Acallam na Senórach (Modern Irish: Agallamh na Seanórach, whose title in English has been given variously as Colloquy of the Ancients, Tales of the Elders of Ireland, The Dialogue of the Ancients of Ireland, etc.), is an important prosimetric Middle Irish narrative dating to 1200. It is the most important text of the Finn Cycle (also known as the Fenian Cycle, fíanaigecht, fiannaigheacht, fiannaíocht etc) and at about 8,000 lines is the longest-surviving work of medieval Irish literature. It contains many Finn Cycle narratives framed by a story in which the fianna warriors and Caílte mac Rónáin have survived long enough to relate the tales to Saint Patrick. The work has been seen as a defence of the Irish literary establishment when it came under the scrutiny of Church reformers during the 12th to 13th centuries. Contents Set several hundred years after the death of Finn mac Cumaill, the frame story follows two aged Irish heroes as they travel Ireland with a newly arrived Saint Patrick. The pagans are Caílte mac Rónáin, Finn's nephew, and Oisín, Finn's son, both members of the famous warrior band, the fianna. For most of the narrative Caílte is the more important informant of the two, regaling Patrick with tales of Finn and his men and explaining place names they encounter in the manner of another Irish work, the Dinnsenchas. Many of the allusions made within the text are in relation to Finn mac Cumaill. The stories reiterate the greatness of Finn and his departed age of heroes, often focusing on the rivalry between Finn's family and that of his enemy Goll mac Morna, which threatened the stability of the island. Other stories record the Fianna's relationship with the Otherworld and the Tuatha Dé Danann, while those involving Patrick often stress the importance of integrating the values and culture of pre-Christian Ireland with the new ways of the Church. Some of the individual tales may predate their inclusion in Acallam na Senórach, though the authors adapted them with an eye towards narrative unity. Many of the tales within Acallam Na Senórach are told through lore and the passing down of traditional stories. Acallam na Senórach survives in five late manuscripts. Three are from the 15th century: Oxford, Bodleian Library, MS Laud Misc. 610; Oxford, Bodleian Library, MS Rawlinson B 487; and the Book of Lismore. The fourth is Dublin, University College, OFM-A4 (what Stokes called