The Book of Lamentations (Hebrew: אֵיכָה‎, Êykhôh, from its incipit meaning "how") is a collection of poetic laments for the destruction of Jerusalem in 586 BCE.

When did lamentations take place?

The book of Lamentations expresses the humiliation, suffering, and despair of Jerusalem and her people following the destruction of the city by the Babylonians in 587 BCE.

What is the setting of Lamentations?

Jerusalem, Or What's Left of It, Circa 587 BCE

The Book of Lamentations is pretty easy to nail down to a time and place. It's obviously about the destruction of a city—Jerusalem—and we know from the historical records that existed at the time that Jerusalem had been leveled by the Neo-Babylonian Empire in 587 BCE.