answers: Northern Isles
context: Shetland, the Hebrides, the islands of the Firth of Clyde and associated mainland territories including Caithness and Sutherland. The historical record from Scottish sources is weak, with the Irish annals and the later Norse sagas, of which the "Orkneyinga Saga" is the principal source of information, sometimes contradictory although modern archaeology is beginning to provide a broader picture of life during this period. There are various competing theories that have addressed the early colonisation process, although it is clear that the Northern Isles were the first to be conquered by Vikings and the last to be relinquished by the Norwegian </s> Norse–Gaels The Norse–Gaels (; Irish: "Gall-Ghaeil"; , 'foreigner-Gaels') were a people of mixed Gaelic and Norse ancestry and culture. They emerged in the Viking Age, when Vikings who settled in Ireland and in Scotland adopted Gaelic culture and intermarried with Gaels. The Norse–Gaels dominated much of the Irish Sea and Scottish Sea regions from the 9th to 12th centuries. They founded the Kingdom of the Isles (which included the Hebrides and the Isle of Man), the Kingdom of Dublin, the Lordship of Galloway (which is named after them), and ruled the Kingdom of York for a time. The most powerful </s> name in the region. The process of conversion may have begun earlier than traditional mission-based narratives. It is likely that knowledge of Christianity reached the region from Dál Riata, with which it had close contacts, including war, trade and intermarriage. Traditions place the fifth-century saint Palladius in Pictland after he left Ireland, and link Abernethy with his contemporary, Saint Brigid of Kildare. Evidence for an early date for Christianisation include the fact that St. Patrick, active in the fifth century, referred in a letter to "apostate Picts", indicating that they had previously been Christian, but had abandoned the faith. In
question: where did the vikings first land in scotland