Early Peoples of Ancient Ireland
Filed by Aine MacDermot
Early Peoples of Ancient Ireland
by Áine MacDermot
Article Sponsor:
The following information is broken down into a number of parts, as it is a rather long document, but one worthy of reading… This, according to the Leabhar Gabhála Erenn (The Book of the Invasions of Ireland), and several other ancient texts and annals, whose origins have their place in the ancient manuscripts of Ireland, some of which have survived through time.
Part One: Cesair
The first inhabitants of Ireland were Cesair, daughter of Bith, son of Noe (whom Christian scribes have altered to read as Noah), and their three men and 50 women, along with Fintann (son of Bochra), and their pilot Ladra. The women were divided among the men, Fintann took his wife, Cesair, and sixteen women; Bith took Cesair`s companion, Bairrfhind, and sixteen women; Ladra was left with the remaining sixteen women. Incidentally, it is said that Ladra died of an excess of women. When Ladra died the remaining women were shared between Fintann and Bith, twenty five each. Bith went north and died leaving only Fintann and Cesair and the remaining women. Fintann escaped “a-fleeing before all the women”. These women were obviously powerful! Anyway, Fintann escaped to the Hill of the Wave (Tul Tuinde), although by his own account he shape-shifted and became a salmon, as well as other animals and beings, and lived for thousands of years afterward so that his account of the tale was told. Cesair was now left, her husband, Fintann, had abandoned her and her father had died, and heartbroken she died too. Forty days after their arrival in Ireland came a great flood (or some other disaster, it is not clear as to whether this was added by Christian scribes or not). Fintann survived by spending a year under the waters as a salmon (and not one of the Salmon of Knowledge, that is a separate story), in a cave called “Fintann`s Grave” above Tul Tuinde.
I would like to remind readers that all of the Beings in these tales were not simple, ordinary human beings, but were somewhere between gods and mankind, as They possess magick and skills that far surpass ordinary mortals. The Irish would have called them Aes Dana or Aes Sídhe. Unfortunately the only existing ancient texts thus far unearthed regarding any of these Beings were written by Christian scribes no earlier than the 6th Century AD.
Part Two: The Partholonians and the Fomorii
Partholon was the second to arrive in Ireland, the chief of his people. He came from the West, beyond the vast unsailed Atlantic ocean, and possibly from Greek Scythia. It has been conjectured that the place called ‘Greek Scythia’ is really another name for the OtherWorld of Faerie, but was changed to ‘Greek Scythia’ or just ‘Greece’ by the Christian scribes recording the histories. Partholon is said to have killed his mother and father, who was called Sera (which scholars think means ‘west’.) Partholon allegedly killed his parents in the hopes of inheriting their chiefdom, and when this failed, he led his followers to Ireland and settled in what is now Munster. Partholon brought with him the people that were first in many arts - brewing, cauldron making - first in combat, farming, and a host of other things. There were then but three lakes in Ireland, nine rivers, and only one plain (called Senmaigh, meaning ‘old plain’). Other lakes were added gradually during the reign of the Partholonians, as they were known as the shapers of the land. Partholon chose a fertile place, cleared four plains, and homesteaded there. His wife, Dealgnaid, slept with his servant, Todga, while Partholon was gone hunting and fishing, which caused problems. In a rage he killed his wife’s lap dog. This was said to be the first jealousy in Ireland.
However, the wife blamed Partholon for leaving her in the first place. Partholon accepted the blame for what had happened because he left her alone. This resulted in the giving of the First Verdict, that of Dealgnaid. This was said to be the first judgment in Ireland and it is called “the right of his wife against Partholon”.
Partholon and Dealgnaid had three sons, the eldest was named Eber (no, not the same Eber that was the Milesian, but one who shared that name), the other sons were named Rudraidhe and Laighlinne. Boann, Brea, Ban, Áine and six others were said to be the “pure daughters” of Partholon, implying perhaps that he had more, following the customs of the times. The generation of Partholon was the one responsible for the creation of and the first naming of places in Ireland, and they are also credited with being the first agriculturalists there. It is said that no plants grew old in those times.
