Department of Celtic Languages & Literatures, Harvard University

The Descent of the Gods: Creation, Cosmogony, and Divine Order in "Lebor Gabála"
Author(s): Sharon Paice Macleod

Reviewed work(s):
Source: Proceedings of the Harvard Celtic Colloquium, Vol. 20/21 (2000/2001), pp. 311-365
Published by: Department of Celtic Languages & Literatures, Harvard University
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The DescentoftheGods:
Creation,Cosmogony,and DivineOrder in
Lebor Gabála
SharonPaice Macleod
In a numberof Indo-European mythologies, the

creationoftheworldor cosmosis oftenaccompanied
by, or resultsin, the generationof two groupsof
divinebeings.The firstconsistsof giantsor primal
deitiesassociatedwithcreation,thecosmos,and the
elements.Fromtheseare descendeda secondorderof
gods connectedwiththeearth,society,and thelives
of mortal beings. This second group figures
prominentlyin the mythologicaltales and are
associatedwith the land, subsistence,war, magic,
wisdom, skill, and a varietyof social roles and
functions.
Thispaperseeksto ascertainifanytraceofthese
early divine figures(and associated cosmogonie
features)may be discernedamidstthe nativeCeltic,
early Christian,Medieval, and Classical elements
whichinfluenced theformationof earlyIrishliterary
sources.InformationconcerningIrishdeitiesor divine
figures (in varying states of preservationor
transmission) may be gleaned froma numberof
sources,includingLebor Gabála Érenn, Táin Bó
Cuailgne,CathMaige Tuired,Acallamna Senórach,
andtheDindsenchas.Thispaperwillultimately focus
on thosesectionsof Lebor Gabála whichprofessto
setforththegenealogyoftheTuathaDé Danann.1
1Overthelastnumber
ofdecades,
thestudy
and
ofextant
comparison andarchaeological
literary evidence
DESCENT OF THE GODS
Manyhave commented on theapparentlack of a

native Irish creation myth. This is not entirely
surprisingin thatthe incomingreligionhad its own
mythof originsto promote.It is quiteremarkable (as
well as fortuitous)that any literaryevidence
concerningthe natureof nativepagan beliefs has
survivedat all. The preservation of componentsof
Irishpre-Christianreligion reflects the effortsof the
churchto combinenativeand Christian elementsinto
whichembodiedfacetsofboth.
a hybrid'tradition'
Whatconstitutes a creationmyth?Whatfeatures
might we look forin an attempt to uncovervestigesof
a nativemythoforigins?An examination ofelements
associated with creationscenarios in other Indo-
European traditionsmay help us recognizethese
cosmogoniestructures, as well as their attendant
groups ofdivine beings.
pertainingto Celticdeitieshas producedsomeexcellent

results.The studyofCelticdeitiesandreligionhas
sometimes thanotherareasof
receivedless attention
researchin CelticStudies.Thisis, inpart,due to the
incomplete natureoftheevidence,thelatenessofcertain
sourcesandthepossibility ofcross-culturalinfluence
(Classical,Christian,Roman,etc.). addition,a certain
In
amountofcultural, professionalandevensocio-religious
apprehension comes into play.While itis understandable
thatnoteveryscholarmightrelishthetaskoftrying to
crossgreatculturalandtemporal dividesto playinthe
fieldsofpolytheism andanimistic belief,a good
understanding ofCelticdeitiesandreligionis as important
to thestudyofCelticcultureas thatofGreco-Roman
deitiesandmythsis tothestudyofGreekandRoman
cultureandsociety(thelatterbeingan acceptedfactwhich
does notseemto produceas muchdifficulty orreaction).
312
SHARON PAICE MACLEOD
Representations ofCreationin Indo-European

Tradition
Threeprimary creationscenariosoccurin Indo-
Europeansettings:
Duality(represented bytwohalvesofthecosmos
fromwhichtheEarthand Skyarecreated),
Life fromDeath (involvingthe sacrificeand
dismemberment of a primalbeingfromwhose body
theelementsofcreationareformed), and
Cyclical Creation(oftendepictedas a struggle
betweenorder and chaos in a perpetualcycle of
creationanddestruction).2
All threetypesare present(to varyingdegrees)in
Hindu,Greek,and Norsemythology, and in manyof
these accountswe can also perceivetwo different
classesofdivinebeings.
In Norse creationscenarios,Duality and Life
fromDeath are bothevident.Two opposingregions
come together (one of heat and one of cold), which
resultsin the appearanceof a primalbeing, Ymir,
fromwhoma raceof giantsareproduced.Ymirmeets
his deathat the handsof his threegrandsons, Odin,
Vile, and Ve, and fromhis dismembered body the
earthand thecosmoswerecreated.3 Odin is theChief
Deity of the Norse Gods, sacred figuresassociated
2
Willis,Roy,ed., WorldMythology(HenryHoltandCo.,
New York,1993),pp. 18-19.
A mythical analogybetweenmacrocosmicelementsand
thepartsofthebodyappearsin a numberofIndo-European
settings,
includingNorse,Greek,andHindumythology.
See Lincoln,Bruce,Myth,Cosmosand Society:Indo-
EuropeanThemesofCreationand Destruction (Harvard
UniversityPress,Cambridge, 1986),pp. 1-
Massachusetts,
40.
313
DESCENT OF THE GODS
withthe land,society,and theworldof men.These

gods differfromthe earlierbeings connectedwith
creationandarethosewho figuremostprominently in
the myths(Thor, Balder, Freyr,Tyr, Loki, Frigg,
Freyja,etc.)-4
In an earlyGreekaccountof thecreationof the
world,variouselementsof the cosmos emergefrom
Chaos ('gaping void'). These in turncreate other
elements,and a union betweenHeaven and Earth
(representativeofDuality)producesthefirstbeings,a
race of giantsknownas the Titans.5 Here we can
clearly perceive an early class of divine figures
associated with creation,the elements,and the
featuresoftheearth.
The Titans Kronos and Rhea (his sisterand
consort)have a son whosebirthheraldsan important
change. This change occurs in numerous
mythological the resultof
systemsand is frequently
mythologicalincest or some other unusual or
significantunion. Afterthe birthof this father-/
warrior-god or king(who oftenoverthrows his father
or an earlyrace of gods or giants),a new class of
deitiescomes intoexistence.6 the
In Greektradition,
4
Davidson,Hilda Ellis,Godsand MythsofNorthern
Europe (Penguin,London,1964),pp. 27-29.
5
Rose,H.J.,HandbookofGreekMythology (E.P. Dutton,
New York,1959),pp. 18-23.
6
Watkins,Calvert,DictionaryofIndo-European Roots,
(HoughtonMifflin, Boston,2000),p. 22. In manyIndo-
Europeancultures, thenameofthisarchetypal deityderives
fromtheIE root*dyeu-('to shine')withitsmanydérivâtes
to 'sky','heaven',or 'god.' TheseincludeZeus,
pertaining
Jupiter, Jove,andwordssuchas July,('descended
and
fromJupiter').Fromtherelatedroot*deiwos('god') are
Tyr(an Old Norse Skygod),Old EnglishTiw (a god of
314
figurein questionis Zeus, whose amorousliaisons

resultin the creationof numerousdivineprogeny.
These are thefamiliardeitiesof Greekmyth(Apollo,
Artemis, Hermes, Ares, Dionysus, Hephaestus,
Athena,Aphrodite, etc), who differfromthe earlier
primal beings and are associated with the land,
society,and theworld ofmen.7
Hindu mythologyhas preserveda prodigious
numberof accountsconcerningthe creationof the
earthand the cosmos.8Many accountsof Cyclical
Creationexist in Vedic tradition. In theseaccounts,
the world exists for a great span of time before
dissolvinginto chaos (fromwhich a new universe
emerges).Each cycleconsistsoffoursuccessiveages,
eachone consideredinferior tothepreviousone.
A similaridea is expressedin Greektradition as
a cycleor progression of fiveages (ratherthanfour).
These cyclesdo notinvolvedestruction butare each
associated with a different race of men.9 Lebor
Gabála, a medieval Irish text concernedwith the
originof things,also recordsfivesuccessiveracesof
'men'. Each race inhabitsthe primordialland of
Irelandfora periodoftime,ultimately perishingfrom
disease,flood,war,or othermisfortune, makingway
forthenext'age' or 'race'.
In our attemptto discoverif two classes of
deities formedsome part of Irish pre-Christian
warandthesky,fromwhichwe getthewordTuesday),
LatinDiana (a moongoddess),theHindugoddessname
Devi, andEnglishwordssuch'deity'and 'divine'.
Graves,Robert,TheGreekMyths, VolumeOne (Penguin
Books,London,1960),pp. 44-57.
8
Willis,pp. 70-84;O'Flaherty, Wendy,HinduMyths
(Penguin,New York,1980),ChapterOne andAppendices.
9
Willis,p. 19; Graves,pp. 35-6.
315
DESCENT OF THE GODS
tradition,we should firstascertainif the literary

sourcesdisplayevidenceof nativebeliefsassociated
withcreation.If we can showthatelementsof pagan
Irish religion (including those associated with
cosmogonyand creation)have been preservedto
some extent,we maythenreasonablyproceedwitha
discussionof divinefiguresthatalso appear in the
texts.
ElementsofNativeBeliefin IrishLiterarySources
A numberof mythologicalelementsmay be
discernedin earlyIrishsources,manyof whichare
foundin associationwithcreationscenariosin other
cultures.10There are threeconceptualelementsof
special relevance. Firstis a cosmic designof three
interconnected worlds. The cosmicdesignconnects
theworldsvertically through the middle,and uses a
lateral, spatial organizationas well. Time is
represented as cyclicalratherthanlinear. The other
two elementsare thedescription of a greatflood(or
floods)in thecourseof creation;and thetransmission
of knowledgefroman earlierera throughspecial
animals,pagans,or sagesofgreatage.
The Celtic Otherworldwas conceived of as
existingnearby(and parallelto) our own plane of
existence. It could be accessed by traveling
underwater or throughunderground passagesand was
most oftenlocated in or underneath hills, beneath
lakes or underthesea, on islandssituatedin lakes or
offthecoast,or in hallsencountered by chancein the
night which disappear with the dawn11 Certain
10 20-21.
11Willis,pp. "TheLocation inIrish
oftheOtherworld
Carey,John,
Tradition," 19
Éigse (1982),pp.36-43.
316
aspectsof theOtherworld parallelthoseof themortal

realm,yet manyways was consideredsuperiorto
in it
ourworld.
Sufficientevidence exists to support the
assumption thattheCelticOtherworld or Cosmoswas
conceivedof as triunein nature.12 This reflectsthe
almostuniversalperception of thethreefold natureof
the divinerealms,oftencategorizedas 'Earth,Sky,
and Sea /Underworld'. R. MarkScowcroft statesthat
the divisionof the land intothreeis likelyto have
been an earlynativeconcept,a triunesystemwhich
corresponds to whatMirceaEliade identified as 'the
threecosmic zones' (actual,celestial,and chthonic)
whichare frequented by shamansaroundtheworld.13
In manycultures, thethreeworldsare connectedby a
centraltreeor pillarreferredto as theworldtree.The
widespread focus on thecentral pointof Celticritual
sites and the abundantevidence pertainingto the
veneration of trees(includingsinglesacredtrees,or
bile) maypointto nativebeliefin a conceptsimilarto
thatoftheworldtree.
Scowcroftmentionsthat the native threefold
division of the cosmos appears to have suffered
overtime,beingpresented
alteration lateras a binary
of
systemcomposed polaropposites more in keeping
withtheChristianconceptof good and evil,Heaven
12
Ibid.; Mac Mathuna,Liam,"The Christianization ofthe
Early IrishCosmos", ZCP 45-50 (1997), pp. 532-547and
"The IrishPerception oftheCosmos,"Celtica32 (1999),
pp. 174-187; Scowcroft, "LeabharGabhála- PartII: The
GrowthoftheTradition," Ériu39 (1988), pp. 1-64;Rees,
AlwynandBrinley,CelticHeritage(ThamesandHudson,
New York,1961), pp. 112-115.
13
Scowcroft, p. 40, n. 11.
317
DESCENT OF THE GODS
and Hell.14 These changes in the interpretation,

