Founded by the Phoenicians who arrived from Carthage in the 8th century BC, Palermo was given the name Ziz (flower),

In the 5th century BC Dionyisus I, the tyrant of Syracuse attacked the town, the town successfully resisted

Coming under the domination of Rome in 254 BC., Palermo later became one of the most important centres on the island.

After the fall of the Roman Empire, it was ruled by the Goths

Entered Byzantine possession in 552, was then thought of as a capital of an unimportant province.

Palermo was conquered by the Arabs in 831 became capital of the independent emirate of Sicily. The equivalent of Cairo in Egypt and Cordoba in Spain, it entered a period of considerable prosperity. In this time, Palermo became the Eastern harbour to the West, and many mosques are built.

In 1072 a.C. the Normans led by Robert de Hauteville took over Palermo and brought it under Norman rule. Even though the Normans defeated the Arabs, they leave the Arabs important posts in the new governement, and the town becomes the Arab-Norman capital of a powerful and rich reign.

With the wedding of Costance de Hauteville (daughter of Roger II) with Henry VI of Hohenstaufen, the dispotic dynasty of the Hohenstaufens began.

Frederick II (stupor mundi), their son, is considered the most enlightened sovereign of Palermo history. Under his reign the Sicilian "Poetic School" was founded.

When the Angevins took over and chose Naples as their capital city, Palermo began to decline. After a 12 year Angevin tyranny when much Sicilian land is confiscated by the French, the Sicilians rebel in the famous "Vespers" revolt.

Spanish Aragonese domination lasts for the next three centuries, and for Sicily it is a period of comparative tranquillity but also inexorable political decline, but from an architectural point of view this is a moment of great growth.

In 1713, by the treaty of Utrecht, the whole Island goes to the Savoys, who will rule Sicily for seven years. In 1718 the Island goes to the Austrians and immediately afterwards to the Bourbons of Naples. The Sicilan " picciotti" take part to the expedition of Garibaldi's Thousand, against the Bourbons, to annex Sicily to the nascent Kingdom of Italy.

In the 19th, 20th century- Palermo has its Belle Epoque. It is the time of the slightly decadent luxury and the splendour shown off by the upper middle class. It is also the birth of entrepreneurship: important the presence of the powerful Florio family.

Since 1947 Palermo has been the seat of the Regional Government and of the Assembly