Sumer
Sumer () is the earliest known civilization in the historical region of southern Mesopotamia, modern-day southern Iraq, during the Chalcolithic and Early Bronze ages, and one of the first civilizations in the world along with Ancient Egypt and the Indus Valley. Living along the valleys of the Tigris and Euphrates, Sumerian farmers were able to grow an abundance of grain and other crops, the surplus of which enabled them to settle in one place. Prehistoric proto-writing dates back before 3000 BC. The earliest texts, from c. 3300 BC, come from the cities of Uruk and Jemdet Nasr; early cuneiform script emerged around 3000 BC.
Early Irish literature
Early Irish literature is the oldest vernacular literature in Western Europe. The earliest existing examples of the written Irish language are Ogham inscriptions dating from the 4th century. Extant manuscripts do not go back farther than the 8th century. Two works written by Saint Patrick, his "Confessio" and "Letter to Coroticus" were written in Latin some time in the 5th century, and preserved in the "Book of Armagh".