The Tuatha Dé Danann (Irish: [ˈt̪ˠuə(hə) dʲeː ˈd̪ˠan̪ˠən̪ˠ], usually translated "folk of the goddess Danu"), also known by the earlier name Tuath Dé ("tribe of the gods"^[1][2] or "divine tribe"),^[3] are a supernatural race in Irish mythology. Many of them are thought to represent deities of pre-Christian Gaelic Ireland.^[1][4]

The Tuath Dé Danann are often depicted as kings, queens, druids, bards, warriors, heroes, healers and craftsmen who have supernatural powers. They dwell in the Otherworld but interact with humans and the human world. They are associated with the sídhe: prominent ancient burial mounds such as Brú na Bóinne, which are entrances to Otherworld realms.^[1][4] Their traditional rivals are the Fomorians (Fomoire), who might represent the destructive powers of nature,^[5][6] and whom the Tuatha Dé Danann defeat in the Battle of Mag Tuired. Prominent members include the Dagda ("the great god"); The Morrígan ("the great queen" or "phantom queen"); Lugh; Nuada; Aengus; Brigid; Manannán; Dian Cecht the healer; and Goibniu the smith, one of the Trí Dé Dána ("three gods of craft").^[7]

Several of the Tuath Dé are cognate with ancient Celtic deities: Lugh with Lugus, Brigit with Brigantia, Nuada with Nodons, Ogma with Ogmios, and Goibniu with Gobannus.^[1]

Medieval texts about the Tuatha Dé Danann were written by Christians. Sometimes they explained the Tuath Dé as fallen angels who were neither wholly good nor evil,^[8] or ancient people who became highly skilled in magic, but several writers acknowledged that at least some of them had been gods.^[1] Some of them have multiple names, but in the tales, they often appear to be different characters. Originally, these probably represented different aspects of the same deity, while others were regional names.^{[9][better source needed]}

The Tuath Dé eventually became the aes sídhe, the sídhe-folk or "fairies" of later folklore.^[10][11][12]

The Old Irish word túath (plural túatha) means "tribe, folk, people";^[13][14] dé is the genitive case of día and, depending on context, can mean "god, gods, goddess" or more broadly "deity, divinity, supernatural being, object of worship".^[15] In the earliest writings, the mythical race are referred to simply as the Túath Dé or Túatha Dé.^[1][2]

Danann is interpreted as a declension (genitive case) of reconstructed nominative *Dana/Danu^[16][17] of the speculative^[18] reconstructed goddess *Danu/*Dana, who is unattested (in this nominative form),^[1] explained as possibly denoting the attested goddess Ana/Anu,^[13][1] with a prosthetic D- added.^[19][a]

However, the origins of Danann is still disputed, as pointed out by John Carey (1981).^[20] Some scholars regard Dana as later scholarly inventions, while others assert the existence of Dana is substantiated by circumstantial evidence.^[19] Tuath Dé Danann is translated "people of the goddess Danu" by Dáithí Ó hÓgáin (1991).^[4] Danu/Dana/Danand is accepted as variant form of Anu/Ana/Anand, by R.A.S. Macalister, the editor and translator of the Lebor Gabala.^[21] and is the "mother of gods" in Macalister's translation of the Lebor Gabala ("Book of Invasions").^[22]

*Danu may have been a continental Celtic goddess, cognate to the Welsh goddess Dôn and the Irish Ana/Anu.^[23][1] The name also be part of Donann and Domnann,^[24] which may point to the origin being proto-Celtic *don, meaning "earth"^[1] (compare the Old Irish word for earth, doman). As in the mythical Fir Domnann^[25] and the British Dumnonii.^[26]

An alternative etymological hypothesis explains away Danann as a newly coined, tack-on word, merely added to the original form Túath Dé to avoid confusion with the same term Túath Dé used in a different sense denoting the Israelites (Plebes Dei) of the Bible.^[27] Compare Irish Nennius (aka Lebor Bretnach) which glosses the Tuatha Dé Danann as plebes deorum, "god-folk" in a passage admixed with Latin.^[28][29]

Yet another etymological hypothesis interprets the name as "Tuatha Dé Dána" or "Tribe of the Gods of Craft", i.e., the divine counterparts of áes dána "men of craft"^[30][b] There is a mysterious group called trí dé dáno, "three gods of craft",^[c] and perhaps Donnan as deity is a conflation with them.^[1]

Early medieval Irish writers also referred to the TDD as the fir dé (god-men) and cenéla dé (god-kindreds), again possibly to avoid calling them simply 'gods'.^[33]

They are also the "Ever-living ones",^[13] but not immortal in the sense of being immune to violent death.^[1]

