MYTHOLOGICAL TALES | FAIRY TALES | FOLKTALES

"Lugh the Il-Dana" © 1979, Jim Fitzpatrick.

When the Christian monks first began transcribing and compiling the ancient mythological tales from the numerous, and often conflicting, oral traditions of the ancient poets and lay storytellers of the early Christian period in Ireland, they were faced with an enormous task. In order to help organize this vast amount of material, they compiled the body of literature that they had gathered from the whole of Ireland and divided it into four mythological “cycles”, or bodies of literature that represent complete, distinct mythic traditions. These cycles were distinguished by region and by type of material, whether primarily mythological, semi-historical, or historical, and were divided as follows:

The Mythological Cycle
Mythological stories from Ireland’s prehistoric period that may have been based upon historical events;
Lebor Gabala Erenn — The Book of the Invasions of Ireland


The Ulster Cycle
Heroic stories that are semi-historical in character, centered around Ulster and Connaught provinces;
The Twins of Macha
Táin Bó Cúailnge, “The Cattle Raid of Cooley”


The Fenian Cycle
Heroic stories that are semi-historical in character, centered around Leinster and Munster provinces;


The Cycle of Kings
Stories centered around the kings of Ireland that are primarily historical in character, some of which also contain mythical elements.

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