representation,and perceptionof the sacred realms
resultedin a greatdeal of confusionregardingthe
natureof the Celtic Otherworld(and well as the
natureand originof itsinhabitants).15
In additionto a
three-foldverticalstructure,
themythicuniversealso
possessesa lateralstructure.
Manyreligioustraditions
referto fourquartersof theworld(corresponding to
14
Ibid.,p. 39-40.The worldofthesid,at thatpoint,was
represented as drawingtogether "thecelestialandinfernal
elementsofthesupernatural intoan Otherworld the
oppositeandcounterpart ofthis,andthusconverts a triune
moralandtheologicalsystemintoa binarycosmology".
Thisprocessofconverting a triunesystemintoa binaryone
playsoutintheinvasionsaga oftheTuathaDé Danann,
whichScowcroft (pp. 44-45) describesas involving "far
morecomplexliterary processesthanthemere
euhemerization ofpaganmythology: a completemerger
betweenthenaturalandthesupernatural, whichcreatesa
newsynthesis anda newmythology. Thiscomprisesa
systemofimplicitanalogybasedon thecorrelation of
aetiologicalconflictsin (and between)thisworldandthe
Other,whichis further complicated bythemovement of
theTuathaDé intothesid,andtheresulting ambiguity of
bothin Irishtradition."
Thisinturncomplicates efforts anyevidence
to interpret
whichmayreflect thenatureandfunction ofthegods,orto
reconstruct a pantheonfromtheinformation we have
(whichis, inpart,divorcedfromitsnarrative context).
Scowcroft (pp. 44-45)pointsoutthatin thesetypesof
endeavorsitis important toperform a synchronie analysis
oftextandtradition, andintheserviceofsuch,to lookat
originalnativeconceptsofdeityandOtherworld (as much
as is possible)whenanalyzingdivinefigures, attributes,
roles,andrelationships.
318
the fourcardinaldirections).16 In earlyIrishliterary

sources(as well as more recentIrish and Scottish
folktales),the concept of 'the whole world' is
frequently describedin a formulaicmanner:'from
northto south,and fromeast to west'. In Celtic
sources,thereis oftena focuson thecentralpointas
well,makinga totaloffivesacredpoints.17
In manycultures, thefourquarters are associated
withparticular elements,colors,or attributes.Alwyn
and BrinleyRees discuss the Irishmanifestation of
thisconceptin somedetailand presentan examplein
whichthe fourquartersand the sacred centerwere
connectedwitha varietyof attributes or elements(the
primary beingbattlein thenorth,musicin
attributes
thesouth,prosperity in theeast,learningin thewest,
andkingship inthecenter).18 Another Irishtextrefers
to certain'winds' associatedwitheach of the four
directions(as well as two 'lesser' winds located
betweeneach of these).These 'winds' or directions
were apparentlyassociated with certaincolors, a
phenomenon whichoccursinotherculturalsettings as
well.19
In additionto a changein perception concerning
thestructure ofthesacredrealms,a shiftalso appears
16
Willis,p. 21.
Thisreverence forthesacredcenteris foundin Celtic
as
tradition, attestedbytheexistenceofcentralofferings
pitsand wooden pillarsinritualsitesorassemblygrounds.
In addition,the'fifth'province(Meath< Oír Mide
'middle')was associatedwithkingship andsacredsites.
18
Rees,CelticHeritage,pp. 118-139.The textis 'The
SettlingoftheManorofTara'.
19
Carey,John,"A Tracton theCreation," Éigse
"
11 (1986),
pp. 1-9and"CosmologyinSaltairna Rann, Celtica17
(1985), pp. 33-52.
319
DESCENT OF THE GODS
to have takenplace in relationto thenatureof time.

The Christianconceptof the Trinityrequiredof all
creatures (whether organic, inorganic, or
intelligential)a beginning,a middle,and an end.
Christian historians therefore assumed all
temporalities to be linear,with movementfroma
beginning,througha middle stage, and on to an
endingpoint.20 This was implicitin thebeliefin one
lifein thisworld,whichprogressedlinearlytowards
one of several'Otherworldoptions'(but whichdid
notcycle or repeat).This is quitedifferent fromthe
native concept of time, a topic which has been
discussedby PatrickK. Fordand Alwynand Brinley
Rees, among others.21 In nativetradition, timewas
perceivedas cyclical in nature.22 In addition,the
cyclicalcharacter oftimewas associatedwithcyclical
perceptions of creation.Hence in manysocietiesit is
customary to commemorate or re-enactthe events
associatedwithcreationat thenewyear,thestartof a
newtemporal cycle.
Floods,deluges,or theeruption of sacredwaters
appear in connection with the creationlegends of
many cultures. A number of flood mythsmay also
in
have existed early Irishtradition.JohnCareyhas
examinedthe legend of Cessair (the firstof the
'invasionmyths'),a tale whose originmay exist in
floodmythswhichwerenativeto Irelandpriorto the
20Ó
Cróinín,Dáibhi,TheIrishSex AetatesMundi(Dublin
InstituteforAdvancedStudies,Dublin,1983),p. 4.
21
Rees,pp. 83-106;Ford,PatrickK., mynotesfromhis
courseon "CelticPaganism,"HarvardUniversity, Spring
Term,2000.
Carey,John,"Time,Space andtheOtherworld,"
ProceedingsoftheHarvardCelticColloquium,Volume7
(1987), pp. 1-27.
320
creationofLebor GabálaP The originalmatrixofthe

tale involvesthe theftor abductionof a woman,
whichis followedbythedestructive eruptionofwater
(ocean,lake,well,or spring).Thesetalesreflectlocal
legends and traditionswithout any necessary
connection to Biblicaltraditions
concerning floodsor
primevalmigrations.24
Associated with native stories pertainingto
floods,theeruptionof waters,and thebeginnings of
things are a number of characters who exist
throughout theages in a varietyof humanand animal
forms.One ofthemostfamousoftheseis Fintan,son
of Bóchra ('Ocean'?), who comesto Irelandpriorto
the flood. He survives in various animal forms
throughout theages as a witnessto all thathas taken
place.25 Similarconceptsare also foundin thestory
of Túan mac Cairell,a memberof thefirstsettlement
in Irelandafterthe flood.He existsovertimein the
shapeof a stag,a boar,a birdof prey,and a salmon.
In salmonformhe is eatenby the Queen of Ulster.
She conceives a>s a result,eventuallybearinghim
anew as a humanchild.26The storiesof Fintanand
23
Carey,John,"The OriginandDevelopment ofthe
CessairLegend,"Éigse 22 Cl987), dd. 37-48.
24
Carey,John,"NativeElementsin IrishPseudohistory" in
MedievalStudies- CulturalIdentity and Cultural
Integration: Irelandand Europein theMiddleAges(Four
CourtsPress,Dublin,1995),pp. 45-60.BothCareyand
Scowcroft makereference to a numberofelementspresent
inLG andothersourceswhich,although oftenanalyzedas
having a Biblicalorigin,mayin factbe nativeparallels.
25
Carey,ibid.,p. 46.
Ibid.,pp. 46-7. Of thisepisode,JohnCareywrites:"Prior
to eachofhismetamorphoses, (andperhapspreserving
somerecollection ofearliervisionary Túan
practices),
321
DESCENT OF THE GODS
Túan,as well as thatof Li Ban (the survivorof the

eruptionof Lough Neagh) and the Childrenof Lir,
may be relics of a nativetraditionin which "the
enlightened adept,by recallingformer existences,can
lookbackintimetotheGoldenAge."27
In additionto nativeconceptsassociatedwith
shapeshifting and thetransmigration of the soul, the
above-mentionedtales are also connected with
creationand theoriginofthings.In thetaleofFintan,
thekingmustlocatetheoldestmanin orderto obtain
informationpertaining to historical precedents
associated with various aspects of society and
religion.The legitimacy, power,and stabilityof the
kingship(and by extension, thatof society)depended
upontheknowledgeofthefirst beginnings.
The knowledgeof thepast (and of theoriginof
things)providedthebasis formanyimportant socio-
religious precedents. These were used in legal
proceedings,the administration of regal duties,and
religiousrituals(frompagan ceremoniesto modern
folkcharms).In manyofthesesettings, certainwords
of whatothers
or actionsare describedas a repetition
once did (saints,ancestors,deities,etc.). This re-
enactment of 'whatthegods did in thebeginning'is
an important featureof many religioustraditions,
deriving inpartfromelementsoftheoriginmyth.28
to a cave,fasted,andthenhada dreaminwhich
retired
memory ofhisformer liveswas restoredto him.As with
thecase ofthePythagorean to whomthedruids
initiates
wereso frequently compared, knowledgeofthepastwas
understood to be hiddenwithintheself."
27
Ibid.,p. 46.
28Rees,pp.105-6.
322
While native origin legends may not have

survivedthe adventof Christianity intact,it is not
inconceivablethat elementsof native belief and
traditionpertainingto creationand sacred origins
were preservedin certaintales or accounts.Indeed,
we can see thata numberof elementsreasonably
describedas being associatedwithcreationwere in
factpreservedin earlyIrishsources.What,then,of a
nativemythoforigins?
John Carey writes that while we do not
necessarilyhave any directknowledgeof thebeliefs
of thepagan Irishconcerning theoriginsof theland
or its people,"therecan scarcelybe any doubtthat
legendsaddressing thesequestionswereimportant to
them."29 Pertinentelementswhichoriginatedin the
fullypagan era maywell have been recordedin the
earlyhistoricalperiod.Indeed,Careymaintainsthat
Irish literature
"preservesvarious ideas which are
probablyat least to some extentreflections of pre-
Christian A good exampleis theearlytale
doctrine."
De Gabail in tSidawhichstatesthatthefirstGaels in
29 A NewIntroductiontoLeborGabála Érenn
Carey,John,
(IrishTextsSociety,Dublin,1993),pp. 1-21.The natureof
sucha beliefmaybe reflected inthefirst-century
BCE
statement oftheAlexandrian scholarTimagenesinwhich
he statesthatdruidsofGaul maintainedthatpartofthe
was
population indigenous whileothersweresaid to come
fromremoteislandsandtheregionbeyondtheRhine.In
addition,in a moremythologicalvein,thereis Caesar's
reportthattheGauls statedthattheywereall descended
froma commonancestorordivinefather figure{'Dis
Pater'),andthatthiswas thetraditionofthedruids.
(Edwards,HJ.,tr.,Caesar - TheGallic War,Book VI, p.
342-3).
323
DESCENT OF THE GODS
Ireland"madepeace withthegodsofthelandin order

to successfully raisetheircropsandherds."30
The information presentedin thissectionmaybe
seen to constitute a considerablebody of knowledge
pertaining to theshape(at least)ofcertainelementsof
nativeIrish belief,includingthose associatedwith
creation and origin myths.In the face of this
information, we cannot reasonably maintainthe
stancethatwe knownothingat all aboutpagan Irish
belief(especiallyin lightoftheconservative natureof
certainaspectsof Irishsociety,specifically theroleof
poets and historians).While we cannotknow for
certainhow old theseconceptsmay be (or in what
stateof integrity theywere recorded),comparative
data fromarchaeology,Classical sources,and Indo-
Europeanstudies(as well as thefrequency withwhich
theseelementsappearin oraland literary sourcesover
manycenturies)supportthepossibility thattheymay
in factreflectnativetradition to some extent.With
thisin mind,letus explorethenativetraditions which
may have been recordedin Lebor Gabála in particular
(albeit in a modifiedor incompleteform),pausing
brieflyto examinethecomposition and natureof the
textitself.
Originsand Lebor Gabála

