Ancient Irish history and legends have three main sources, known in modern
times as the Mythological Cycle, the Ulster Cycle (also known as the Ultonian
or Red Branch Cycle) and the Fenian or Fianna Cycle. The ancient bards didn't
categorise the stories this way. Instead, they divided them according to
topic, such as births, adventures, voyages, battles, feasts, courtships,
cattle raids, invasions, destructions, slaughters, expeditions, violent
deaths, sieges, etc.
The pre-Celtic inhabitants of the island had no written language. Theirs
was mostly an oral culture. The first known attempt at an alphabet is the
Ogham script, which dates from the last era of Celtic dominance. This type
of writing was primarily done on wood, and so hardly any traces of it survive
nowadays.
Some claim that there existed vast libraries of Ogham writing usually
inscribed on the bark or wands of hazel and aspen. If this is true, then
it is possible that the great oral memory of the Irish was thus preserved
through the Celtic era and into the Christian. However, when the early medieval
monks set themselves the task of constructing a pseudo-history of Ireland,
they recast the ancient myths and legends in a Christian mould. In so doing
they demoted the old gods to mortals, and expurgate the sagas to the point
when they became nothing but an almost indecipherable puzzle of jumbled
passages. However, there are a number of manuscripts which have survived
fairly intact and there are many others not yet translated into English.
The Lebor Gabla or Book of Invasions is only one of a number of manuscripts
from which our knowledge of Ireland's pre-history is derived.
The legends may be categorised into four main cycles: the Mythological
cycle, the Fenian or Ossianic cycle, the Ultonian cycle and the Historical
cycle. The main ones are the first three:
The Mythological Cycle
The term "Mythological Cycle" is a collective term applied to the stories
in Irish literature which describe the doings of otherworldly characters.
The central story of the group was concerned with the battles between supernatural
groups invading Ireland successively. These series of invasions are described
in the Lebor Gabla or Book of Invasions. The supernatural groups were the
Partholonians, the Nemedians, the demonic Fomhire and the Fir Bholg, the
divine Tuatha D Danaan, and the Milesians.
The Milesians, the fictional but first human ancestors of the Irish people,
defeated the Tuatha D Danaan at the battle of Tailtiu, after which Ireland
was in their possession. They divided it into two parts, with ireamhin
ruling in the north and ibhear in the south. Among the names in the stories
of the Mythological cycle are Bodb Derg, Dagdha, Lir, Aonghus, Partholan,
Erannan, Lugh and Balor.
The Fenian Cycle
This is considered to be much older than the tales of the Ulster Cycle,
as the main occupation is that of hunting. The Fenians, or Fianna, are a
legendary band of heroes who defended Ireland and Scotland and kept law
and order. Their leader was the mythical Fionn mac Cumhaill, the truest,
wisest and kindest of the Fianna. He had two sons, Fergus of the Sweet Speech
and Ossian, who is credited with a series of poems known as the 'Ossianic
Ballads'. Ossian went to the Land of Youth with Niamh. His mother was Sadb,
who was changed into the shape of a deer by a druid. The warrior Caoilte
was Fionn's right hand man, who is reputed to have conversed with St. Patrick
many centuries later in the 'Dialogue of the Elders', extolling the virtues
of the Fianna to him. Other notable Fenians include Oscar, the greatest
warrior, Conan, Goll mac Morna, and Diarmait O'Duibhne, who eloped with
Fionn's betrothed Grania. The tales of the Fianna are heroic and fantastic,
incorporating much interaction with the gods. Through the deeds of the Fianna
we can see their divinity shining through. From this cycle come Oisn, Oscar,
Diarmaid and Grinne.
The Ulster Cycle
This cycle comprises a large body of heroic tales in Irish literature,
based on the Ulaidh, an ancient people from whom the province of Ulster
got its name. The central, and structurally the basic, story in the cycle
is Tin B Cailnge (The cattle raid of Cooley). Other names in the stories
of this cycle are characters like Cchulainn, Conchobhar, Fergus, Caoilte
and Deirdre. Cchulainn is Ulster's greatest hero. His father was said to
be the solar deity Lugh, and he trained in arms under the formidable female
warrior Scathach. His greatest deeds are told in the Tin.
Dara Tierney |