The Irish poetic tradition is generally not considered as a unity. Verse written in Irish, especially from the early and medieval periods, is felt to be the preserve of linguists and specialists, and Anglo-Irish poetry is usually seen as an adjunct to the English tradition. This new anthology approaches the whole of the Irish tradition and presents a relationship between two major bodies of poetry that reflects a shared and painful history. To this end the editor has newly translated a significant selection of poems from the early centuries through to the present day so as to include - in this dual context - some of the great riches of Irish verse.