Lamentations has traditionally been ascribed to Jeremiah, probably on the grounds of the reference in 2 Chronicles 35:25 to the prophet composing a lament on the death of King Josiah, but there is no reference to Josiah in the book and no reason to connect it to Jeremiah.[4] The language fits an Exilic date (586–520 BCE), and the poems probably originated from Judeans who remained in the land.[6] Scholars are divided over whether they are the work of one or multiple authors.[6] One clue pointing to multiple authors is that the gender and situation of the first-person witness changes – the narration is feminine in the first and second lamentation, and masculine in the third, while the fourth and fifth are eyewitness reports of Jerusalem's destruction;[7] conversely, the similarities of style, vocabulary, and theological outlook, as well as the uniform historical setting, are arguments for one author.[8]