The Life of Adam and Eve is the title for a collection of ancient Jewish stories, not the work of a single known author. These texts were composed over a long period, likely between the 1st century BCE and the 5th century CE, within the Roman and early Byzantine world. They belong to a category of Jewish literature that expands upon biblical narratives. The original stories were developed in Jewish communities, possibly as early as the 1st century CE, and were later copied and adapted by Christians, who often added their own theological ideas.

The work is a legendary expansion of the story of humanity's first parents from the Book of Genesis. It survives not as one fixed book, but in many different and sometimes conflicting versions across languages like Greek, Latin, and Slavonic. The original language of the earliest version is uncertain, but some scholars believe it may have been Hebrew or Aramaic. The text is pseudepigraphical, meaning it is attributed to figures like Adam or Eve to give it authority, though its actual authors are anonymous.

According to modern scholars, these texts are significant because they offer a window into popular Jewish religious thought in the centuries around the start of the Common Era. They explore themes like the origin of sin, the nature of repentance, and the hope for resurrection. Their themes resonated with early Christians, which led to their preservation. The stories also had a notable influence on later Christian art and literature, particularly in medieval depictions of the Fall of Man. The multiple surviving versions make this tradition an important case study for how religious stories were changed and transmitted across different cultures.