What does Sicily mean?
A lot has been said and continues to be said about the origins of Sicily but what does Sicilia mean? We are going to try and answer a seemingly simple question, which actually calls into discussion centuries of history. Located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, this sunny island has seen many peoples and dominations pass by. So, to reconstruct the origin of the name and explain what Sicily means, we have to take a few steps back.
This name took the place of Trinacria (and also of Sicania) since classical age. In medieval times, in fact, the name Sicily was also extended to the peninsula, to indicate the Norman-Swabian domains of Southern Italy.
According to the Latin grammarian Marco Terenzio Varrone, the name Sicily derives from the Italian word “sica”, which means “scythe”. By extension, therefore, Sicilia meant “land of mowers”, because according to the Romans that was the region richest in grain that was supposed to be supplied to the capital. As you know, however, the term Sicily is prior to Roman rule. Thus, other hypotheses can be advanced.
Sicily would derive from “sik”, a term of Indo-Germanic root denoting enlargement and growth. In Greek, this root is used to identify some fruits that grow rapidly, such as pumpkin (sikùs) or fig (siké). Thus, the name Sicily would mean “land of fertility”, “island of fertility”. In the Byzantine period, however, it was believed that the name Sicily derived from two Greek terms (siké and elaia), which indicated two plants typical of the island: the fig and olive.
And what about the story of the Sicilian flag? Do you know what’s the meaning behind that? If not, click here and check our article!
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Sicily is derived from the Greek words figs and olives which is “sika”and “ilies.”