The name Colkirk is an Anglo-Saxon or Danish word, meaning "the church of Cola", from "kirk" meaning church and "Cola" being the name of the builder or first owner of a church perhaps over a thousand years ago.
The present church may possibly be on the same site as the original building and is of medieval origin.

At the time of the Domesday Book, the whole estate of the manor of Colkirk belonged to the bishop.
At that time the cathedral was at North Elmham and the Domesday Book records how much land the bishop held in Colkirk, how many sheep and pigs he kept and how many people worked on his estate.

Details of the original moated manor house and buildings, which included a dovecote and private chapel and was situated near Long's Lane off Dereham Road, were described in a document of 1296.

Soon after the cathedral was established in Norwich in 1101, the Bishop gave Colkirk to one of the knights of his private army.
This knight named himself after the village "Richard of Colkirk" and he and his successors lived at the manor house until 600 years ago, after which the house within the moat was allowed to fall into decay.

About 400 years ago in the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, the village began to look more like the Colkirk of today.
Brick and flint started to replace timber framed wattle and clay as building materials.
Some of the earliest brick and flint houses remain today, "Starre" and "Gable End" being among the oldest houses in the village and Colkirk Hall was built towards the end of the reign of Queen Elizabeth I around 1595.
The Timperley family were one of the first recorded occupants of the Hall.
The Timperley family, after whom the Timperley Estate was named, fell on hard times and lost most of their land as a penalty for helping to defend King's Lynn against Oliver Cromwell's troops in 1643.
Colkirk Hall was subsequently bought by Marquis Townshend, since when it has been occupied as a farm house.

Other changes were taking place in Colkirk at this time.
One by one the small farmers who comprised the village population were becoming poor and sold their land to richer men.
In this way there came to be just a few big farms in the village as there are today.
With the formation of the big farms came the division of the old, big village fields into the smaller fields, bounded by hedges, which still exist today.
All the land in the Parish was finally brought into use when the commons were enclosed and the big woods cut down about 150 years ago.

The period 1820 to 1845 saw a population increase in the village and a number of houses were built or rebuilt about this time.
These houses can be recognised as they were generally of red brick, rather than flint.
The "Crown" was rebuilt by the Parish in 1827 and Colkirk House was built in 1837.

Since then, most of the houses on the right hand side of School Road were built as model cottages, by Canon Hoare, when he was Rector of Colkirk.
The School was rebuilt in 1851 and the Infants' Room added in 1894.
A Chapel was established in the village in the 1830s; however, the building erected in 1875 has now been demolished.

There was a Co-op in the village founded 120 years ago, having occupied three different sites in its time and finally situated in Dereham Road was closed in the 1960s.

Other facilities, which were once part of village life and have passed into history, include a Pork Butcher's Shop, a General Store and a Carpenter and Undertaker, all on Hall Lane, together with a Blacksmith and a Baker's Shop on Dereham Road.
The last to be closed being the Village Shop and Post Office which was on the junction of Dereham Road and Crown Road.

The Village Hall was built some 140 years ago by one of the Rectors of Colkirk and is now owned by the Parish.

Census population figures for the village show little change during the latter part of the 19th century and at around 450 are about 100 fewer than the present day.

In the 1883 Kelly's Directory described the village thus:

COLKIRK is a parish about two miles south from Fakenham, in the Western division of the county, Launditch hundred
The name Colkirk is an Anglo-Saxon or Danish word, meaning "the church of Cola", from "kirk" meaning church and "Cola" being the name of the builder or first owner of a church perhaps over a thousand years ago. The present church may possibly be on the same site as the original building and is of medieval origin.
At the time of the Domesday Book, the whole estate of the manor of Colkirk belonged to the bishop. At that time the cathedral was at North Elmham and the Domesday Book records how much land the bishop held in Colkirk, how many sheep and pigs he kept and how many people worked on his estate.
Details of the original moated manor house and buildings, which included a dovecote and private chapel and was situated near Long's Lane off Dereham Road, were described in a document of 1296.
Soon after the cathedral was established in Norwich in 1101, the Bishop gave Colkirk to one of the knights of his private army. This knight named himself after the village "Richard of Colkirk" and he and his successors lived at the manor house until 600 years ago, after which the house within the moat was allowed to fall into decay.
About 400 years ago in the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, the village began to look more like the Colkirk of today. Brick and flint started to replace timber framed wattle and clay as building materials. Some of the earliest brick and flint houses remain today, "Starre" and "Gable End" being among the oldest houses in the village and Colkirk Hall was built towards the end of the reign of Queen Elizabeth I around 1595. The Timperley family were one of the first recorded occupants of the Hall. The Timperley family, after whom the Timperley Estate was named, fell on hard times and lost most of their land as a penalty for helping to defend King's Lynn against Oliver Cromwell's troops in 1643. Colkirk Hall was subsequently bought by Marquis Townshend, since when it has been occupied as a farm house.
Other changes were taking place in Colkirk at this time. One by one the small farmers who comprised the village population were becoming poor and sold their land to richer men. In this way there came to be just a few big farms in the village as there are today. With the formation of the big farms came the division of the old, big village fields into the smaller fields, bounded by hedges, which still exist today. All the land in the Parish was finally brought into use when the commons were enclosed and the big woods cut down about 150 years ago.
The period 1820 to 1845 saw a population increase in the village and a number of houses were built or rebuilt about this time. These houses can be recognised as they were generally of red brick, rather than flint. The "Crown" was rebuilt by the Parish in 1827 and Colkirk House was built in 1837.
Since then, most of the houses on the right hand side of School Road were built as model cottages, by Canon Hoare, when he was Rector of Colkirk. The School was rebuilt in 1851 and the Infants' Room added in 1894. A Chapel was established in the village in the 1830s; however, the building erected in 1875 has now been demolished.
There was a Co-op in the village founded 120 years ago, having occupied three different sites in its time and finally situated in Dereham Road was closed in the 1960s.
Other facilities, which were once part of village life and have passed into history, include a Pork Butcher's Shop, a General Store and a Carpenter and Undertaker, all on Hall Lane, together with a Blacksmith and a Baker's Shop on Dereham Road. The last to be closed being the Village Shop and Post Office which was on the junction of Dereham Road and Crown Road.
The Village Hall was built some 140 years ago by one of the Rectors of Colkirk and is now owned by the Parish.
Census population figures for the village show little change during the latter part of the 19th century and at around 450 are about 100 fewer than the present day.
In the 1883 Kelly's Directory described the village thus:

COLKIRK is a parish about two miles south from Fakenham, in the Western division of the county, Launditch hundred
Colkirk