This list is the order of books as they appear in the Hebrew Bible, taken from the ordering given in the Masoretic text. This is the order used by Jews today. Supported by the writings of Josephus and other Jewish scholars, this ordering dates back to at least 70 CE.
The Hebrew Bible is divided into three sections, which indicate stages of canonization.
These five scrolls contained the ethical code for the Hebrew nation. These books were probably considered "canon" from an early date, at least by c. 550 BCE.
One theory that allows for the role of Moses in the composition is that Moses was the first of several authors. He wrote various documents which the Jews carried around with them through the wilderness. These documents were later assembled, and with additions, they became the Torah. Later authors added to and smoothed out the growing set of writings.
The above theory is essentially a combination of the two central theories. Because the books are referred to as "books of Moses," some adhere to the traditional understanding that Moses himself wrote most or all of the books, although the writing never claims to be written by Moses. Most scholars observe that there appear to be several different writing styles, including how the author refers to God, and conclude that one author did not write every section of the Torah.
On the other hand, scholars who propose the four author theory have difficulty agreeing on which sections were authored by which writers. Apparently, it is not so easy to identify a "J" (Yahwist, from Yahweh) section and to distinguish it clearly from an "E" (Elohist, from Elohim) section, a "D" (Deuteronomist, written at the time of Deuteronomy) section, and a "P" (Priestly, written several hundred years later) section. It is therefore certainly possible that core sections were compiled into a whole, encountering various revisions, but the exact nature of these redactions is not easily determined.
The Prophets as a collection was recognized as canon by the time of Ezra, c.400 BCE and may have been partially compiled during the captivity (before 539 BCE) or shortly thereafter.
Most of the earlier works are not attributed to any author in particular. The attributions given above are the traditional ones, which are mentioned alongside the majority scholarly opinion.
The last set of books is called the Writings in the Hebrew Bible, with the Megillot denoting "the Scrolls." The most likely time for canonization of the writings is c.65 to 90 CE in a series of meetings, with the last one taking place at Yamnia. Debate continued over Song of Songs, Qoheleth, and Esther as late as the third century CE.
It is generally understood that since certain prophetic works (such as Daniel) appear in the Writings and not the Prophets, they were written after the previous collection was closed. The fact that Daniel was still undergoing additions in Greek at later dates would tend to support this view. Ezra-Nehemiah (at least when it was one book) is perhaps the easiest to date, since it contains a lineage up through a certain period, although there is dispute as to when Ezra lived.
It should be noted that the concept and process of canon changed as time passed. As time passed, the Jews excluded those works that were considered to be in conflict with the writings that had been collected earlier. The Jewish rationale of canon is discussed later. Now proceed to the Septuagint and Masoreh page.