The Irish were a part of the Celtic tribes that populated most of Western Europe. They developed a mythology that was separate not only from that of the continental Celts, but also their neighbors, the welsh Celts. Today's tale is not much of a creation myth per se. In fact, we covered the Celtic creation myths in episode 8 of this series. What the tale is, and what we cover today, is a history of invasions that eventually led to the establishment of a unique identity of the people of Ireland. 

Today, we discuss the story of the habitation and development and settlement of Ireland. As far as a creation story is concerned, today's tale is part of an epic that depicts the gradual development of an Irish identity out of the chaos of numerous invasions. Each invasion contributes to the Irish uniqueness, all culminating into the existence of a spectacular tale of Ireland.

Our story today comes from Lebor Gabala Erenn, or the Book of Invasions. It is a collection of poems and narratives that speak of the occupation of Ireland, from the times of the creation of the world all the way to the middle ages. 

The book, and indeed, our story, tells the tale of six invasions of Ireland. The first to land upon the Irish shores were the people of Cessair - who was a descendant of Noah. They were followed by the people of Partholon. Then came the followers of Nemed, and later, the Fir Bolg , the Tuatha de Dannan, and finally, the Milesians. The first four invaders or settlers were either decimated or had to abandon the island. The fifth group came to be revered as the pagan gods, while the sixth, and final, group of settlers represent the Irish people, the Gaels of today.

So then, let's hear the tale of the wondrous island of Ireland!

I hope you enjoy the stories. If you do, please leave a rating and feedback. Share and subscribe! Your patronage would help us immensely! 

Get in touch with us:

Twitter: @storiesthtmdeus 

Instagram: @storiesthtmdeus 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/storiesthatmdeus

e-mail: [email protected]

The music used for the episodes are either free to use, or under creative commons license. Below are their links and attributions:

Minyo San Kyoku

Artist: Doug Maxwell/ Zac Zinger

Source: YouTube Audio Library

Over Time by Audionautix is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

Artist: http://audionautix.com/

Mist

Artist: Odonis Odonis

Source: YouTube Audio Library

Song of Mirrors

Artist: Unicorn Heads

Source: YouTube Audio Library

Destination Unknown

Artist: Ugonna Onyekwe

Source: YouTube Audio Library

Your Suggestions

Artist: Unicorn Heads

Source: YouTube Audio Library

Magical Gravity

Artist: Asher Fulero

Source: YouTube Audio Library

Intuit256 by Kevin MacLeod is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution license (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/)

Source: http://incompetech.com/music/royalty-free/index.html?isrc=USUAN1100193

Artist: http://incompetech.com/

Light Expanse

Artist: Unicorn Heads

Source: YouTube Audio Library