A greatdeal of discussionhas takenplace in an
attemptto ascertainwhat Lebor Gabála represents
and of what materialsit was comprised.Some
scholarsfeelthatmostelementsin Lebor Gabála can
sources;otherssuggestthatit is
be tracedto Christian
a vast repositoryof nativetradition.Both of these
extremeviews maybe missingthemark.Thereis a
30
Carey,ibid.,p. 2.
324
thirdschool of thought,whichmaintainsthatLebor
Gabála is a blendof nativeand incomingtraditions
(theformer includinglocal histories,
genealogies,and
information
socio-religious ofvarioustypes,thelatter
reflectingtraditionswhich have their origin in
andMedievalsources).31
Classical,Christian, It is this
morebalancedand widelyacceptedschoolofthought
whichwe willfollowintheensuingpages.
In his comprehensive articleson Lebor Gabála,
R. Mark Scowcroft describes the text as an
"anonymous,scholarly compositiondesigned to
provideIrelandand herinhabitants witha continuous
and comprehensive history fromNoah to theNorman
31
Scowcroft, pp. 1-64,particularly12-14,63-64;and
Carey,A Introduction toLeborGabála, pp. 1-3,7, 17-19.
The Irishliterati
workedhardto integrate theircountry into
theschemesofmedievalhistoriography, geography, and
ethnography. In theprocess,theycreatedan 'ancient
history'of theGaedilwhichcorresponded inmanyaspects
tothatoftheIsraelites.Certainelementsinthetext,
however,(including patternvariants)suggesta reflectionof
a nativearchetype rather thana deliberate analogy with
Biblicaltradition.Thistheoryis supported bythefactthat
otherelementsexistin LG whichalso haveBiblical
parallelsbutwhichmayin factderivefromothersources.
ThesesourcesincludeEuropeanandNear-Eastern history
as itwas perceivedinthemedievalera,medievalIrish
politics,traditions
concerning warbetweenmedievalIrish
tuatha,elements of Indo-European mythology andculture,
andearlyIrishcosmology.Acknowledging theexistenceof
elementswhichderivefromthesemanysources,forthe
purposeoftheresearchat handwe willfocuson those
elementswhichseemmostreasonably to derivefrom
nativemythological In thisprocess,I owe a great
tradition.
debtofgratitude to theworkofJohnCarey,Mark
Scowcroft, AlwynandBrinleyRees andDáibhiÓ Cróinín.
325
DESCENT OF THE GODS
Conquest."32 Its primarypurposewas not to collect

nativetraditions,butto finda place forIrelandin the
biblicalhistoryof theworldand provideappropriate
ancestryforherinhabitants as descendantsof Noah.
In the process,however,originlegends and other
mythical or pseudo-historical
narratives(olderthanor
independent of Lebor Gabálá) which had been
preserved in native Irishtraditionwere interpolated
intothetext.33DáibhiÓ Cróiníndescribestheprocess
as follows:
Christianhistorians
madeno effortto
competewiththepagans,butpreferred to
adaptandintegrate whattheycouldinto
theirownwriting. Thusbiography
becamehagiography andthelistsof
kingsandemperors ofthevariousraces
werejoinedto formthesynchronistic
historyofuniversalman.34
Alwynand BrinleyRees also referto theprocess
through which Lebor Gabála was formed,
characterizingit as "a laboriousattemptto combine
parts of native teaching with Hebrew mythology
embellishedwith medieval legend."35Ratherthan
labelingthetextas a "medievalworkof fiction"(due
to theexistenceof Biblical elementsor parallelsand
of certainaspectsof the pedigrees),
the artificiality
theypointoutthatthemonksor poetswho compiled
thisworklivedmuchcloserto thepre-Christian world
32
Scowcroft,p. 1.
33
Ibid., p. 13.
34
O Cróinín,p. 4.
JD
Rees, p. 95.
326
than we do.36It is not unreasonableto thinkthat

native pagan traditionsmay have remained in
circulationin some cases, whetheror not theirfull
significancewas completely understood by thosewho
recordedorrecitedthemoverthecourseoftime.37
A numberofthenativeconceptsdescribedin the
previoussection(manyof whichare associatedwith
creationlegendsor cosmogoniemyths)are also found
in Lebor Gabála. Indeed,theRees brothers pointout
thatLebor Gabála retainsfeatureswhich"the study
ofothermythologies wouldlead us to expectinmyths
about the beginningsof things."38 Here they are
referringto theconditionof Irelandat thetimeof the
five invasions,when the land had not yet been
completely formed, dividedintoprovinces,ornamed:
Froma mythological pointofview,
really
nothing existsuntilithas been
'defined'
'formed,' and 'named,' andin
as muchas LeborGabála is
concernedwiththeoriginofphysical
boundaries
features, andnames,
36
Ibid., p. 104.
These traditionsmay have been preservedby thefilid or
otherformalguardiansof nativetradition(who steadfastly
and conservativelyguarded and transmitted a greatdeal of
otherlore, includinggenealogy,social customs,place-name
traditions,and poetry),as well as by professional,local or
familystory-tellers,or local lay-personswho maintained
pride and interestin ancienthistoryand traditions(whether
local or national,much as may be foundin certainareas of
modern-dayIreland).
38
Rees, p. 104.
327
DESCENT OF THE GODS
itretainssomeoftheessentialsofa
cosmogoniemyth.39
In additionto the formation of the land and its
naturalfeatures the
(including bursting forthof rivers
and lakesandtheclearingofplains),thetextseemsto
preserve informationabout the origin of things
associated with society.These include cultivation,
grinding,churning,building,trading,horse-racing,
arts and crafts,poetry,knowledge,the origin of
kingship,the administration of justice, and the
holdingofassemblies.40
Scowcroft pointsoutthatdespitetherelativeage
ofLeborGabála, itpreservessomeveryold traditions
(historical,
legendary, and mythological).41In lightof
the cosmogonienatureof thenativeelementswhich
occur in Lebor Gabála, one mightalso expect to
encounter information pertainingto thegods in sucha
setting(particularly primal deities associated with
creation).Keepingthisin mind,let us examinethose
portionsof the textwhich referto the Tuatha Dé
Danann in some detail. The second tractof Lebor
Gabála {De Gabálaib Èrenri)is of particular interest,
as itpresentsa greatdeal of informationpertaining to
theTuathaDé Danann,including whatis purported to
be theirgenealogy.42
Prehistoricgenealogieswere important in that
they legitimized the seat or lineage of kingship,
preserving the statusquo in societyand maintaining
custom and order. They were often recited at
important social or religiousevents.Divine, semi-
39
Ibid., p. 104.
40
Ibid., pp. 104-5.
41
Scowcroft,p. 32.
42
Ibid., p, 2.
328
divine(or at leastnobleor heroic)ancestorsprovided

a foundationupon whose reputation,status, or
divinityone mightattain or maintainpower and
position.They also providedthe recipientwith a
certainmystique,in some cases derivedfromthe
Otherworld realms.
In themedievalera, historians and genealogists
in Irelandmaintained thistradition by preserving or
supplying eponymous ancestorsforpopulationgroups
and familiallevel.Providing
on a national,territorial,
appropriate ancestors for all the peoples of Ireland
was important in termsof furnishing themwith a
Biblicalorigin.Thisincludedtheminthenewschema
and gave all populationgroupsa commonorigin(a
methodused to legitimizeeveryoneno matterwhat
theirpositionin society,therebyreducingconflict,
whetherphysical or ideological). The authorsof
Ireland's toponymie legends, the Dindsenchas,
performeda similartask in recordingor positing
eponymousfounders(manyof whomhad divineor
semi-divine ancestry)fortheplace-namesofIreland.43
Why should a genealogy of the Tuatha Dé
Danann have been preserved?Providingthe pagan
deities with human ancestrymightdiminishtheir
statusby demonstrating thattheywere 'no longer
gods'. Withouta divine pedigree,they could be
passedoffas just anotherrace or invasionof mortals
whowereconqueredor subduedbythenextincoming
populationgroup.In addition,Scowcroftmakesthe
observationthat "the mythographers of Christian
Irelandwere too interested in the old gods to leave
themalone."44
43
Ibid., p. 12.
44
Ibid., p. 35.
329
DESCENT OF THE GODS
The Tuatha Dé Danann are said to be the

descendantsof Nemed and are the thirdof five
invasions(as enumeratedin later versionsof the
Theydo notappearto have been included
tradition).
in theearliestaccountsof invasions,however,and it
maybe thatoriginallyonlyPartholón, Nemed,andthe
Milesians appearedin these accounts(withthe Fir
Bolg andtheTuathaDé Danannaddedlater).45
The earliestsummaryof Irishpseudo-history is
foundin a Britishsource,the Historia Brittonum,
writtenin Wales in 829-30 C.E.. The textappearsto
embodya numberof earlierstrandsof tradition (of
oral and Welsh derivation,as well as literaryand
Latin)and also includesIrishmaterialresembling an
earlyversionofLebor Gabála. It is likelythatat least
some of these sources existedas separatetextsin
Wales, NorthBritain,and Ireland.46The invaders
include Partholomus(Partholón),Nimeth(Nemed),
45 inLebor
Ibid.,pp. 29-32.The fiveages presented
Gabála mayhavebeeninfluenced bythefiveages known
to IrishclericsfromClassicalsources.The invasionsof
Partholón, Nemed,theFirBolg,andtheMilesiansmay
also havecorresponded withthefoundation ofthegreat
world-kingdoms of theThirdAge (theAssyrian, Median,
Persian,andAlexandrian whichwould
Greek),a tradition
havebeenwellknownto medievalliterati. In bothcases,
theinvasionoftheTuathaDé Danannseemsto havebeen
addedintotheschemelater,makingthemthelastgroupto
join an alreadyestablishedsequenceof 'invaders'.
46 PamelaS. andKoch,JohnT., "Historia
Hopkins,"
Brittonum (ExcerptsfromtheWelshLatin)inKoch,John
T. andCarey,John,eds.,TheCelticHeroicAge (Celtic
StudiesPublications, Maiden,Massachusetts, 1995),pp.
270-285.
330
and thethreesons of Mil witha 'companyof eight'

