Baath or Baath mac Magog is a figure in Irish legendary history. He was a son of Magog,

Lebor Gabála Érenn ''Lebor Gabála Érenn'' (literally "The Book of Ireland's Taking"; Modern Irish spelling: ''Leabhar Gabhála Éireann'', known in English as ''The Book of Invasions'') is a collection of poems and prose narratives in the Irish language inten ...

, Part I, page 155; by Robert Macalister. son of

Japheth Japheth ( ''Yép̄eṯ'', in pausa ''Yā́p̄eṯ''; '; ; ') is one of the three sons of Noah in the Book of Genesis, in which he plays a role in the story of Noah's drunkenness and the curse of Ham, and subsequently in the Table of Nation ...

, the progenitor of the

Scythians The Scythians ( or ) or Scyths (, but note Scytho- () in composition) and sometimes also referred to as the Pontic Scythians, were an Ancient Iranian peoples, ancient Eastern Iranian languages, Eastern Iranian peoples, Iranian Eurasian noma ...

, son of

Noah Noah (; , also Noach) appears as the last of the Antediluvian Patriarchs (Bible), patriarchs in the traditions of Abrahamic religions. His story appears in the Hebrew Bible (Book of Genesis, chapters 5–9), the Quran and Baháʼí literature, ...

, and the father of Fénius Farsaid, according to a version " M" of

, also known as the

Great Book of Lecan The ''Great Book of Lecan'' or simply ''Book of Lecan'' () ( RIA, 23 P 2) is a late-medieval Irish manuscript written between 1397 and 1418 in Castle Forbes, Lecan (Lackan, Leckan; Irish ), in the territory of Tír Fhíacrach, near moder ...

. He is described as being from

Scythia Scythia (, ) or Scythica (, ) was a geographic region defined in the ancient Graeco-Roman world that encompassed the Pontic steppe. It was inhabited by Scythians, an ancient Eastern Iranian equestrian nomadic people. Etymology The names ...

, and the

Goths The Goths were a Germanic people who played a major role in the fall of the Western Roman Empire and the emergence of medieval Europe. They were first reported by Graeco-Roman authors in the 3rd century AD, living north of the Danube in what is ...

, or the Gaedil. According to the same version of the story, he had four brothers, Ibath, Barachan, Emoth, and Aithechta. But the story further states that "...Feinius Farrsaid was son of Baath, son of Ibath, son of

Gomer Gomer ( ''Gōmer''; ) was the eldest son of Japheth (and of the Japhetic line), and father of Ashkenaz, Riphath, and Togarmah, according to the "Table of Nations" in the Hebrew Bible ( Genesis 10). The eponymous Gomer, "standing for the whole ...

, and son of Iafeth". There are several competing genealogies in the sources deriving Fénius, Baath, the Milesians, etc., either from Magog, Gomer, or sometimes even

Javan Javan () was the fourth son of Noah's son Japheth according to the "Generations of Noah" (Book of Genesis, chapter 10) in the Hebrew Bible. Josephus states the traditional belief that this individual was the ancestor of the Greeks. Also servi ...

. In some versions Baath or Ibath occupy the same position as Rifath Scot ( Riphath son of Gomer), while in others Fénius himself is treated as interchangeable with Rifath Scot. The earliest traditions regarding Fénius and Baath in Auraicept na n-Eces (ca. 7th century) seem to combine figures with exploits placed at the

Tower of Babel The Tower of Babel is an origin myth and parable in the Book of Genesis (chapter 11) meant to explain the existence of different languages and cultures. According to the story, a united human race speaking a single language migrates to Shin ...

and at the Exodus of Moses. Much of this is also reflected in the ''

Historia Brittonum ''The History of the Britons'' () is a purported history of early Britain written around 828 that survives in numerous recensions from after the 11th century. The ''Historia Brittonum'' is commonly attributed to Nennius, as some recensions ha ...

'' (9th century) which includes similar tales and also derives the ancestry of Europeans, in part, through Baath son of Jobath son of Joham or Javan son of Japheth. In the much earlier account of

Pseudo-Philo Pseudo-Philo is the name commonly used for the unknown, anonymous author of the ''Biblical Antiquities''. This text is also commonly known today under the Latin title ''Liber Antiquitatum Biblicarum'' (Book of Biblical Antiquities), a title that i ...

(c. 70), the sons of Javan's son

Dodanim Dodanim ( ''Dōḏānīm'') or Rodanim, ( ''Rōḏānīm'', , ''Ródioi'') was, in the Book of Genesis, a son of Javan (thus, a great-grandson of Noah). Dodanim's brothers, according to Genesis 10:4, were Elishah, Tarshish and Chittim. He is usua ...

are called Itheb, Beath, and Phenech; the last of these is made the prince of the Japhethites at the time of the Tower of Babel.Philo V:1
/ref>

References

{{Irish mythology (mythological) Characters in Irish mythology Mythological Cycle Gog and Magog Scythians