A fascinating historical timeline
The first settlement on Colonsay dates back to the Mesolithic period, around 7,000 to 3,500 BC. The island appears to have been unoccupied during the Neolithic period (4,000 to 2,000 BC) but re-occupied with the arrival of the first farmers in the early Bronze Age, around 2,500 BC. There is evidence of numerous Bronze Age occupation sites.
At least nine forts on the island date to the Iron Age (1200 to 600 BC) and there are 10 pre-Reformation Christian sites, including the important remains of Oronsay Priory.
Echoes of the Viking period are plentiful, not least in surviving place names, while medieval and later periods are represented in the vernacular heritage of field-systems, fermtouns and architecture.
If you would like to find out more about the history of the island take a look at the outline notes kindly provided by the Commission on Ancient & Historic Monuments (Scotland).