(theTuathaDé Dananndo notappear).47
By the time of Lebor Gabála, the historyof
Ireland's inhabitantsreflecteda wide varietyof
Biblical,native,and medievaltraditions, as well as
newly created These
adaptations.48 alterationsresulted
in the generationof an invasionmyth,whichfused
"elementsof pagan theologywith the politics of
medieval Ireland."49In additionto socio-religious
motivations forprovidingcommonancestryforthe
peoples Ireland,it is reasonableto supposethatin
of
the eyes of the proponents of the new religion,the
pagangodsoftheIrishwerea problemto be handled,
as wellas a forceto be reckonedwith.
JohnCareywrites:"It was an audaciousmoveto
weave thedivinitiesof theirpagan ancestorsintothe
framework of theirhistory,
and this'explanation'of
theimmortals seemsneverto have sat entirelyeasily
in themindsof themedievalIrish."50 The claimthat
the Tuatha Dé Danann had humanancestryis not
made priorto the poems of the tenthcenturyand
neverfullyousted the earlierview thattheywere
47Ibid.See also
Carey,A NewIntroduction toLebor
Gabála Érenn,pp. 4-6.
48Thereis insufficient
roomin an articleofthislengthin
whichto discussin anydetailthesourceswhichfedinto
thecreationofpseudohistorical doctrineintheseventhand
eighthcenturies,norwould I feelqualifiedto properly
interpretsuchevidence.However,as JohnCareypointsout
inhisNewIntroduction toLeborGabála, itis clearthatthe
schemerecordedinHistoriaBrittonum hadbeenevolving
overgenerations.
49
Ibid.,p. 32.
5U
Carey,"NativeElements," p. 53-54.
331
DESCENT OF THE GODS
destructive or uncannyspirits.51
Careypointsout the
inevitableartificiality
of accountsthatdescribehow
thegods "came to Ireland"withtheattendant needto
fitthemintoa seriesofsettlements: "Surelytheywere
alwaysthere,an ineradicablepartof the land whose
powerstheyare: theydo notcome 'from'anywhere-
anymorethantheFomoiriseemto do.. ,"52
While we may never be able to confidently
reconstruct the processesthroughwhichnativeand
learnedtraditions came together,one elementof the
accountis likelyto be an old one. Howevertheygot
there,it is thegods who ruleIrelandwhentheGaels
arrive. "The new land belongs to these
immortals... whose weapons are magic and illusion.
Ireland,beforetheGaels can win it forthemselves,is
itselfa kind of Otherworld."53 The arrivalof the
TuathaDé Danann is describedin Lebor Gabála as
follows:
The descendants
ofBethachmac Iarbonél
FáithmacNemedwereinthenorthern
islandsoftheworldlearningdruidism
andknowledgeand sorceryandcunning
untiltheywerepre-eminentintheartsof
theheathensages.TheyaretheTuatha
51 is evidentinthe
Ibid,p. 53-54.Theensuing confusion
storyof Túan,where we aretoldthat"the men oflearning
donotknowtheir butthink
origin, itis likely theyare
exilesfrom heaven."Thissamespeculative musing was
recorded inconnectionwiththefairies inIrishandScottish
Itmayalsohaveinfluenced,
folklore. orhavebeen
influenced by,accountsinwhichtheTuathaDé aresaidto
arrived"indarkclouds"(i.e. 'outofthesky').
52
Ibid., 54.
53Ibid.p.
332
Dé Donannwhocameto Ireland.It is
thusthattheycame:in darkclouds.54
The TuathaDé Danannlandin thewestand cast
a darknessupon the sun forthreedays and nights.
This is a significant
and oftenritualisticperiod of
timein Celtic tradition(as it is in manycultures),
frequently associated with journeys to the
Otherworld, important adventures or ordeals,
and changesof stateor status.55
initiation, Afterthe
threedays and nightsof darkness,the Tuatha Dé
Danann are able to vanquishthe Fir Bolg in battle,
thus experiencinga change of statusas theytake
possessionofthekingship oftheland.56
54
Carey, "Lebor Gabála Érenn" p. 244.
In manyreligioustraditions(includingthose associated
withshamanism),initiationritesor ordeals, and other
importantsocio-religiousceremonies,frequentlytake place
afteror duringa period of 'threedays and nights'. Initiates
oftenundergoor experiencea symbolic 'death and rebirth'
which involves the use of darknessas a relatedmetaphor.
Shamanicjourneys or ritualsoftentake place in the dark
(or at night). In a possibly similarfashion,early Irish and
Scottishpoetic candidateswere said to compose poetryin
darkenedhutsor cells withtheirplaid wrapped aroundtheir
head to block out the light.In addition,in various creation
mythologies,life emergesfromor is createdfromthe
darknesswhich precedes it.
Rees, p. 107. An alternateinterpretation (or origin) of the
traditionof 'five invasions' presentsitself.Alwyn and
BrinleyRees compare the fivepre-Gaelic peoples withthe
traditionof the 'Five Kindreds' known in India. In theRig
Veda theyare spoken of as immigrantswho come from
anotherlocation "across the waters" and who settleand till
the lands on the othershore. It is understoodthatthisdoes
notrepresentan historicalinvasion but a crossingover
333
DESCENT OF THE GODS
The DescentoftheGods
In Lebor Gabála, a Biblical originforthe Irish
was providedthrough one of thethreesons of Noah
(Japheth)from whom thepeoplesofEuropeweresaid
to descend. In this scheme,the Sons of Mil (the
Gaels) are descended fromJapheth'sson Gomer,
while the 'peoples who came to Irelandbeforethe
Gaels' (theGaileóin,theFir Domnann,theFir Bolg,
and the Tuatha Dé Danann) are descended from
Magog, anotherson of Japheth.57 This arrangement
fromone formofbeingto another. In thesevoyagesto the

sacredrealms,a crossingofwateroftenimpliesa changeof
stateorstatus.The Five Kindredstravelbywayofship
("acrossthewater,""fromdistantlands")or in a heavenly
chariot.Thisis similarto descriptions oftheinvasionsin
LG, including ofthat the Tuatha Dé Danann. Theytooare
said to havecomefroma distantlocation("thenorthern
islandsoftheworld,"whichimpliestravelacrosswater),
arriving in shipsor"in darkclouds"(thelatterpossibly
interpreted as indicating'fromthesky').
5/
Carey,''LeborGabála Erenn? pp. 21 1-216.It is
interesting to notethatinLG tradition, theGaels andthe
non-Gaelsaredescendedfromtwodifferent grandsons of
Noah,Gomer,andMagog.Gomer'ssonIbath('yew') has
twosons,Bodb (a nativewordmeaning'raven')andBaath
(also a nativewordmeaning'death'ormoreappropriately,
'sea'). Bodb has a sonDói ('unskilled,inartistic'?) whohas
no descendants. Baath,on theotherhand,has an extremely
skilledson,FéniusFarsaid,a sage associatedwithpoetry
andpoeticlanguages.It is through thisreputable linethat
theGaels claimedtheirdescent.
The non-Gaels,however,aredescendedfromMagog,a
namewhichappearsintheOld Testament as a place-name,
denoting a northern kingdom ruledby figureknownas
a
Gog {Ezekiel 38:2 and 3, andEzekiel 39:1). It is unclear
whether personornot.In Revelations
Gog is an historical
334
differsfromthat foundin the Old Testament.A

numberof other additionsand alterationsappear
which constitutea departurefromOld Testament
traditionand an expansionof the Biblical model in
whichknownpopulationgroupsattribute theirorigin
to one ofthesonsorgrandsons ofNoah.58
In theBible,Japheth's descendantsoccupyAsia
Minorand theMediterranean. In Lebor Gabála, they
inhabita similararea butalso occupy'all of Europe'.
Additionally,in Biblical traditionthe offspring of
20, however,Gog andMagogarementioned as destructive

figureswhose names (in thiscontext)symbolizethegentile
nationsleaguedagainstthechurchattheendoftime.Thus
thenon-Gaels(including theTuathaDé Danann,thepagan
godsoftheIrish)descendfroma shadowyfigurewhois in
one Biblicalcontextassociatedwithpaganism.I am
gratefulto former Br.Bartholomew Mallio forinformation
andreferences pertaining to Gog andMagog.
58TheNewJerusalem
Bible,(BantamDoubleday,1985),
pp. 28-9.We cannotbe sure,ofcourse,exactlywhich
booksoftheBible (or otherassociatedworks)theearly
Irishscribeshadin front ofthem,someofwhichmayhave
beenusedintheformation ofwhatever othersourcesor
pseudo-historicaltextstheymayhavebeenreferencing or
drawingfrom.Otherlearnedinfluences cameintoplay,as
well.In makingcomparisons in thepresentwork,I have
referredtotheNewJerusalem Bible,performing a careful
readingofGenesisandothersections(including theindex
ofpersons).A computer searchandclose readingof
pertinentsectionsof the Vulgatewas also performed.
Clearlysomeofthesemedievaladaptations resultedfrom
thechallengefacingthenewly-converted Irishoffinding a
place forthemselves amongthedescendants ofNoah,as
wellas coordinating theirtraditions withthecurrent system
whichwas basedon bothBiblicalauthority, Greco-Roman
historiography,andotherlearnedmedievalsources.
335
DESCENT OF THE GODS
Japheth'sson Gomerare listedas Ashkenaz,Riphath,

andTogormah.In Lebor Gabála, Gomerhas twosons
calledEmoth(fromwhomcomethe'northern peoples
oftheworld')and Ibath.Ibathhas twochildren, Bodb
and Baath,who do notappearin Genesisand whose
namesareofIrishorigin.[AppendixOne]
Severalnamesfromthe pedigreeof the Tuatha
Dé Danann in Lebor Gabála also appearin Historia
Brittonum (referredto hereafteras HB) as well as in
the genealogiesof the Leinstermen fromRawlinson
B.502 (notedas RawlB502).59 A few of the names
59
HopkinsandKoch,"HistoriaBrittonum "; O'Brien,
M.A., ed., CorpusGenealogiarum Hiberniae,Vol. 1
(DublinInstitute forAdvancedStudies,Dublin,1976),pp.
1-7.NameswhichappearinHistoriaBrittonum, as well as
in Irishand/orWelshgenealogies,mayhavetheirorigin
in someearliersourceortradition whichmayreflect
Biblical,medieval and /ornative elements. Clearlyit
wouldbe difficult to speculateuponthenatureofthese
sources.
The Welshwerealso knownfortheirpredilection for
genealogies (including models along similarpseudo-
historicallines)andwouldcertainly havebeenfamiliar
withearlyhistories (suchas Isidoreof Seville)which
circulated in learnedcircleson thecontinent andelsewhere.
They also trace themselves back to Adam through the
offspring of Noah (although sometimes through different
sonsofJapheth thanthosewho figurein Irishtradition).
However,otherthanthesole mention ofa figurecalled
SeruintheWelshLifeof SaintCadog,andan Enos,a
grandson ofAdam(as wellas Enoc) intheGenealogies
fromHanes Gruffuddap Cynan(bothofwhomarealso
mentioned inthepedigreesfromMostynMS. 117),the
namesfromLG do notseemto figurein theWelsh
genealogicaltracts.Bartrum, P.C., Early Welsh
Genealogical Tracts (UniversityofWales Press,Cardiff,
336
are similarto thoseof personsin theBible, but it is

possible thatthe author(s)of the pseudo-historical
texts,in encountering unusual or unfamiliarIrish
words,thought theyrecognizedin thesenamesthose
offigures familiarto themfromtheirowntradition.60
Howeverthegenealogiesin Lebor Gabála came
about,it is reasonableto speculatethatat somepoint
nativeIrishloreand Biblicaland medievaltraditions
were 'stitchedtogether'intoa pseudo-history which
served many purposes.61The artificiality of the
pseudo-historicalgenealogical arrangementas it
standsis obvious;theTuathaDé cannot,ofcourse,be
trulydescendedfromNoah,supporting thetheory that
the genealogyis a hybridof nativeand non-native
traditions.Withall ofthisin mind,we mayproceedin
ourexploration of certainfacetsoftheancestryofthe
TuathaDé Danann as describedin Lebor Gabála.62
Sections 12, 13, and 75 of the text (which are
remarkably internallyconsistent)providedata from
1966).I am deeplyindebted to Ms. CharleneShipmanfor

