Irish poet, republican, and mystic Ella Young was born 26 December 1867 near Ballymena, County Antrim to James Bristow Young and Matilda (née Russell) Young. The Young family relocated to Rathmines, Dublin in the 1880s, and Young graduated with a BA in history, political economy, and law from the Royal University of Ireland in 1898. Young also participated in various mystical organizations such as the Theosophical Society and the Hermetic Society.

Prior to 1902 Young had learned to speak Irish and in 1902 and 1903 she accompanied Margaret O’Grady to Achill Island to collect folklore, specifically fairy stories, for their mutual friend George Russell. She published her own interpretations of various Celtic myths, The coming of Lugh (1909) and Celtic wonder tales (1910). Young, alongside Maud Gonne, was a founding member of Inghinidhe na hÉireann and taught classes in Irish history to children and adults in Dublin.

In 1925 Young was appointed the James D. Phelan lecturer in Irish myth and lore at the University of California at Berkeley, a position she held for ten years. During that period she was frequently invited to lecture at other universities, including Columbia, Smith, and Vassar. While in California she lived in Halcyon, a Theosophical community located near Oceano, California. By 1931 she had obtained American citizenship.

Ella Young died 23 July 1956 in Oceano; her ashes were scattered among a nearby grove of redwood trees.