The Iki Islands have been inhabited since the
Japanese Paleolithic era, and numerous artifacts from the
Jōmon,
Yayoi and
Kofun periods have been found by archaeologists, indicating continuous human occupation and activity. In the Chinese
Weizhi Worenchuan (Japanese 魏志倭人伝,
Gishi Wajinden), part of the
Records of the Three Kingdoms dating from the 3rd century AD, mention is made of a country called "
Ikikoku", (一支国), located on an archipelago east of the
Korean Peninsula. Archaeologists have tentatively identified this with the large Yayoi period settlement of (原の辻), one of the largest to have been discovered in Japan, where artifacts uncovered indicate a close contact with the Japanese islands and the Asian mainland. It is also mentioned in the
Weilüe, the
Book of Liang and the
Book of Sui. The islands were organized as Iki Province under the
Ritsuryō reforms in the latter half of the seventh century, and the name "Iki-no-kuni" appears on wooden markers found in the imperial capital of
Nara. The exact location of the provincial capital is not known, but is traditionally believed to have been in the former town of
Ashibe, in former Ishida District. where the ruins of the
Kokubun-ji of Iki Province have been discovered. Two shrines vie for the title of
Ichinomiya of the province: the , in former town of
Gonoura and the , in Ashibe After the
abolition of the han system in July 1871, Iki Province became part of "Hirado Prefecture" from 1871, which then became part of Nagasaki Prefecture. ==Historical districts==