Tinos’s name derives from the Phoenician Tannoti or snake, and it was also known as Ofioussa (filled with snakes). Local tradition holds that the snakes were killed by the island’s patron, Poseidon.
Tinos was first inhabited by the Pelasgians, and later settled by the Ionians, Athenians, Macedonians, Ptolemies, and Romans. The earliest human settlements date from the Neolithic era and there is evidence of habitation in the Geometric and Archaic periods.
In 480 B.C., just before the Battle of Salamis, the Tinos trireme of Panaitios joined the Greek fleet and its crew transmitted information about the naval battle against the Persians. The island’s name is inscribed on a tripod votive at the Oracle of Delphi.
Under Byzantine rule, the island was the target of Saracen raids. In 1204, after the fall of Constantinople, it came under Venetian dominion and was initially ruled by the Gyzi dynasty (1207-1390) and was subsequently under the administration of the Republic of San Marco until 1715. The Venetians played a substantive role in shaping the island’s social and cultural traditions. Under Venice, the island served as a refugee for persecuted Greeks, offering stability and relative security, while the Venetian influence can be seen in a distinct form of feudalism that evolved on the island.
In 1715, the island fell to the Turks but their presence and influence was minimal. Tinos used this benevolent rule to grow. Virtually self-administered during the period, the island developed its trade and crafts industry and effectively emerged as the financial capital of the Cyclades. Thanks to its strong economy, it was dubbed “Little Paris” as the arts, especially marble sculpting, flourished. These crafts remain part of the island’s cultural and economic heritage to this date.
Russian rule, though brief (1770-1774), had a more lasting influence which can be seen in the architecture of the island’s churches. Milestones in the island’s history include: March 31, 1821, when the banner of the Greek revolution was raised on the island; January 30, 1823, when a vision by Ayia Pelayia, a local nun, led to the discover of the icon of the Virgin that is believed to possess miraculous powers.
On 15 August of 1940, the Italian sink the Greek destroyer "Elli" in the harbor on the feast of the Dormition of the Virgin. The discovery of the icon of the Virgin gradually established Tinos as an important center of the Orthodox faith.