Farmers, monks and raiders: exploring cultural and environmental transitions during the 1st millennium AD on the island of Tiree

From the 6th century AD, documentary records suggest that Tiree became home to several monastic communities, including St. Columba’s Mag-Luinge. It is unclear whether these were still present at the start of Norse occupation in the 9th century, or whether the island experienced the sort of Viking attacks that were documented on Iona between the 8th and 10th centuries. This paper provides new insight into the cultural transitions impacting Tiree between the 7th and 10th centuries using a high-resolution palaeoenvironmental sampling strategy. Findings include a strong agricultural economy during the 7th century (close to Soroby, one of the proposed locations of Mag-Luinge); a brief period of agricultural collapse (cereals) during the 8th century (possible causes: Viking/other raids, disease, or environmental change?); and arable intensification, burning, heathland and arboreal decline between the 9th and 10th centuries, potentially linked to Norse occupation. A similar collapse-recovery has been found on Iona.