Sicily is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and is one of the 20 regions of Italy. With 4.8 million inhabitants, including 1.3 million in and around the capital city of Palermo, it is the most populous island in the Mediterranean Sea. It is named after the Sicels, who inhabited the eastern part of the island during the Iron Age. Sicily has a rich and unique culture in arts, music, literature, cuisine, and architecture. Its most prominent landmark is Mount Etna, the tallest active volcano in Europe, and one of the most active in the world, currently 3,357 m (11,014 ft) high. The island has a typical Mediterranean climate. It is separated from Calabria by the Strait of Messina. It is one of the five Italian autonomous regions and is generally considered part of Southern Italy.
Syracuse is a historic city on the Italian island of Sicily, the capital of the Italian province of Syracuse. The city is notable for its rich Greek and Roman history, culture, amphitheatres, architecture, and as the birthplace and home of the pre-eminent mathematician and engineer Archimedes. This 2,700-year-old city played a key role in ancient times, when it was one of the major powers of the Mediterranean world. Syracuse is located in the southeast corner of the island of Sicily, next to the Gulf of Syracuse beside the Ionian Sea. It is situated in a drastic rise of land with 2,000 metres (6,600 ft) depths being close to the city offshore although the city itself is generally not so hilly in comparison.
Sicilian cuisine is the style of cooking on the island of Sicily. It shows traces of all cultures that have existed on the island of Sicily over the last two millennia. Although its cuisine has much in common with Italian cuisine, Sicilian food also has Greek, Spanish, French, Jewish, Maghrebi, and Arab influences.
Noto is a city and comune in the Province of Syracuse, Sicily, Italy. It is 32 kilometres (20 mi) southwest of the city of Syracuse at the foot of the Iblean Mountains. It lends its name to the surrounding area Val di Noto. In 2002 Noto and its church were declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Caronia is a town and comune on the north coast of Sicily, in the province of Messina, about halfway between Tyndaris and Cephaloedium. The town has 3,555 inhabitants.
Ragusa is a city and comune in southern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Ragusa, on the island of Sicily, with 73,288 inhabitants in 2016. It is built on a wide limestone hill between two deep valleys, Cava San Leonardo and Cava Santa Domenica. Together with seven other cities in the Val di Noto, it is part of a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
Gela is a city and comune (municipality) in the Autonomous Region of Sicily, Italy; in terms of area and population, it is the largest municipality on the southern coast of Sicily. Gela is part of the Province of Caltanissetta and is one of the few comuni in Italy with a population and area that exceed those of the provincial capital.
The province of Catania was a province in the autonomous island region of Sicily, Italy. Its capital was the city of Catania. It had an area of 3,552 square kilometres (1,371 sq mi) and a total population of about 1,116,917 as of 31 December 2014.
Sicilian Baroque is the distinctive form of Baroque architecture which evolved on the island of Sicily, off the southern coast of Italy, in the 17th and 18th centuries, when it was part of the Spanish Empire. The style is recognisable not only by its typical Baroque curves and flourishes, but also by distinctive grinning masks and putti and a particular flamboyance that has given Sicily a unique architectural identity.
Palazzolo Acreide is a town and comune in the Province of Syracuse, Sicily. It is 43 kilometres (27 mi) from the city of Syracuse in the Hyblean Mountains. It is one of I Borghi più belli d'Italia.
Val di Noto is a historical and geographical area encompassing the south-eastern third of Sicily; it is dominated by the limestone Hyblaean plateau. Historically, it was one of the three valli of Sicily.
Modica is a city and comune of 54,456 inhabitants in the Province of Ragusa, Sicily, southern Italy. The city is situated in the Hyblaean Mountains.
Scicli is a town and municipality in the Province of Ragusa in the south east of Sicily, southern Italy. It is 25 kilometres (16 mi) from Ragusa, and 188 kilometres (117 mi) from Palermo, and has a population (2017) of 27,051. Alongside seven other cities in the Val di Noto, it has been listed as one of UNESCO's World Heritage Sites.
Cassaro is a town and comune (municipality) in the Province of Syracuse, Sicily (Italy). The name of Cassaro probably derives from the Latin word castrum 'castle', 'fort', 'fort' or 'military camp', 'castle'. Cassaro is 52 kilometres (32 mi) from Ragusa and 35 kilometres (22 mi) west of the city of Siracusa. Cassaro has 859 inhabitants.
US Siracusa S.r.l., commonly referred to as simply Siracusa, was an Italian association football club located in Syracuse, Sicily.
The 1693 Sicily earthquake struck parts of southern Italy near Sicily, then a territory part of the Crown of Aragon by the Kings of Spain Calabria, and Malta on 11 January at around 21:00 local time. This earthquake was preceded by a damaging foreshock on 9 January. The main quake had an estimated magnitude of 7.4 on the moment magnitude scale, the most powerful in Italian recorded history, and a maximum intensity of XI (Extreme) on the Mercalli intensity scale, destroying at least 70 towns and cities, seriously affecting an area of 5,600 square kilometres (2,200 sq mi) and causing the death of about 60,000 people.
Lentini is a town and comune in the Province of Syracuse, southeastern Sicily, located 35 km north-west of Syracuse.
The Chiesa madre of Santa Maria la Cava e Sant'Alfio is the main Roman Catholic church in Lentini, province of Syracuse, Sicily Italy.
Cavagrande del Cassibile is a nature reserve near the towns of Avola, Noto, and Syracuse in the Province of Syracuse, Sicily, Italy.
The Oasi Faunistica of Vendicari is a nature reserve near the towns of Noto and Pachino in the Province of Syracuse, Sicily, Italy.
