One of the first inhabited areas of Italy, Sicily was named after the ancient Siculians who introduced agriculture and animal husbandry in the 3rd millennium B.C. The Phoenicians came next; they founded a number of commercial centers and started intensive exploitation of the forests for construction of settlements and boats.

Between the Eighth and Third centuries B.C., the Greeks, who sometimes referred to the Island as Trinacria, a reference to the region's triangular shape, ruled the island. They founded numerous colonies and developed commerce and agriculture.

The Romans were the next colonizers to inhabit and control the island, making Sicily the granary of the empire. They built new roads and re-enforced the already existing settlements and agricultural and commercial systems.

Starting from 827 A.D., repeated attacks by Arabic pirates prompted the fortification and enlargement of Palermo's port. The city itself was rebuilt several times, prompting a period of island-wide growth and expansion. The spread of irrigation, introduction of jasmine, citrus, cotton and other new cultivated crops contributed to an overall increase in agricultural production

Viticulture

Sicily has more vineyards than any of the other Italian regions competing with Apulia for first place as the largest wine producer. Yet, Sicilians consume less wine per capita than any other Italian.

Many grapes are made into raisins, used in local cooking, and Sicilian grapes also play a large role in creating dessert wines, which require a higher concentration of grapes and are consumed in smaller quantities. In fact, in the world of international wine, Sicily is renowned for the many outstanding dessert wines, such as the world-famous Marsala.

Though dessert wines account for about 90% of the total DOC production, we shouldn't disregard the several good reds and whites that are produced all over the island by both large and small producers.