references pertainingto medieval IrishBiblicalsourcesand
theHistoriaBrittonum,
traditions, andtheinformation
containedintheGenealogiesin RawlinsonB. 502. 1would
also liketo thankMs. Katharine OlsonandMr.Benjamin
Bruchfortheirhelpwithsourcespertaining totheWelsh
genealogies.
60See footnotes 67 and84 below.
61In the
genealogyoftheSons ofMil,theseamor
borderline betweennativeandBiblicalelementsseemsto
be fairlyeasilydiscernible.
AfterNoah,Japheth, and
Gomerwe encounter Ibath,Bodb,andBaath,wordswhich
mayreasonably be interpreted
as Irishinorigin,and
proceeddirectly to such'Goidelic' figuresas Fénius
Farsaid,hissonNel ('cloud') andGáedelGlas.
62
Carey,LeborGabála Erenn,pp. 213-262.
337
DESCENT OF THE GODS
whicha genealogyof theTuathaDé Danannmaybe

reconstructed.63[AppendixTwo]
Let us examinethenamesofthepersonswhoare
reported to be theancestorsoftheTuathaDé Danann.
The firstthreefigures(Noah, Japheth, and Magog)
are Biblicalin origin.The nameswhichfollowthese
are:Faithecht, Braimin(d),Esrú,Srú,Sera, Tat/ Tait,
Paimp,Agnoman, Nemed,lardan/Iarbonél,Bethach,
Ebath / Ibath,Baath, Eno / Èrta,Tabarri,and Tat /
Tait.Whilethesignificance ofsomeofthesenamesis
reasonably clear, a number of thempresentdistinct
challenges of derivationand (forwhich
interpretation
I invitethe superiorknowledgeand commentary of
others).64
63In
comparing andmatchinguptheinformation presented
indifferent ofthetext,
sections itwasfound thatthedata
wasmorethan90%accurate interms ofprecision,
and There
reliability, uniformity. is some overlap inthe
informationprovidedinthesepassages, as wellas
complementary datawhichfillsgapsinother sections.
Cross-checkingallthedatapresented intheFirst
Rescension theTuathaDé Danann,
concerning thematerial
wasremarkably Thefewinstances
consistent. ofconfusion
oromission wereeasilyrectified
byreferring toothertexts
suchas CathMaige TuiredandAcallamna Senórach.This
highlevelofaccuracyis quiteremarkable in lightofthe
processesof accretion,amalgamation, modification
and
whichundoubtedly tookplace.
64This and interpretation
paperis a speculativeexploration
ofwonderfully andnefariously
fascinating difficult
It is merelyan initialforayintotheformidable
material.
taskofanalyzingtheseelementsinthismanner, andI
welcomeandencouragetheworkofothersin furthering
thisprimary attempt.
338
Faithechtmay appear in HB as Aurthoch.65

Similar names appear in MS Rawlinson B
502:[RawlB502]Ethecht,Aurtacht, Aurthecht.66
In a
genealogygivenby Keatingin his Foras Feasa ar
Éirinn(whichhe attributes to the lost Cin Dromma
a
Snechtd) figure called Fáthach is mentioned, the
ancestorof Partholónand Nemed, and brotherof
Baathand Ibath(all threesons of Magog). Whilethe
possible variantsabove appear in othersources,I
have beenunableto locateanyBiblicalfigurewhose
nameis similartothatofFaithecht.67
65
HopkinsandKoch,HistoriaBrittonum, p. 274.
66Ifthealternate
spellingsreflecttheoriginalmoreclosely
thanthatwhichappearsinLG, perhapsthereis some
connection withthewordaitecht'tutorage, instruction'
or
aittecht'act ofreturning; actofexpounding, lesson,
instruction'.Aithech,mostcommonly knownas a word
signifying 'vassal,peasant',itmayalso mean'giant'or
'monster'(bringing to mindtheearlyracesofgodswho,in
sometraditions, werea raceofgiants).In certainusages
aithechmayreferto a husbandormasterofthehouse,ora
warrior orfighting man.See also airthechta 'privilege,
prerogative, right'andairthach'oathofconfirmation
due,
ordenial;guarantee'.The variantsopenup a numberof
possibilities.
67
Carey,John,"TheAncestry ofFéniusFarsaid,"Celtica
Vol. 22 (1990), p. 106. In hisexaminationofgenealogical
traditionspertainingto FéniusFarsaid,Careydiscussesthe
'longpedigree'oftheSons ofMil,variants ofwhichare
foundin a numberofsources(including thefirst recension
ofLeborGabála, HistoriaBrittonum, na
Auraicept nÉces,
Scéla Mosauluim,andthedynastic poemseditedbyKuno
Meyerinthefirst partofhis Überdie ältesteirische
Dichtung).In thislineage,a pairofsimilar(orpotentially
related)namesappear,thoseofa father andson duo (the
father'snamespelledAurthecht, Aurtacht,
Athiecht,
339
DESCENT OF THE GODS
It is possible thatthe name derivesfromOld

Irishfaith 'seer, prophet'and may mean something
like 'Artof Prophecy',or by extension,'One who is
Skilled in the Art of Prophecy'.(Cf its derivative
fáthach'possessedof knowledge,skill;wise' as well
as the suffixembodiedin theworddánacht'poetry,
artof poetry').68Prophecywas a highlyreveredand
oftendivinelyderivedskillwhichfigures prominently
in numeroussources,frequently ascribedto poets,
druids,and otherfigureswith high socio-religious
status. A Divine Seer would be an appropriate
ancestorfor the Tuatha Dé Danann (who were
renownedfortheirmanyskills,includingthegiftof
prophecy).
Braimin(d).I have been unableto makeanything

of
thisname.69
Esrú is also mentioned

in RawlB502,and twosimilar
namesappearin HB (thoseof Ezra and fatherIzrau).
Aurtecht,Arthecht,Aurthach; theson's givenas Ethecht,

Ethiecht,Athecht,orEthach).The relationship ofthese
namesto thatofFaithechtis unclear.HereI shouldliketo
statethatthesepedigrees, theirsources,datingand
andtheoriginsofvariousborrowings
interrelationships, or
constitute
variations, a vastlycomplextopic which I am not
attemptingto unravelin fullinthispaper.
All derivations
or suggestedorigins,unlessotherwise
noted,derivefrom[DIL], DictionaryoftheIrishLanguage
- Based mainlyon Old and MiddleIrishMaterials(Royal
IrishAcademy,1913-1976).
The namesometimes endsin-in, othertimesin-ind,
perhapssuggesting a suffixoffinn/find'white,bright,
blessed,etc',which occurs in associationwithothernames
associatedwithmythological settings.
340
Ezra the scribeis a well-knownBiblical character,

wherehe is theson of Serai'ah (a figurewhosename
may be reflectedin thatof Esni's grandsonSera in
Lebor Gabála tradition).Ezra does not appear in
Genesis,however,noris he associatedwithNoah and
his offspring.70Severalpossibilitiesexistto supporta
nativeoriginforEsni's name.
The word may derivefromesruth'scattering,
bursting forth'(perhapsdenotingthepropagationof
divine progeny or the disseminationof divine
knowledgeor power).71 A figurecalledEsras appears
in Cath Maige Tuired(one of the foursages with
whomtheTuathaDé Danannstudiedoccultloreand
magic),and a derivationof his name fromesrais /
esrus 'outlet,passage; means,way, opportunity' has
beensuggested.72
If thewordis a compound,it maybe comprised
of [DIL, item3] es(s) 'cataract,rapid;rapidlyflowing
stream'and sruth'stream,river,current;streamof
sea'. The second elementcould also reflectsmith,
'old, senior,venerable,revered,honored',whichmay
be used as a substantive to denotean 'elder,ancestor,
reverend person,sage'. This mightsuggesta meaning
in therangeof 'Waterfall'of the 'River/ Stream'or
'Sage/ Ancestor'.
Ancestorsand sages play an important role in
manyearly Irishtales.Water sources (includingrivers
70Ezra 7.
Used inphrasessuchas esruthsin,esruthgáith,and
esruthrind(scatteringorbursting forthofstorms,windand
stars).Perhapssimilarto esréd,'dispersing,
scattering'.
Also spelledaesruth.Cf.assreud,v.n.ofas-sréi,
'sprinkles'?
72
Gray,Elizabeth,CathMaige Tuired(1982, IrishTexts
Society),pp. 24-5.
341
DESCENT OF THE GODS
and waterfalls)are often associated with divine

knowledge,and in some cases sages or poets are
connectedwiththesesites.In addition,an important
activitywas Ess Ruaid 'the Red
site of ¿/¿/-related
Waterfall',whosenamecouldalso be reflected in that
of the figureEsrú.13Overall, this word seems to
reflectimageryassociatedwiththe flowingof water
and the possession or disseminationof divine
wisdom.
Srú appearsin RawlB502(as Srú orZrü) butdoes not

appearin HB. If thenameis Irish,itmayderivefrom
sruthorsmith('River/Stream'or 'Sage /Ancestor'),
reflectingimagerysimilarto the figuredescribed
above.
Sera is notlistedin HB butmayappearin RawlB502

(spelled Sara). Biblical traditionprovides several
candidates:Serai'ah (the fatherof Ezra), Serug (a
descendantof Shem), and the femalename Sarai I
Serah. However,a figurecalled Sera does appearin
an Irishsourceas thefather ofTuan,a
of Starn,father
figure associated with primal floods and early
cosmogonieelements.The meaningof the word is
unclear.74
Tat / Tait is most recognizableas a Welsh word

meaning'father',appearingin earlyWelshsourcesin
73Ess Ruad was one ofthe

placeswhereFinnmac Cumaill
was saidto havecaughtthesalmonofknowledge.Words
denoting'red' maybe usedfiguratively to mean'great',
'mighty','noble', etc.
74Old Irishséire/sére
'meal,food'?,or less likelyserr
'sickle' orseir 'heel,shank'.
342
the names of figureslike Tad Awen, 'Father of

Inspiration'.Havinginsufficient expertise(or space)
to properly speculateuponhow a Welshwordfound
its way intoan Irishgenealogy,I will suggestonly
thatitmayhaveto do withthesamechannelsthrough
which Irish genealogies entered Welsh pseudo-
historicaltradition.
Irishoriginis possiblethrougha varietyofwords
meaning 'joining' or 'union'. These include táth
'joining,welding,binding',used in a politicalsense
to denote 'uniting,rallying'(cf. 1 táthaid,'joins,
welds,unites;welder,smith,artificer')as well as 1
táide 'stealth,secrecy, concealment;hence illicit
intercourse'(cf.3 táth'fornication').75
Paimp is a wordwhosemeaningis unclear,although

theinclusionof theletter'p' mayindicatederivation
(or alteration)
throughWelshchannels.It maybe that
thenameBoib (HB) orBanb I Bainb (RawlB502) are
morereflective of theoriginalform.It could also be
theIrishformoftheGreeknamePriam.76
75Ifsomesortofinitialmutation orre-duplication
were
involved,thewordmightbe a reflexofaite 'foster-father;
tutor,teacher'.(Cf.an t-oidefaoisidneach,
'father
confessor',also d'oitib7do buimaib.)
76The latterelementis similarto thatfoundinthe
deity
nameBanba,one ofthethreeeponymous goddessesofthe
landofIreland.ForPaimpandAgnoman,cfBook of
Lecan,facsimilepg. 35 verso,columns2-3,pedigreesof
Brutus.Severalvarients aregivenforBrutus,thecolonizer
ofBritain,including namesfromBiblicalandclassical
sources.The associationofthenamesPaim(p)andAgnon
(as theyappearthere)inparallelwithsuchVirgiliannames
as Anaichis(Anchises),Aenias(Aeneas)andAsean
(Ascanius)suggesta Greco-Roman origin.
343
DESCENT OF THE GODS
Agnomanappearsin RawlB502,as does thepossibly

relatednameOgamuin(spelledOugumunin HB). Its
but it is probably
meaningand originare uncertain,
the Irishformof the Greekname Agamemnon(see
note76).
Nemedis a wordofnativeoriginwhoseoriginalsense
was probablythatof a sacredor consecratedplace,
withsecondarymeanings(fromthehonorattachedto
sacredspace) of privilege,status,and dignity. As an
adjective it means 'holy' or 'sacred' and as a noun
or
'privilege,''sanctity', 'sanctuary'. In the earliest
law tractsit signifiedall persons of free status.
Freemenwereconsidered'holy' {nemed)in thatthey
werequalifiedto participate in publicreligiousrites.
In earlyIreland,theupperclasses of society(nemid)
includedsecularand ecclesiasticallords(sóememid)
and professionals (doernemid), as distinguished from
rent-paying vassals (aithig). A similar distinction
existedamongthe gods betweenthe skilleddeities
(aes dáná) andthehusbandmen (aes trebtha).11
The conceptof nemedalso findsexpressionin
the word nemeton,which refersto a sacred place
(possibly originallya clearing in the wood). A
nemetoncould existat,nearby,or in connection with
groves, hills, lakes, wells, tumuli, and royal sites,
whichoftenformedthesymboliccenterof thetuath.
Thesewerepointsofaccess to theOtherworld as well
as places of cultand sanctuary forthe pagan Celts.It
seems reasonableto suggestthatthe descentof the
77 "LeabharGabhála- PartII,"p. 59. A

