To the new settlers, the locality presented a "beautiful prospect", being described as "well timbered, with waving gum and shady trees". Thus Prospect Village was named by Colonel William Light shortly after the colonisation of South Australia in 1838. George Fife Angas was given the right to make first choice of "country section", to which he and other early investors in South Australia were entitled by their purchase of land orders prior to settlement (see "Lands administrative divisions of South Australia § Land division history"). Under Light's plan for the city and adjoining rural areas, the present-day inner metropolitan area was laid out as hundreds which were further divided into sections, of about in size. Prospect was to fall within the Hundred of Yatala when it was proclaimed in 1846, but prior to this the section were simply referred to as "country section" and the number.