Lebor Gabála Érenn (
The Book of the Taking of Ireland) is a collection of poems and
prose narratives that purports to be a history of Ireland and the Irish from the creation of the world to the
Middle Ages. There are a number of versions, the earliest of which was compiled by an anonymous writer in the 11th century. It synthesized narratives that had been developing over the foregoing centuries. The
Lebor Gabála tells of Ireland being settled (or 'taken') six times by six groups of people: the people of
Cessair, the people of
Partholón, the people of
Nemed, the
Fir Bolg, the
Tuatha Dé Danann, and the
Milesians. The first four groups are wiped out or forced to abandon the island, the fifth group represent Ireland's pagan gods, while the final group represent the Irish people (the
Gaels).