Sicily

Sicily is a large island off the southern coast of Italy.

In ancient times it was the site of numerous important Greek colonies, including Syracuse, where Pythagoras lived. It's conquest by the Romans resulted in its adoption of the Latin language, from which its current language is descended - opinion is divided as to whether Sicilian is a dialect of Italian, or sufficiently distinct to be a separate language.

In the ninth century, it was conquered from the Byzantine Empire by the Fatimids - soon it became an independent kingdom under the Kalbid dynasty.

In the 10th century it was conquered by the Normans and became an important centre of art and commerce - Norman rule was tolerant and made full use of its educated Muslim populace.

In the 13th century it was conquered by Aragon, and was thereafter ruled by various Hapsburg dynasties until its unification in 1734 with the Bourbon dynasty of Naples.

In 1860 it became part of the unified kingdom of Italy.