According to Carey (1989–1990, 2006)'s interpretation, the Tuath Dé are collectively called the clann Eladan, "children of art" in a poem in the LGE.^[34][35] however, Macalister translates this cland Elada phrase merely as "The numerous progeny of Elada", which is followed by the naming of Bres son of Elada son of Delabaeth son of Neit.^[36][d]

In the modern age, the Tuatha Dé Danann came to be referred, in circumlocutive fashion, as the áes sídhe ('people of the sidhe or Otherworld').^[13][1]

Already in earlier times, Tírechán (7th century) attests to the notion of sídh folk as "earthly gods" (Latin dei terreni),^[1] while Fiacc's Hymn says the Irish adored the sídh before the coming of Saint Patrick.^[1]

As for Ana/Anu alias Danann/Dana/Danu,^[21] is the "mother of gods" in the Book of Invasions, and (Ana) is "mother of the Irish gods" in Sanas Cormaic ("Cormac's glossary").^[38] or three sons, Brian, Iucharba, and Iuchar,^[39][40][f] though the reliability of the latter kinship is regarded as only "probably" reliable, as is Ana being the grandmother of Ecne.^[19] The association of Ana with the mountains called Paps of Ana is also noted in the medieval writings.^[43][44]

Ana may be the double of The Morrígu or The Morrígan,^[21][45] whose name means "the great queen"^[46]. The main goddesses of battle are this Morrígan, Macha, and Badb,^[22][47][13] forming a triad^[48] (with other combinations substituting Nemain).^[46]

The goddess Badb Catha bears a name which means "the Raven of Battle"^[49] (or "Crow of Battle"^[51]). And in the Táin Bó Cúailnge, The Morrígan appears They warrior goddess zoomorphically assumes the guise of such a bird^[52] (crow^[53]) when she appears before Cúchulainn, a (badb), while in a later encounter, she shapeshifts into an eel, a wolf, and a cow.^[54]

The goddess Brigid is linked with poetry, fire and thus smithing.^[55] She too is sometimes conceived of as being three sisters.^[58] The pagan deity is somewhat conflated with the Christian Saint Brigit as well.^[56][55]

Prominent male deities include The Dagda ("the great god"); the long-armed Lugh; the silver-armed Nuada; Aengus; the sea god Manannán; Dian Cécht the healer.^[13][1] There are also Goibniu the smith, Creidhne the goldsmith/brazier, and Luchtaine the carpenter^[c] There is also Ogma, a god of eloquence and a warrior,^[13][1] as well as Nét (or Neit) a "god of war", whose wife was Nemain (Nemon)^[59][1][60]

Though the tribe stemmed from Greece,^[62] they are said to have learned magic and druidic lore in some distant land far north,^[13][64] For example, The Tuatha Dé can cloak and hide themselves with a féth fíada ('magic mist').^[65][66][4]

Consistent with their name being interpreted hypothetically a "Tuatha Dé Dána" ("Tribe of the Gods of Craft"),^[30] the Tuatha Dé Danann are depicted as masters of the arts (bards, warriors, heroes, healers and craftsmen).^[67] And "their ranks only admit those who possess dán (poetic, artistic, or craftsmanly skill).^[30] Famously the condition imposed for admittance to their fort was accomplishment of mastery in some art, and Lugh passed with flying colors by being master of all (samildanach).^[68][1] The fort was of course in preparation for the battle (of Cath Maige Tuired). How Goibniu the Smith collaborated with the carpenter and brazier god to mass produce spears in preparation for this war is described as a prelude to the tale where Goibniu, upset by his wife's indiscretion, begins to hurl Ness, a sort of boil-causing brand-iron pole at every visitor.^[69]

The TDD dwell in the Otherworld but interact with humans and the human world. Many are associated with specific places in the landscape, especially the sídhe: prominent ancient burial mounds such as Brú na Bóinne, which are entrances to Otherworld realms.^[1][4] Thus the Tuatha Dé is often implied when one speaks of the áes sídhe ('people of the sidhe or Otherworld').^[13][1] In the later age after the Goidels^[g] (Milesians) took control, it is said that the Tuatha Dé were forced to live underground in the sídhe.^{[70][71][72][74]} So after their defeat, Manannan mac Lir protected the surviving members scattered in the sídhe by casting over the veil of the féth fíada.^[76][h]

Several of the Tuath Dé are cognate with ancient Celtic deities: Lugh is a reflex of the pan-Celtic deity Lugus, Nuada corresponds to British god Nodens/Nodons the name of whom may indicate "Light"; and Ogma to Ogmios, Brigid with Brigantia, Badb to Catubodua, Tuireann may be related to the Gaulish Taranis.^[1]

For aspects of interactions with humans, cf. §§ Interaction with men​ and below For the perspective of medieval Christian scribes dealing with the TDD as heathen deities, cf. § Contextualization (esp. subsection § Euhemerism ) below.