The Partholonians found a people already in Ireland. Their leader was said to come from Slaibh Ughmoir, which in ancient Gaedhelic (an early form of Gaelic also seen as Goidelic) meant The Caucasus. Nothing more is said of these peoples. They either withdrew from the area controlled by the Partholonians or were assimilated. The Partholonians remained in Ireland for hundreds of years.
At about the same time that the Partholonians arrived in Ireland, so, too, did the Fomorii. Over the years the Partholonians came into contact with sea-raiders who terrorized the Partholonians with attacks for supplies. These people were called Fomorians or Fomorii. Many battles were fought over the years with these sea-raiders. The Fomorii are characterized in most texts as a race of ugly, violent, misshapen giants, who later came to represent the UnderWorld of Chaos and Destruction. One of these Fomorii was surnamed Cenchos, which means ‘The Footless’. Thus, in many texts, these people are described as one-eyed, one-legged, or one-armed beings. The Fomorii had their stronghold at Tory Island off the coast of Donegal. Tory Island was a staging area for the Fomorii who were from Fomoria, an ancient name, it is thought, for Scandinavia. It will be seen that the Fomorii were to continue their reign of terror and battle with many tribes in the remainder of this tale.
There is not much else known about the Partholonians, other than that they fell victim to a terrible plague in their third century in Ireland. Over 9,000 Partholonians died. The survivors lived on another 30 years and then the group is lost to history, though it is possible that some fled and returned to their old lands in “Greek Scythia”. It is said that one of the survivors was a man named Tuan Mac Starn (who later became Mac Cairell). He was the son of Starn (a brother to Partholon), and the grandson of Sera. After the great plague that killed the rest of the Partholonians, Tuan wandered about from one vacant fortress to another, from rock to rock, seeking shelter from the wolves. It is said that he found himself transformed into a stag, turned young again, and lived as the king of the stags in Ireland until old age. He was then changed into a boar, then an eagle, each time living a full life to old age and then becoming young again with each transformation. Eventually, he was transformed into a salmon which was caught and eaten by the wife of Cairell who, then, gave birth to him in human form again with his memory intact of his own pre-history and the whole history of Ireland from the coming of Partholon. This history-in-tales he told to the Christian monks, whose scribes wrote it all down.
Part Three: The Nemedians
As the last Partholonians were passing into history, another group in “Greek Scythia” left for Ireland. [It has been conjectured that the place called ‘Greek Scythia’ is really another name for the OtherWorld of Faerie.] These people were related to the Partholonians. Their leader Nemed, (which means ’sacred’) was also a descendant of Scythes, Fathochta and Sera. His father, Aduam Bau was known as the “Scythian Greek”. Perhaps one of the Partholonian survivors made it back to Scythia to create interest in Ireland. Whatever the reason, these people of Scythia were called Nemedians after their leader Nemed.
Tuan Mac Cairell, one of the last of the Partholonians, told the Christian monks that after he had wandered the land for many, many years, he happened to be sitting on a high cliff and saw Nemed Mac Agnoman take possession of Ireland. Nemed’s name means ‘holy’ or ’sacred’. Tuan was long-haired, clawed, decrepit, grey, naked, wretched, and miserable, and so he kept avoiding Nemed. Then one evening Tuan fell asleep, and when he awoke the next morning, he was changed into a stag! He was young again and glad of heart. It was then that he sang of the coming of Nemed and of his race, and of his own transformation.
