Ireland’s Tuatha Dé Danann: Descendants Of The Fallen Angels From Canaan
Rebellious, fallen angels, who were expelled from heaven to earth populate the mythologies and religious texts of the three main Abrahamic religions. However, the term ‘fallen angel’ appears neither in Abrahamic scriptures or in the Bible, even though it is commonly used to describe angels that sinned in heaven and were subsequently cast to earth to practice their malevolent magic.
Gundestrup Cauldron depicting Dagda of the Tuatha Dé Danann (150 BC) Art of the Celts, Historic Museum of Bern. (Public Domain)
For most Christians, the Devil was once the angel Lucifer who defied God and fell from grace and this is why he is remembered as ‘fallen angel’. According to historian Lester L. Grabbe’s book, A History of the Jews and Judaism in the Second Temple Period, in Jewish religious mythology during the late Second Temple period (516 BC - 70 AD), the Sons of God, known as the Nephilim, were the Biblical giants who were considered the monstrous offspring of fallen angels who bred with human women. Furthermore, The Book of Daniel 4 refers to heavenly beings called ‘watchers’ who fell for human women.