In euhemerized accounts, the Tuatha Dé Danann were descended from Nemed, leader of a previous wave of inhabitants of Ireland. In non-euhemerized accounts, they are descended from Danu/Anu, a mother goddess. They came from four cities to the north of Ireland—Falias, Gorias, Murias and Finias—where they taught their skills in the sciences, including architecture, the arts and magic.^[78][79] According to Lebor Gabála Érenn, they came to Ireland "in dark clouds" and "landed on the mountains of [the] Conmaicne Rein in Connachta", otherwise Sliabh an Iarainn, "and they brought a darkness over the sun for three days and three nights". They immediately burnt the ships "so that they should not think of retreating to them, and the smoke and the mist that came from the vessels filled the neighbouring land and air. Therefore it was conceived that they had arrived in clouds of mist".

A poem in the Lebor Gabála Érenn says of their arrival:

It is God who suffered them, though He restrained them
they landed with horror, with lofty deed,
in their cloud of mighty combat of spectres,
upon a mountain of Conmaicne of Connacht.

Without distinction to discerning Ireland,
Without ships, a ruthless course
the truth was not known beneath the sky of stars,
whether they were of heaven or of earth.

According to Tuan:

From them are the Tuatha Dé and Andé, whose origin the learned do not know, but that it seems likely to them that they came from heaven, on account of their intelligence and for the excellence of their knowledge.^[80]

Led by king Nuada, they fought the First Battle of Magh Tuireadh on the west coast, in which they defeated and displaced the native Fir Bolg, who then inhabited Ireland. In the battle, Nuada lost an arm to their champion, Sreng. Since Nuada was no longer "unblemished", he could not continue as king and was replaced by the half-Fomorian Bres, who turned out to be a tyrant. The physician Dian Cecht replaced Nuada's arm with a working silver one and he was reinstated as king. However, Dian Cecht's son Miach was dissatisfied with the replacement, so he recited the spell, "ault fri halt dí & féith fri féth" (joint to joint of it and sinew to sinew), which caused flesh to grow over the silver prosthesis over the course of nine days and nights.^[81][82] However, in a fit of jealous rage Dian Cecht slew his own son. Because of Nuada's restoration as the leader, Bres complained to his family and his father, Elatha, who sent him to seek assistance from Balor, king of the Fomorians.

The Tuath Dé then fought the Second Battle of Magh Tuireadh against the Fomorians. Nuada was killed by the Fomorian king Balor's poisonous eye, but Balor was killed by Lugh, champion of the Tuath Dé, who then took over as king.

A third battle was fought against a subsequent wave of invaders, the Milesians, from the northwest of the Iberian Peninsula (present-day Galicia and Northern Portugal), descendants of Míl Espáine (who are thought to represent the Goidelic Celts). The Milesians encountered three Tuath Dé goddesses, Ériu, Banba, and Fodla, who asked that the island be named after them; Ériu is the origin of the modern name Éire, and Banba and Fodla are still sometimes used as poetic names for Ireland.

Their three husbands, Mac Cuill, Mac Cecht and Mac Gréine, were kings of the Tuath Dé at that time, and asked for a truce of three days, during which the Milesians would lie at anchor nine waves' distance from the shore. The Milesians complied, but the Tuath Dé created a magical storm in an attempt to drive them away. The Milesian poet Amergin calmed the sea with his verse, then his people landed and defeated the Tuath Dé at Tailtiu. When Amergin was called upon to divide the land between the Tuath Dé and his own people, he cleverly allotted the portion above ground to the Milesians and the portion underground to the Tuath Dé. The Tuath Dé were led underground into the Sidhe mounds by Manannán mac Lir and Tír na nÓg onto a flowery plain/plain of honey attested to in the Voyage of Bran.

The Tuatha Dé Danann brought four magical treasures with them to Ireland, one apiece from their Four Cities:^[83][85]

• Dagda's Cauldron
• The Spear of Lugh
• Lia Fáil (The Stone of Fal)
• Claíomh Solais (The Sword of Light)

The following is a chronology from the Annals of the Four Masters, based on reign-lengths given in Geoffrey Keating's Forus Feasa ar Erinn. Nuada's original reign lacks a precise start date.