The Nemedians, led by Agnoman of the Greeks of Scythia, sailed for Ireland in a fleet of thirty-four ships, and in each ship was thirty people. [Although the term did not come into place until about 700 B.C., historians speak of Greek Scythia. Specifically, it referred to the Greek trading posts on the shores of the Black Sea. The trading posts were on all coasts but activity with the Scythians centered on the northern Pontic region and in the east at the Kerch Strait leading into the Sea of Azov.] While they were wandering the seas of the Atlantic Ocean, there appeared to them a golden tower on the sea close by them. Nemed and his fleet sailed toward it, wanting the gold it was made from, but it was only visible at ebb tide, and would disappear when the sea flowed at high tide. Little did they know that the waters were shallow, and so the sea took most of their ships from them, and most of their people drowned. As for Nemed, he had four chiefs with him, - Starn, Iarbanel the Prophet, Fergus Redside, and Ainninn. They were the four sons of Nemed. Macha was the name of Nemed’s wife. Medb, Machu, Yba, and Cera were the names of the wives of the chieftains he had. They went astray on the seas for a year and a half, many of them dying of starvation and thirst.
They, too, had to defend themselves from the Fomorii. The Fomorians lived on Tory Island (located off County Donegal). Tory Island was a staging area for the Fomorians who were from Fomoria, an ancient name, it is said, for Scandinavia, but it is believed that the Fomorii were from the UnderWorld and represented Chaos and Destruction. The Fomorians raided the Nemedians for food and supplies, and exacted tributes of them in the form of children, corn and milk. After a raid they would return to Tory Island and take refuge in a fortification they built called Conann’s Tower. After many years of being victims to the Fomorian raids, the Nemedians pursued the Fomorii to Tory Island. A battle ensued. The leader of the Fomorians, Conann, was killed by Fergus, a Nemedian chief. The Fomorii then received back up support by a fresh host of Fomorii, led by someone named Morc, and the Nemedians were nearly wiped out in the ensuing battle. The surviving 30 Nemedians withdrew. Some of the Nemedians escaped to Britain with their chief, Britan, while two other groups returned to Ireland after many wanderings (possible back to “Greek Scythia”), as the Firbolgs and the Tuatha Dé Danaan. The confrontations with the Fomorians by many tribes occurred cyclically throughout early Ireland’s history.
Part Four: The Firbolg
The earliest tribe of Firbolg were the Euerni, called Erainn (also known as Menapii, Bolgi, Belgae and Firbolgs) by annalists and historians. They called their new home Eueriio, which would later evolve through the old Irish Eriu to Éire, and from Éire to Ireland. The early annalists tell us that the Firbolg people survived as distinct tribes well into early historical times. In Leinster, they were the Uí Failige, Uí Bairrche and Uí Enechglaiss to mention but a few.
The Firbolg were, according to some scholars, the descendants of the Nemedian survivors. They were enslaved in Greece, where they worked as laborers for over 300 years. They were used as slaves to draw clay from the lowlands to manure the lands above. They carried the earth in bags, hence their name, Firbolg, which means “men of bags.” They were considered outsiders, as they were known to be descended from a migrant people originally displaced from “Greek Scythia”. The Firbolgs kept alive the stories of the green island where their ancestors had lived unfettered. Over time, a movement grew among the Firbolg to attempt a return to that island, and they plotted their escape.
At the right moment, stealing Greek ships, about 5,000 Firbolg set sail for Ireland. They landed at Blackrod Bay in northwest Ireland in what is today the Barony of Erris in County Mayo. The Firbolgs, under their leader Slainge, organized a chiefdom with Tara at its center. They divided the land among three sub-tribes. The Fir Domnann lived in what became Connacht and Munster, the Fir Galion in Leinster, and the Firbolg in Ulster,… though typically all three of these sub-tribes are referred to as ‘Firbolg’ as a whole. For a number of years the Firbolg were left undisturbed except for occasional raids from the Fomorians. At that time their chief was called Eochaidh, son of Erc, and his wife was called Taltiu, daughter of the chief of the Great Plain (the land of the dead).