Scowcroft,
oftheAeneidsurvives
ofa proseversion
translation inthe
BookofBallymote.
344
gods froma figurecalledNemed,whowas associated

withsacredsitesand ritualeventsassociatedwiththe
contactand propitiation of the Otherworld, might
reasonably haveformed partofnative tradition.
'
lardan(ais) or Iarbonél 'Faith ('The Seer') is a
characterwhose names suggest a number of
intriguing possibilities.The variant lardan couldbe a
compoundwordformedfromiar 'after,across;end;
dark,black' (a word sometimesused in formations
have thesense of 'west' or 'western')plus dan 'gift,
skill, especiallyof poetry'.This would suggesta
meaningalong the lines of 'Dark Skill' or 'Skill
whichOriginatesin the West'. The West was often
associatedwith the Otherworld, and was also the
direction associatedwithlearning.A namerelatingto
thegiftof prophecy, a 'dark' or obscureskillwhich
mightoriginate in the west (or in the Otherworld)
wouldbe appropriate fora divineseer.
The formofthenameis also sometimes givenas
Iardanais. Danais is the equivalentof Tanais, the
ancientnameof theRiverDon in Russia. This river
designation(and thatof numerousothersin Britain
and on the Continent)is thoughtto derivefromthe
Indo-European root*danu-'river'.78 The name may
be a descriptiveterm('dark river') or may reflect
movement 'across' a river.Movementoveror across
78
Rivet,A.L.F and Smith,Colin,ThePlace-Namesof
RomanBritain(Princeton UniversityPress,Princeton,
NJ,
1979),p. 329. Foran in-depth
discussionon these*danu-
rivernames,foundthroughout theCelticregionandthe
possibleassociationwiththeIrishfigureDanu,see my
"MaterDeorumHibernensium" in TheProceedingsofthe
HarvardCelticColloquium, Volume19 (1999).
345
DESCENT OF THE GODS
a bodyofwaterfrequently signifieda changeof state

ora journeytotheOtherworld.
The thirdvariantis Iarbonél.Its initialelement
may derivefromíarmúa/ íarmó 'great-grandson /
child' (sometimes used with the meaning
'descendant')and thesecondfromnel 'cloud'. In an
Indo-European systemofmythic analogyinwhichthe
elementsof the cosmos are comparedto the body
partsof theprimalbeing,clouds are associatedwith
the brain or thoughts.79An epithet meaning
'Descendantof Cloud' mayhave alludedin a poetic
fashionto theseer's abilityto obtainknowledgefrom
the heavens or the unseen world. In addition,the
Tuatha Dé Danann were said to arrive "in dark
clouds."
The confusionwhich seems to surroundthe
name of thisdivinepersonagemay derivefrom(or
have been influencedby) referencesto sages and
poets who appearin Auraceiptna n-Éces.%0 One of
theseis lar mac Nema,a figurewhosenameis quite
similarto thatof our seer,lardan mac Nemed.lar
mac Nema was said to have discoveredíarmbélra,
'The Obscure Language of the Poets'.81 The
Auraceiptalso mentionsone Nel, the son of Fenius
Farsaid. Bothlar mac Nema and Fenius were sages
associatedwithpoetic lore, learning,and traditions
pertainingto the various 'common' and 'poetic'
languages.
79
Lincoln,pp. 1-40.
Calder,George,ed.,Auraiceptna n-Eces- TheScholar's
Primer(FourCourtsPress,Dublin,1995),pp. 7-9, 17,and
101-3.
81
Calder,p. 17.
346
We can see certainsimilarities(as well as

possiblesourcesof confusion)betweenthenamesof
lardan mac Nemedand lar mac Nema,Iarbonéland
Nel (son oflar mac Nema's fellowsage Fenius),and
Iarbonél and íarmbélra (the poetic language
discoveredby lar mac Nema). The word dan,
associatedwiththe art of the poets,may also have
foundits way intolar(dan/s name. Howeverthese
variantscame about,theyall seem to be associated
withpoetry,prophecy,or the acquisitionof divine
wisdom, 'dark' or 'obscure' skills which are
associated with, and often derive from, the
Otherworld.
Setback's name seems to appear only in Lebor

Gabála. It mayreflectthewordbethach'nourishing'
or some formof betha/ bethu'life,existence;food,
nourishment; sustenance,maintenance'.This would
suggest a meaningalong the lines of 'He Who
ProvidesNourishment' or 'He Who SustainsLife'.
Bethach
Interestingly, (whosenameis associatedwith
lifeor sustenance)is one the'survivors'ofthepeople
ofNemed.*1
Ebath / Ibath appears in HB as Iobaath and in

RawlB502 as Enbath.These names seem to reflect
nativewordswhichreferto theaspenor yewtreeand
may also be associatedwith imagerypertaining to
sacredtreesor bile, ritualsites,and divinewisdom.
The name will require additional discussion,
presentedinthefollowing section.83
82
Carey,"LeborGabála;' Sections49, 53, 54.
Carey,John"FéniusFarsaid,"pp. 108-110. Carey
examinesdiscrepancies
andvariantsfoundin thepedigree
347
DESCENT OF THE GODS
Baath is foundin RawlB502(spelledBoathorBaoth)

and in HB, as statedabove {Baath son of Iobaath).
The namemayreflectan Irishword,perhaps1 bath
'death' or 2 bath,explainedas 'sea' (muir).As it is
our contentionthat some of the names in Lebor
Gabála reflectprimalfiguresor elementsassociated
withcreation,the secondinterpretation maybe most
Baath ('Sea'?) is one of the
suitable.Interestingly,
'men of Ireland'who survivethedelugeof Nemed's
oftheSons ofMil (whosegenealogysharesa fewcommon

figureswiththatoftheTuathaDé Danann;namelyBaath,
Esru,Sru,andTait).In particular, he discussestheLiber
Antiquitatum Biblicarum, a workwritten inHebrewaround
thetimeofJesuswhichwas translated intoLatin(probably
aroundthethirdor fourth century)andcirculated as one of
thewritings ofPhiloofAlexandria.It is an accountof
sacredhistory fromthecreationto thetimeofDavid,with
muchapocryphal detail.In one versionofthetext(where
thenamesofJapeth'ssonsandgrandsons arefrequently
garbled),three grandsons Japheth's Javanarelisted
of son
as Itheb(or perhapsIabat),Beath,andFenech.Careysees
a resemblance betweenthesenamesandthoseofthe
figuresIbath,Baath,andFénius(Farsaid). Bothtriosof
namesareevidently uniqueintheirrespective literatures,
andCareyfeelsthatearlierversionsoftheLibermayhave
containedreadingsevencloserto theIrishversion.
However,he also pointsoutthathe is unawareofanyother
convincing indication ofknowledgeofthetextbytheIrish,
andthatitis possiblethatonlya fragment reachedthem.I
suggestthatitis also possiblethatsimilarities existed
betweenthenamesofBiblicalcharacters andthoseof
nativeorigin,resulting in confusion,substitution,and
alternatespellings(a phenomenon which undoubtedly took
place,and for which Careygives at leastone example in
thissetting).
348
Ebath,and grandfather,
time,along withhis father,
Bethach.
Erto/Éna appearsin RawlB502as Énna (andperhaps

also as Énoc). This secondnamemayreflectthatof
the Biblical figureEnoch, the greatgrandfather of
Noah (and theonlycharacter mentioned thusfarwho
is associatedwithGenesis).84It mayalso be thatan
Irishwordwas 'recognized'as a variantor reflection
of Enoch. A derivationfromthe word en 'bird' is
possible{cf.éonu,acc.pl.ofen,andénach'pertaining
to or hauntedby birds'or used as a collectiveform,
'birds').Due to thefactthatthenamesofÉna's father
and son bothmean 'sea', it is also possiblethatthe
namemayreflecta formof theworden 'water'(gs.
ena,as inthephrasesruaimend)}5
Tabarndoes notseemto appearin sourcesotherthan

Lebor Gabála. The grandchild
of Baath ('Sea'), his
namemayreflecttheIrishwordiabairn,whichalso
means'sea'.
Tat/ Tait:Section97 ofLebor Gabála states:"It is at

Taitson ofTabarnthatthetestimonies concerning the
TuathaDé Donannconverge."Indeed,aftermapping
out theancestorsand descendantsof theTuathaDé,
we can see thatTait / Tat is in factthe common
ancestorofall members oftheTuathaDé Danann.86 It
84Genesis5:18.
Itis alsopossiblethatsomeform oftheverbenaidmay
be involved.InBérlanafiled,a language
associatedwith
Éna's great-great-grandfather
lardan/Iarbonél,enaid
means'shows,makesknown'.
See Appendix Two.
349
DESCENT OF THE GODS
is possible that the name reflectsa native word

pertainingto conceptssuchas 'joining'or 'union' (a
meaningwhichmay have suggestedor strengthened
by familiaritywiththe Welsh word tat 'father';cf.
Old Irishaite/aiti,'fosterfather').Withthiscommon
ancestoror father-deity we encounterthe familiar
shiftin focusfromdeitiesassociatedwithcreationto
thoseassociatedwiththeland and theworldof men.
The descendants of theseprimaldeitiesconstitute
the
well-knowndivine figuresof early Irish mythand
legend (Dagda, Mórrígan,Oengus, Boand, Brig,
Ogma,Macha,Lugh,Manannán,Goibniu,and so on).
The Yew, theAsh,and theSalmon