• Nuada (first reign) AFM unknown–1897 BC; FFE unknown–1477 BC
• Bres AFM 1897–1890 BC; FFE 1477–1470 BC
• Nuada (final reign) AFM 1890–1870 BC; FFE 1470–1447 BC
• Lugh AFM 1870–1830 BC; FFE 1447–1407 BC
• Eochaid Ollathair AFM 1830–1750 BC; FFE 1407–1337 BC
• Delbáeth AFM 1750–1740 BC; FFE 1337–1327 BC
• Fiacha AFM 1740–1730 BC; FFE 1327–1317 BC
• Mac Cuill, Mac Cecht and Mac Gréine AFM 1730–1700 BC; FFE 1317–1287 BC

The powers most often attributed to them are control over the weather and the elements.^[1] They are also said to control the fertility of the land; the tale De Gabáil in t-Sída says the first Gaels had to establish friendship with the Tuatha Dé Danann before they could raise crops and herds.^[1]

The Tuatha Dé Danann are connected with the land and sovereignty,^[1] and are often seen as the oldest ancestors of the people in the region or nation. They are maternal figures caring for the earth itself as well as their descendants, but also fierce defenders, teachers and warriors.

It is also told that human kings receive affirmation of their legitimacy from one of the Tuath Dé, as in the tale Baile in Scáil, or a king's right to rule is affirmed by an encounter with an otherworldly woman (see sovereignty goddess).^[1] The Tuath Dé can also bring doom to unrightful kings.^[1] They are also said to control the fertility of the land, as attested in the brief tale De Gabáil in t-Sída ("Concerning the taking of the otherworld mound") which explains that the first Gaels had to establish friendship with the Tuath Dé before they could raise crops and herds.^[1]

The fact that the names of Goibniu the smith, Dian Cécht the physician, and Flidais the mistress of animals are invoked in incantations demonstrates that in Irish superstition, these gods were viewed as powerful (i.e., able to grant or lend humans power in answer to their invocations).^[1]

The native Irish gods^[i] are the Tuatha Dé Danann. There is strong evidence that many of the Tuatha Dé represent the gods of Irish paganism.^[1][4] The medieval writers who wrote about the Tuath Dé were Christians. Sometimes they explained the Tuath Dé as fallen angels; neutral angels who sided neither with God nor Lucifer and were punished by being forced to dwell on the Earth; or ancient humans who had become highly skilled in magic^[1] (cf. § Euhemerism below). However, several writers acknowledged that at least some of them had been gods.^[1]

John Carey notes that it is not wholly accurate to describe all of them as gods in the medieval literature itself. He argues that the literary Tuath Dé are sui generis, and suggests "immortals" might be a more neutral term,^[1] though (as aforementioned) they can be killed in violent battle, as was the case with the Norse gods.^[1] Some scholars have argued that Irish mythology aligns with the gods and stories from Greek mythology.^[86] Others say the Irish gods and goddesses are not easily amenable to identifications with a Mercury or Venus or such members of the Roman pantheon, as does scholar Marie-Louise Sjoestedt,^[57] who characterizes the Tuath Dé as not defined by singular qualities but possessed with a "sort of universal power and magic".^[57]

The Tuatha Dé Danann are described as a supernatural race, much like idealised humans, who are immune to ageing and sickness, and who have powers of magic.^[1] But John Carey notes that it is not wholly accurate to describe all of them as gods in the medieval literature itself. He argues that the literary Tuath Dé are sui generis, and suggests "immortals" might be a more neutral term.^[1]

Calling them the "Folk of the goddess Dana" may also have been a way of humanising (euhemerizing) them: instead of 'god-folk', they were now the folk of a particular goddess.^[2] The Tuatha Dé Danann were likely the gods of Irish paganism,^[1][4] and the Christianized medieval writers who wrote about them needed to take pains in their literary treatment of these heathen gods. Sometimes they explained the Tuath Dé as fallen angels; neutral angels who sided neither with God nor Lucifer and were punished by being forced to dwell on the Earth; or humans who had become highly skilled in magic. However, several writers acknowledged that at least some of them had been gods.^[1] The ninth-century Scél Tuain meic Cairill (Tale of Tuan mac Cairill) speaks of the Tuath Dé ocus Andé, "tribe of gods and un-gods".^[1]

In the Irish version of the Historia Britonum of Nennius, the chief men of science of the Tuatha Dé Danann are listed with their partly Latin names and associations as follows:^[29]

• Luchtenus, artifex ("artisan")
• Credenus, figulus ("shaper/builder")
• Dianus, medicus ("doctor")
• Eadon, daughter of Dianus and nurse of the poets—presumably Étaín, Brigid, or Airmed
• Goibnen, faber ("smith/architect")
• Lug, son of Eithne, with whom were all the arts
• Dagda the Great, the King
• Ogma, brother of the King, from whom came the letters of the Scots

In the Annals of Inisfallen, the following are listed as members of the Tuatha Dé who overcame the Fir Bolg:^[87]

• Bres, son of Elatha
• Delbaeth, son of Elatha
• Dagda
• Mac ind Óc
• Lug son of Ethliu
• Dian Cécht
• Goibnenn the smith
• Luchtaine the wright
• Crédne the craftsman

• Æsir
• Anunnaki
• Aos Sí
• Sliabh an Iarainn
• Twelve Olympians