The tenth year of the reign of Eochaidh, son of Erc, and this was the last year of his reign, the Tuatha Dé Danaan (People of the Goddess Dana) challenged the Firbolg for Ireland. The aforesaid Eochaidh was the last chief of the Firbolgs. Nine of them had assumed chieftainship, and thirty seven years was the length of their sway over Ireland. The Firbolgs met the Dé Danaan at their camp at Moyrein, and sent Streng to talk to the Dé Danaan named Bres. Bres offered to split Ireland equally between the two tribes, but the Firbolgs preferred to go to war. The Firbolgs could see, however, that their opponents had superior weapons and shields, and so they stretched out their plans for war for many days, each time asking the Dé Danaan for time to make comparable weapons and shields, and the Dé Danaan went along with this. After all of the delays ensued what came to be known as the First Battle of Magh Tuireadh (Moytura).
They gave battle to each other at Magh Tuireadh (the Plain of the Tower), in Conmaicne Cuile Toladh, in Connacht, so that Chief Eochaidh, son of Erc, was killed, by the three sons of Neimhidh, son of Badhrai, of the Tuatha Dé Danaans; Ceasarb, Luamh, and Luachra, were their names. The Firbolg were vanquished in this battle. Moreover, the hand of Nuadhat (Nuada), son of Eochaidh, son of Edarlamh (the chief of the Tuatha Dé Danaans), was cut off in the same battle. The remains of many great stone forts built by the Firbolgs in their defense against the Dé Danaan tribes can still be seen in remote areas of western Ireland.
Elidh wrote:
Hi……..Being Of Celtic linage(Irish-Scots who were Irish before they took the name of Scots) I enjoyed your article…My husband and I used to sell Keltic and Nordic history at the Highland Games, Irish Festivals, Nordic Festivels and the Society for Creative Anacroism in 7 states. My family Comes from Donegal (Doherty/Daugherty) & Waterford (Duggan & Keating)/Perthshire /Ayershire (Blair & Bell & Dick)…Denmark (Rassmusson & Christianson)…for the most part we can only trace them after they came to the U.S. in the late 1700’s and around 1810…Thank you for the article….Elidh
Posted on 23-May-05 at 11:07 am | Permalink
Aine MacDermot wrote:
You’re quite welcome. I’m glad you enjoyed it.

Posted on 23-May-05 at 12:14 pm | Permalink
Leta McCurry wrote:
Can you tell me the meaning of the word “sept”? Thank you.
Posted on 01-Sep-05 at 7:28 pm | Permalink
P. French wrote:
I am writing a script about Jesus and Joseph of Arimithea possible travels to Ireland. Do you have any possible leads, or pointers to other sourses that may shed light on Jesus’ travels to Ireland. It is a widely held veiw he went o England… Ireland is not so far away. AND… the tradition of an Isreaelitish ROYALK FAMILY growing there is very well known. Only to transfer over to Scotland…then south to England…where Queen Elizabeth’s family acknowledges their ancestor to be King David. ANYTHING ANOUT JESUS VISITING IRLEAND? THANX
Posted on 10-Aug-06 at 2:30 pm | Permalink
Aine MacDermot wrote:
P. French : I have no information about such travels, and personally, I find the idea ludicrous.
Queen Elizabeth’s ancestry actually traces back to Germany.
Suggest you hit the local library and do research from legitimate scholarly sources, rather than revisionists.
Posted on 10-Aug-06 at 2:45 pm | Permalink
Bruce....... wrote:
How is the name “Galion” pronounced and how is it related to the name “Gaileoin?”
Posted on 20-Jan-07 at 1:07 am | Permalink
Aine MacDermot wrote:
I don’t speak Gaelic, and proper names are not in my Irish-English dictionary.
Posted on 20-Jan-07 at 2:11 am | Permalink
kevin o'malley wrote:
galion or gaileoin gail is goidheal which is a gerneric irish person eoin is eoighann which is anglicised as ‘owen’.
Posted on 01-Feb-07 at 5:14 pm | Permalink