The Hebrides (previously known as The Long Island) are the oldest islands in the world and we have examples of structures possibly dating from up to 3000 BC. the finest example being the standing stones at Callanish but some archaelogists date the site as Bronze Age. The earliest written mention of the Outer Hebrides was by the Greek historian Diodorus Siculus in 55 BC (though some historians argue that Pytheas mentioned them first). Diodorus Siculus wrote that there was an island called Hyperborea (which means "Far to the North") where a round temple stood from which the moon appeared only a little distance above the earth every 19 years. In fact the lunar cycle repeats itself during every 15.61 years of the solar cycle, and when it does so the moon skims less than two degrees above the southern horizon at Callanish (image by Sue Anderson, www.islandfocus.co.uk click thumbnail to enlarge), precisely as Diodorus described. No other temple has been found on any island in the north where such a phenomenon can be observed (another lesser known site, the settlements at Northton, Harris, has both Beaker & Neothlithic dwelling houses (the oldest in The Western Isles), but the site is no longer visible having been recovered by the archaeologists). Pomponius Mela, a spanish writer of the first century, refers to a group of seven islands which he gave the name Haemodae (Hebrides???). Gaius Plinius Secondus (Pliny the Elder), a Roman writer on natural history, wrote of the Haemodae and Haebudes (consisting of thirty islands) during the same period. Claudius Ptolemaeus (Ptolemy), who lived c.90 - 168 was an Egyptian astronomer and geographer who made mention of five "Ebudae" and Scetis. Ptolemy made a map of the world showing the Hebrides but the area is not very well represented (due no doubt to the methods used in that day) but it is generally accepted that Ebuda on the map is the Isle of Lewis while there is some arguement as to the identification of the other Ebudae. Scetis is more than likely the Isle of Skye. There was some mention of Ebudae by Solinus in the third century but there is little history of the Hebrides available until the time of St. Columba.

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