Above : Piece from Book Of Ballymote

It is evident that the reliability of our early traditions must depend greatly upon the time at which written records were first made and preserved. The period at which the use of letters was first introduced into Ireland is, however, yet another doubtful question. By some the introduction of writing is ascribed to St. Patrick : others believe that written records were kept in Ireland from much earlier times. The Irish words for everything connected with writing are derived directly from Latin. We have no manuscripts from the times before St. Patrick. On the other hand, neither are there manuscripts from the Romans who occupied Britain, although, of course, they were well acquainted with letters. There was much intercourse between Ireland and the Roman Empire : there are frequent references to books written before St. Patrick came, and to laws which were recorded before his arrival. The sudden general adoption of writing immediately after the time of St. Patrick suggests some knowledge of it before his time. The probabilities are that the use of letters was known in a certain degree to the Irish for some time prior to the introduction of Christianity, but was not generally known until after that event.