Ebath,the son of Bethach('He Who Promotes
Life') and great-grandson of Nemed ('Sacred Place),
is a figurewhosenamerequiresspecialcommentary.
In the Ogam alphabet,ebath / ebad is said to
represent'ea' or ogamdiphthongs beginning with'e'.
It is associated with the aspen in several places
(althoughelsewherewiththe herbelecampane).Its
spelling is erratic, and there is considerable
fluctuation and confusionbetweenebad and edad
the
throughout Auraceipt.
Some of this irregularity is the result of
confusionwith word idad (the letter'i') which is
connectedwiththeyew.The treesassociatedwiththe
ogam alphabetare groupedintofourclassifications:
peasant,herb,and shrubtrees.The aspenis
chieftain,
listed as a peasant tree and does not figure
prominently in earlyIrishtreelore.87The yew,on the
87
Ross,Anne,PaganCelticBritain (Academy,Chicago,
1996),pp.54-5,59-66;Kelly,Fergus,"TheOldIrishTree-
List,"Celtica11 (1976);Calder,
pp.89-93;Newton,
350
otherhand,is includedamongthechieftain treesand,

along withthe oak andthe ash,was considered to be a
bile, a sacredtreeunderwhichassembliesmightbe
held. In latertimes,thesetreeswere associatedwith
holysites(wells,hills,andburialgrounds).88
Dindsenchastradition recordsthe name of five
particularlysacred trees:The Tree of Tortu,theTree
of Dathi,theTreeof Uisnech(all ash trees),Éo Rosa
(a yew),andÉo Mugna(an oak oryew).The lasttree,
Éo Mugna,was said to bearapples,nuts,and acorns.
In one Dindsenchasaccountit is describedas an oak
(dair),whilein twoothersit is said to be a yew (éo).
One ofthesetrees,at least,is explicitlyreferredto as
a bile.*9Two ofthefivetreesareyewtrees,whilethe
otherthreeare ash. Here we mightrecall thatthe
worldtreeof theNorse was an ash. This symbolof
the axis mundiplayed an important role in ancient
Norse ritualand continuedto do so in the folklore
tradition.The gods weresaid to dispensejusticefrom
an assemblybeneaththe worldtree,reminiscent of
thetribalassembliesof theCeltswhichtookplace in
thepresenceofthebile.90
Michael,A HandbookoftheScottishGaelic World(Four

CourtsPress,Dublin,2000),pp. 92-6,191-2.
88
Lucas,A.T., "The SacredTreesofIreland,"Journalof
theCorkHistoricalandArchaeologicalSociety,LXVIII
(1963), pp. 16-54.
89
Ross,p. 60.
90
Davidson,Godsand MythsofNorthern Europe,pp. 162,
165,168, 170, 179,215, and224; andMythsand Symbols
inPagan Europe(SyracuseUniversity Press,1988),p. 25:
"As thecenterofthecosmos,thesacredtreewas linked
withcreationlegends.. . Itwas appropriate
thatthesacred
centershouldbe theplace wherekingsarechosenand
proclaimed, andwherethelaw was recited."Manyhave
351
DESCENT OF THE GODS
Whiletheaspen does notplay a prominent role

in earlyIrishtradition, theyewappearsto havebeena
highlyveneratedtree.How can we accountfor(or
clarify)theconfusionbetweenebad / edad and idad,
wordswhichreferto eitherthe yew or the aspen?
DamiánMcManushas discussedat lengththeworkof
thecomposersof theBriatharogam, theoldest,least
contaminated, and most trustworthy source of
informationon the types of ogam and their
associations.91He pointsoutthattherecordednameof
theogam characters forE (ebad / edad) and I (idad)
pose considerable problemsof interpretation and
etymology and thatthisconfusionis foundas earlyas
Cormac'sGlossary.92 Perhapsthekennings associated
with these lettersmay shed some light on the
problem.
Edad is associatedwiththeaspenor poplartree.
It represents theletter'é' andwordswhichbeginwith
'é'. It is connectedwiththesalmonin thekenning"é-
thecraftyone of thewater,i.e. salmon."93 Ébad was
speculatedon a possibleconnection betweenthe

symbolism oftheworldtreeandthewidespreadveneration
fortreesfoundin Celtictradition. The natureofsacred
locationsas describedinbothliterature andfolklore and
archaeological evidenceconcerning the structureofCeltic
sacredsites(bothnaturalandmanmade)supportsucha
connection. It maybe thatgreatsacredtreesorbile(as well
as woodenpostsor stonepillarsmentioned in literary
sourcesandfoundat Celticritualsites)mayhaveservedas
symbolsoftheworldtreeinthecommunity or locationin
whichtheyarefound.
McManus,Damián,"IrishLetter-Names andtheir
Kennings," Ériu39 (1988), pp. 127-145.
92
Ibid.,p. 163.
yjIbid.,p. 147.
352
also mentioned in connection withthesalmon,in the

kenning: "fair swimming letter-a kenningfor the
greatsalmon.. . è /éo is a name/wordforthesalmon
and it is written [withthecharacter] ébad as [in] the
'Alphabet of the World', i.e. three stags,i.e. deer,
salmon, three a
salmon, snipe i.e. a blackbird."94We
will re-examinethis somewhatcrypticstatement
further on.
The kenningsfor I pose fewerproblemsthan
thoseforE andreferprimarily to theyewtree(ibar in
theglosses).95 FergusKelly mentions that(apartfrom
ibar) another Old Irish word for 'yew' was éo
(cognatewithWelsh,Bretonand Old High German
wordsfor'yew').96McManus statesthatibar cannot
have been theold name of T, butthatOld Irishéo
couldhave been (<PI *iwas; cf.Welshyw 'yew-tree'
andGaulishIvo).91
The yewtree,then,was associatedwithboththe
letterT (ibar, 'yew') and the letter'E' (é). The
kenningsconnectedwith these lettersdemonstrate
associationswiththesalmon(é / éo, as in thephrase
éo fis, 'salmon of knowledge')as well as an older
word for the yew (also éo). However it occurred,
thereis clearlya measureof overlapbetweenthe E
andI kennings, theformer pointing to éo 'yew' oréo /
é 'salmon'and thelatterto 'yew' (glossedibar). The
kennings seemto havebeencomposedat a timewhen
the namesof theseletterswere knownto mean (E)
'yew' or 'salmon'and(I) 'yew'.98
94
Ibid., p. 147.
95
Ibid., p. 164.
95
Kelly, p. 110.
McManus, p. 164.
V8
Ibid., p. 164.
353
DESCENT OF THE GODS
The World Tree oftheIrish

The word ebath,then,was associatedwiththe
diphthongéo with its early attendantmeaningsof
either'yew' or 'salmon'. We have seen thattheyew
tree was consideredsacred and was one of the
chieftaintrees. As a bile it was connectedwith
religiousassemblies,sacredsites,andthewisdomand
abundanceof theOtherworld. I suggestthattheyew
may have servedas a or
symbol representative of the
worldtreein earlyIrishtradition. As such,it would
reasonablyappearin associationwithcreationmyths
and scenariosand theirattendant divinefigures.Let
us explorethispossibility inmoredetail.
In manycultures, theworldtreeis referred to as
the 'Tree of Life'. The fatherof Ebath ('Yew') was
Bethach ('He who Promotesor SustainsLife'), a
figurewhose propensityfor life was such thathe
survivedthedelugeofNemed'stime.The axis mundi
to as the'Tree of Wisdom'.The word
is also referred
ebathwas associatedwiththekenningérnaidfid/fer
('discerningletter,wood ortree'or 'discerning man').
Thismayreferto theuse of rodsofyew in divination
ritesas well as the connectionof ebad (é) withthe
legendaryéo fis ('the salmon of knowledge').99 In
addition, the world tree is frequentlyassociatedwith
longevity or immortality. The Treeof Mugna(a yew)
99The
yew(éo) is connectedwitha numberofother
kennings associated
whichreferto thesalmon,a creature
withdivineknowledge, poetry,andprophecy.The salmon
withsacredriversorother
oftenappearsin connection
bodiesofwaterassociatedwithwisdomorprophecy. A
numberofsacredsalmonaredescribedas livingin an
Otherworldwellofwisdom,whichwas oftenlocatednear
theworldtree.
354
was evidentlyso, as it was describedas being

evergreen.100The yew tree is glossed as 'oldest of
woods' (siniu fedaib) and 'oldest tree' (probably
referringto its well-attested Indeed,in
longevity).101
Britainand otherregions,the yews are the oldest
intacttrees.102
Earthlyrepresentatives of the world tree are
oftenfoundin connection withsacredorholysites.In
Ireland,ash and yew treeswere oftenplantednear
churches(whereperhapstheyhad formerly existed,
according to Giraldus Cambrensis). These trees
symbolizedimmortality well into the Christianera.
Varioussocio-religious riteswereheldnearthesiteof
the world tree (or its symbol). In Scotland,the
gatheringplace of theStratherick Fräserswas known
as Tomna h-Iúbhraich, 'The Hill of theYew'. This
hallowedsitecontaineda sacredyew treeas well as
an ancientburialground.Most significantly forour
explorationis the site knownas Taigh nan Teud,
whichwas consideredto be the center-point of all
Scotland. It was located near the yew tree of
the oldestlivingtreein Europe,and was
Fortingall,
undoubtedly a sacredsitein ancienttimes.103
100
Lucas,p. 18. In a similarvein,theyewis mentioned in
an earlyriddle:"Whicharethetwotreeswhosegreentops
do notfadeuntiltheybecomewithered?" "Éo-Rossaand
Fidh-Sidheang, Yew and Holly."
McManus,pp. 136-7,147. The yewis renowned forthe
greatage itcan attainandaccordingly was placedlastin
the'AlphabetoftheWorld'.
White,John, Forestand WoodlandTreesinBritain
(OxfordUniversity Press,1995),p. 207.
103
Newton,pp. 191,211, 214. Dr. Newtonhas beenkind
enoughtopointoutto methatin additionto theassociation
ofa yewtreewiththecentralpointof Scotland,a number
355
DESCENT OF THE GODS
While the word éo mostoftenconnotesa yew

tree,ithad an earliermeaningof 'stem'or 'shaft'and
can referto a treein a moregeneralsense. Perhaps
thisreflectsthe symbolof thecentralpillaror shaft,
whichconnectedthe threeworldsand whichhelped
facilitate communication between them.104
Interestingly,as yew treesgrow to an extremeage
they become rottenin themiddle,existingformany
centurieswith a hollow space in their center
(sometimesfilledwith earthin which otherplants
may thrive).105 A huge, ancienttree witha hollow
centerwould be a fitting symbolof the worldtree,
andthischaracteristic oftheyewmayhavereinforced
itsroleas a conduitto theOtherworld.
The Man in theTree

