<P> The return of freezing conditions during the Younger Dryas, that occurred in Ireland between 10,900 BC and 9700 BC, may have depopulated Ireland . During the Younger Dryas sea - levels continued to rise and no ice - free land bridge between Great Britain and Ireland ever returned . </P> <P> The last ice age came to an end in Ireland about 10--12 thousand years ago . The earliest evidence of human occupation after the retreat of the ice has been dated to around 8000 BC . Evidence for Mesolithic hunter - gatherers has been found throughout the island: a number of the key early Mesolithic excavations are the settlement site at Mount Sandel in County Londonderry (Coleraine); the cremations at Hermitage, County Limerick on the bank of the River Shannon; and the campsite at Lough Boora in County Offaly . As well as these, early Mesolithic lithic scatters have been noted around the island, from the north in County Donegal to the south in County Cork . Although sea levels were still lower than they are today, Ireland was already an island by the time the first settlers arrived (after 8000 BC). This was by boat from continental Europe . Most of the Mesolithic sites in Ireland are coastal settlements . The earliest inhabitants of the island were seafarers who depended for much of their livelihood upon the sea . </P> <P> A DNA study of the first humans into Ireland concluded that Ireland was first settled around 9,000 years ago by people who travelled by land and sea up the coast from northern Spain and southern France . This has since been challenged . (See Blood of the Irish). </P> <P> The hunter - gatherers of the Mesolithic era lived on a varied diet of seafood, birds, wild boar and hazelnuts . There is no evidence for deer in the Irish Mesolithic and it is likely that the first red deer were introduced in the early stages of the Neolithic . The human population hunted with spears, arrows and harpoons tipped with small stone blades called microliths, while supplementing their diet with gathered nuts, fruit and berries . They lived in seasonal shelters, which they constructed by stretching animal skins over wooden frames . They had outdoor hearths for cooking their food . During the Mesolithic the population of Ireland was probably never more than a few thousand . </P>

Where did the first settlers of ireland come from
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