Palermo

About the city

Palermo is a city in south Italy. It is the capital of both the region of Sicily and the Province of Palermo. The city is noted for its history, culture, architecture and gastronomy, playing an important role throughout much of its existence, which is over 2,700 years old. Palermo is Sicily's cultural, economic and touristic capital. Numerous tourists are attracted to the city for its good Mediterranean weather, its renowned gastronomy and restaurants, its Romanesque, Gothic and Baroque churches, palaces and buildings and its nightlife and music. It is also the main Sicilian industrial and commercial center. Its major industrial sectors include tourism, services, commerce and agriculture. Palermo currently has an international airport, and a significant underground economy. The city is also going through careful redevelopment, preparing to become one of the major cities of the Euro-Mediterranean area.

The city was founded in 734 BC by the Phoenicians as Ziz (flower). It then became a possession of Carthage, before becoming part of the Roman Empire and eventually part of the Byzantine Empire, for over a thousand years. The Greeks named the city Panormus meaning 'complete port' and from 831 to 1072 the city was under Arab rule when the city first became a capital. The Arabs shifted the Greek name into Balarm, the root for Palermo's present-day name.

About the twinning agreement

A brotherhood and partnership agreement was signed between Bethlehem, represented by its then Mayor, Mrs. Vera Baboun, and the then Mayor of Palermo, Mr. Leoluca Orlando, in September 2013. This agreement was ratified in the presence of Mr. Davide La Cecilia, the then Consul General of Italy in Jerusalem. The agreement included the exchange of experiences in technical and administrative fields, in programmes of social promotion, environment, education, public he