Gabála Érenn (The Book of the Taking of Ireland), also popularly known as the Book of Invasions. It was written in the late eleventh century by an anonymous scholar whose aim was to create a comprehensive history of Ireland from Creation down to his own time. It is the culmination of centuries of development, and bears all the hallmarks of a compilation. However, it soon became the canonical account of Ireland’s early history and was frequently copied and redacted over the following centuries. So great was its authority that various other related texts, such as Cath Maige Tuired (The Battle of Mag Tuired) and Scél Tuáin meic Cairill (The Story of Tuán mac Cairill) were altered to accommodate it.
