The Annals of Inisfallen are a chronicle

Chronicle

Generally a chronicle is a historical account of facts and events ranged in chronological order, as in a time line. Typically, equal weight is given for historically important events and local events, the purpose being the recording of events that occurred, seen from the perspective of the...

 of the medieval

Middle Ages

The Middle Ages is a periodization of European history from the 5th century to the 15th century. The Middle Ages follows the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 and precedes the Early Modern Era. It is the middle period of a three-period division of Western history: Classic, Medieval and Modern...

 history of Ireland

Ireland

Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...

. There are more than 2,500 entries spanning the years between AD 433 and AD 1450, but it is believed to have been written between the 12th and 15th centuries. It was written by the monk

Monk

A monk is a person who practices religious asceticism, living either alone or with any number of monks, while always maintaining some degree of physical separation from those not sharing the same purpose...

s of Innisfallen Abbey, on Innisfallen Island

Innisfallen Island

Innisfallen or Inishfallen is an island in Lough Leane; one of the three Lakes of Killarney in County Kerry, Ireland. It is home to the ruins of Innisfallen Abbey, one of the most impressive archaeological remains dating from the early Christian period found in the Killarney National Park. The...

 on Lough Leane

Lakes of Killarney

The Lakes of Killarney are a renowned scenic attraction located near Killarney, County Kerry, in Ireland. They consist of three lakes - Lough Leane, Muckross Lake and Upper Lake.Lough Leane is the largest of the three lakes...

, near Killarney

Killarney

Killarney is a town in County Kerry, southwestern Ireland. The town is located north of the MacGillicuddy Reeks, on the northeastern shore of the Lough Lein/Leane which are part of Killarney National Park. The town and its surrounding region are home to St...

.

Kathleen Hughes

Kathleen Hughes (historian)

Kathleen Winifred Hughes, born 8 September 1926 in Middlesbrough, died 20 April 1977, was an English historian, her specialisation was Irish ecclesiastical history, particularly the early Christian Church in Ireland....

 conjectured that the Annals are among those derived from the hypothetical Chronicle of Ireland.

As well as the chronological entries, the manuscript contains a short, fragmented narrative of the history of pre-Christian

Christian

A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...

 Ireland, known as the pre-Patrician section. This section has many elements in common with Lebor Gabála Érenn

Lebor Gabála Érenn

Lebor Gabála Érenn is the Middle Irish title of a loose collection of poems and prose narratives recounting the mythical origins and history of the Irish from the creation of the world down to the Middle Ages...

.

The annals are now housed in the Bodleian Library

Bodleian Library

The Bodleian Library , the main research library of the University of Oxford, is one of the oldest libraries in Europe, and in Britain is second in size only to the British Library...

 in Oxford

Oxford

The city of Oxford is the county town of Oxfordshire, England. The city, made prominent by its medieval university, has a population of just under 165,000, with 153,900 living within the district boundary. It lies about 50 miles north-west of London. The rivers Cherwell and Thames run through...

. In 2001, Brian O'Leary, a Fianna Fáil

Fianna Fáil

Fianna Fáil – The Republican Party , more commonly known as Fianna Fáil is a centrist political party in the Republic of Ireland, founded on 23 March 1926. Fianna Fáil's name is traditionally translated into English as Soldiers of Destiny, although a more accurate rendition would be Warriors of Fál...

 councillor in Killarney, called for the annals to be returned to the town.

They are to be distinguished from the misnamed 18th century compilation known as the Dublin Annals of Inisfallen

Dublin Annals of Inisfallen

The Dublin Annals of Inisfallen refer to a mid 18th century compilation of medieval Irish annals reworked and augmented with material from later traditions in the form of interpolations, made by John O'Brien, Bishop of Cloyne and the Reverend John Conry...

.

External links

• Annals of Inisfallen — Text of the annals (Mac Airt's translation)
• Annals of Inisfallen — Original text (in a mixture of Latin
  Latin
  Latin is an Italic language originally spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. It, along with most European languages, is a descendant of the ancient Proto-Indo-European language. Although it is considered a dead language, a number of scholars and members of the Christian clergy speak it fluently, and...
  
   and Irish
  Irish language
  Irish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...
  
  )
• Annals of Inisfallen — pre-Patrician section
• Digitised images from Rawlinson B 503, Early Manuscripts at Oxford University.
• Call for Annals of Innisfallen to be returned to Killarney — local newspaper article