One of themostcommonrepresentations of the
primordialsacred siteconsists
of a round area of land
surrounded by ocean withthe world treeat its center.
Sometimesa well of wisdomis locatedunderneath
thetree.Thiswas trueoftheNorseworldtree,whose
branchesstretched overheavenand earthand whose
rootspassed intotheUnderworld realms.Two sacred
springsor wells,one connected withwisdomand one
withfateor destiny, werelocatedbeneaththetree.106
Descriptions of hallowed sites in the Celtic
Otherworld also mentionsacred trees,which were
associatedwithwellsofwisdom.
ofplace-nameswhichcontaintheelementnem-('sacred',
as innemedandnemeton)arealso foundnearFortingall.
104 17.
Lucas,p.
w"
White,p. 207.
Davidson,GodandMythsofNorthernEurope,pp.26-29.
356
The Norse tree was threatened by living

creatures,which continuallyfed upon it. An eagle and
a hawk lived in its uppermost branches, a great
serpentgnawed at its roots,and hornedcreaturessuch
as hartsand goats fed upon the branches and tender
shoots.107 An interesting description of a tree
associated with a varietyof animals comes fromthe
Irish tale 'Finn and the Man in the Tree' (dating in
manuscriptformfromthe eighthcentury).108 The man
in question is Dercc Corra mac hUi Daighre,
(perhaps 'The Red Peaked One, Descendant of the
Flashing One'), a figure whose name which may
suggest some primeval or divine significance. The
pertinentscene is as follows:
One day as Finn was in thewood seeking
him [Dercc Corra],he saw a
man in thetop of a tree,a blackbirdon
his rightshoulderand in his left
hand a whitevessel of bronze,in which
was a skittishtroutand a stag at
the footof thetree.And thiswas the
practiceof the man,crackingnuts;
and he would give halfthekernelof a nut
to theblackbirdthatwas on his
rightshoulderwhile he himselfwould eat
theotherhalf; and he would
take an apple out of thebronze vessel
thatwas in his lefthand,divide it in
two,throwone halfto the stag thatwas at
the footof thetreeand theneat
the otherhalfhimself.And on it he
would drinka sip of thebronze vessel
107Ibid.
108As
quotedinRoss,p. 421.
357
DESCENT OF THE GODS
thatwas inhishandso thathe andthe

troutandthestagandtheblackbird
dranktogether.
The Norse world tree was associated with
animalswhichfed upon certainpartsof the tree.In
the Irish example, the man and his animal
companions, who are locatedin or nearthetree,also
feedupontheproduceof sacredtrees(and in quitea
ritualizedmanner).In Celtictradition,hazel nutswere
associated with divine wisdom or the gift of
prophecy,and hazel treesare describedas growing
arounda well ofwisdom.The appletree(and itsfruit
and branches)seem to have symbolizedjourneysto
and fromthe Otherworld. Drinkingsacredwater(or
certain ritual beverages) was also sometimes
connectedwiththegiftof divineknowledge.Thatall
ofthesesacredelementsappeartogether maysuggest
thatthescene is representativeof an Otherworldly or
cosmogonielandscape.
In theNorse description, a serpent,a deer,and
severalbirdsare associatedwiththeworldtree,while
a deer,and a blackbirdappear
in theIrishtale,a trout,
in connection withthetree.In Irishand Scottishfolk
tradition,the salmon and the trout may serve
interchangeable roles in connectionwithholy wells
whose waters possess healing or other magical
powers.109 Whilethereare no snakesin Ireland,they
do existin Scotland,and therethesnakeor serpentis
sometimessubstitutedfor the salmon in stories
associated with the acquisitionof gifts or skills,
109
Logan,Patrick,TheHoly WellsofIreland(Colin
Gerrards
Smythe, Cross,Bucks.,1980),pp. 121-126.
358
including prophecyor healing.110 Thisbeingthecase,

the similaritybetween the animals in the Norse
description(serpent,deer and goat, birds) and the
Celtic example(trout/ salmon/ serpent,deer,and
bird)is all themorestriking. In addition,theanimals
mentioned in theIrishtale (salmon/ trout,deer,and
blackbird)are the same creaturesmentionedin
associationwiththe word ébad ('yew tree') in the
kenningmentioned above. If theyew was considered
to be the Irishsymbolof the axis mundi,the scene
depictedin 'FinnandtheMan intheTree' mayreflect
nativetraditions pertaining to the worldtreeand its
in the
manifestation cosmogonielandscape.
The name of the divinefigureknownas Ebath
('yew tree')maysignify theworldtreeas well. If so,
thislendssupportto thetheorythatthenamesof the
ancestorsoftheTuathaDé Danannreflect elementsof
a nativecreationscenario.These figuresdo seem to
be associated with conceptsone would expect to
encounter in a mythof origins,includingwell-known
featuresoftheprimordial sacredsitewithitsfocuson
the world tree. A hypotheticalprototypeof the
originalnarrative is as follows:
110
McNeill,F. Marian,TheSilverBough:A Four Volume
StudyoftheNationalandLocal FestivalsofScotland
VolumeOne (WilliamMacLellan,Glasgow,1977),pp. 76-
77. Thissubstitutionis primarily
seenin laterfolktradition,
ratherthanin earlierliterary
sourcesinwhichthe
symbolism oftheserpent maybe influenced bya number
ofoutsidesources(Biblical,Medieval,etc.).A fine
examplemaybe foundinScottishTraditionalTales ed.
A.J.Bruford andD.A. McDonald(1994,Polygon,
Edinburgh),pp.288-291.
359
DESCENT OF THE GODS
Firstwas Fáithecht, theDivineSeer,who

saw all thatwas to be.
FromhimcameBraimindandhis son
Esni,theSage wholivedbytheSacred
Waterfall.
Esni was possessedofgreatwisdom,
whichhe passedontohis son Srú,who
createdtheWatersfromwhichtheworld
was formed.
His songavebirthto Tait,theDivine
whojoinedtogether
Artificer, the
elementsofthecosmos.
NextwerePaimpandAgnoman,andthen
Nemed,a powerful god whocreatedthe
SacredPlace wherethegodsmight
communicate withthoseon earthand
receivetheirofferings.
Nemed's sonwas a greatSeer,whowas
calledbymanynames.He was known
forhispoeticabilities,darkskillswhose
originsareinthewest.He createdthe
sacredstreamsthatflowfromthewell of
wisdom.
FromhissonBethach,'He who Sustains
Life' cameEbad,theYew, who is the
TreeofLife.
His sonBaathwas theSea which
surroundstheworldtree.
Baath's sonÉna was also a beingofthe
waters,andhe gavebirthto Tabarnwho
360
createdthegreatOceansoftheearthly
realms.
FromtheOcean,then,cameTait,the
GreatFather.
Taitis theancestorofall thedeitieswho
cameafterhim.
Thesearethegodswholiveinthesid
moundsandhavedealingswiththemen
ofearth.TheyarecalledtheTuathaDé
Danann,theTribesoftheGoddessDanu,
andarerenowned fortheirgreatpower
andskill.
As undoubtedly inaccurateas thisnarrative

maybe, it
is along the lines of what we mightexpect when
dealing with an early class of divine figures
associated with creation.The offspringof these
deitiesfollowthe establishedpatternand constitute
the second class of deitieswho are associatedwith
society,theland,andtheworldofmen.
In NativeElementsin IrishPseudohistory, John
Carey remarksthatLebor Gabála "reflectsa deep
(and for its time remarkable)reverencefor and
interestin nativetraditions
concerningbygonetimes."
The blending of pagan and Christian lore
demonstrates the redactors' commitment to both
traditions:"theywere convincedthatbothwere true
andbothimportant" andworkedhardto reconcileone
withthe other.111 This devotionis apparentin the
words of a scribe who worked on the Second
Redaction of Lebor Gabála, as he strugglesto
111 "NativeElements
inIrishPseudohistory,"
Carey, pp.
47-8.
361
DESCENT OF THE GODS
understand,preserve,and faithfullytransmitthe
and natureof the divine figures
names, attributes,
whosetraditions
he records:
. . .[S]omesaythattheTuathaDé Danann
weredemons,seeingthattheycame
unperceived [andtheysaythemselves it
was in darkcloudsthattheycame,after
burning theirships]andfortheobscurity
oftheirknowledgeandadventures, and
fortheuncertainty oftheirgenealogyas
carriedbackwards;butthatis nottrue,
fortheirgenealogiescarriedbackward
aresound;howbeittheylearntknowledge
andpoetry;foreveryobscurity ofartand
every clevernessof and
reading, every
subtlety ofcrafts,forthatreason,derive
theiroriginfromtheTuathaDé Danann.
AndthoughtheFaithcame,thosearts
werenotputaway,fortheyaregood,and
no demoneverdidgood.112
112 LeborGabála Érenn,PartIV

MacAlister,R.A.Stewart,
(IrishTextsSociety,1997),p. 165.
362
APPENDIXONE
Noah
I
Japheth
Gomer Magog
, 1 « (Peoplein Ireland
Emoth Ibath beforetheGaels)
(Peoplein
theNorth
oftheworld)
Bodb Baath Faithecht

(Peoplesof Gaels and Braimind
Europe) Scythians) Esru
I I Srú
Dói FéniusFarsaid ■ Sera ■
Nél Tait Partholón
GáedelGlas Paimp
Esrú Agno
Srú Nemed
ÉberScott lardan/Iarbonél
Boamain Bethach
Ogamain Ebath
Tait Baath
Agnoman Éna /Eno
Lámfhind Tabairn
ÉberGlunfhind Tait
AgniFind |
FebriGlas Allduí
Noenual | 1
Alloith Innui Ordam
Ercaid Nét Eterlam
Déaith Delbaeth Échtach
Bráth Elatha NuaduArgatlám
Bregón Bres
Bile
Mil
363
APPENDIX TWO
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g PQ
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ST J
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"öS5 Q S
■i« ê
S * I .53
Mog j . rl-l
■a 1-1- i""5
uê - f3- ß - 3l a tl
364
APPENDIX TWO
Id.- S9-" o g
cd cd y
•3 "8 'o fe ■■•§

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pa á
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365

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The Descent of the Gods: Creation, Cosmogony, and Divine Order in "Lebor Gabála"

Author(s): Sharon Paice Macleod

In a numberof Indo-European mythologies, the

Manyhave commented on theapparentlack of a

pertainingto Celticdeitieshas producedsomeexcellent

Representations ofCreationin Indo-European

withthe land,society,and theworldof men.These

figurein questionis Zeus, whose amorousliaisons

tradition,we should firstascertainif the literary

aspectsof theOtherworld parallelthoseof themortal

and Hell.14 These changes in the interpretation,

the fourcardinaldirections).16 In earlyIrishliterary

to have takenplace in relationto thenatureof time.

creationofLebor GabálaP The originalmatrixofthe

Túan,as well as thatof Li Ban (the survivorof the

While native origin legends may not have

Ireland"madepeace withthegodsofthelandin order

Originsand Lebor Gabála

Conquest."32 Its primarypurposewas not to collect

than we do.36It is not unreasonableto thinkthat

divine(or at leastnobleor heroic)ancestorsprovided

The Tuatha Dé Danann are said to be the

and thethreesons of Mil witha 'companyof eight'

fromone formofbeingto another. In thesevoyagesto the

differsfromthat foundin the Old Testament.A

20, however,Gog andMagogarementioned as destructive

Japheth'sson Gomerare listedas Ashkenaz,Riphath,

are similarto thoseof personsin theBible, but it is

1966).I am deeplyindebted to Ms. CharleneShipmanfor

whicha genealogyof theTuathaDé Danannmaybe

Faithechtmay appear in HB as Aurthoch.65

It is possible thatthe name derivesfromOld

Braimin(d).I have been unableto makeanything

Esrú is also mentioned

Aurtecht,Arthecht,Aurthach; theson's givenas Ethecht,

Ezra the scribeis a well-knownBiblical character,

and waterfalls)are often associated with divine

Srú appearsin RawlB502(as Srú orZrü) butdoes not

Sera is notlistedin HB butmayappearin RawlB502

Tat / Tait is most recognizableas a Welsh word

73Ess Ruad was one ofthe

the names of figureslike Tad Awen, 'Father of

Paimp is a wordwhosemeaningis unclear,although

Agnomanappearsin RawlB502,as does thepossibly

77 "LeabharGabhála- PartII,"p. 59. A

gods froma figurecalledNemed,whowas associated

a bodyofwaterfrequently signifieda changeof state

We can see certainsimilarities(as well as

Setback's name seems to appear only in Lebor

Ebath / Ibath appears in HB as Iobaath and in

Baath is foundin RawlB502(spelledBoathorBaoth)

oftheSons ofMil (whosegenealogysharesa fewcommon

Erto/Éna appearsin RawlB502as Énna (andperhaps

Tabarndoes notseemto appearin sourcesotherthan

Tat/ Tait:Section97 ofLebor Gabála states:"It is at

is possible that the name reflectsa native word

The Yew, theAsh,and theSalmon

otherhand,is includedamongthechieftain treesand,

Michael,A HandbookoftheScottishGaelic World(Four