Francesco's Ristorante Italiano

10/04/2026

09/28/2026

Are Sicilians Italian? Or something entirely their own? It’s a common question that reveals more than it asks.

Legally and geopolitically, Sicily is part of Italy. It has been since unification in 1861.

But historically, culturally, spiritually, well…that’s where things get more nuanced.

Sicily wasn’t merely included in Italy. It was absorbed.

And before that, it was fought over, conquered, and crowned by almost every empire that ever touched the Mediterranean.

The Greeks called it "Trinacria."

The Romans turned it into their imperial province.

The Arabs transformed it into an Islamic jewel of science and agriculture.

The Normans built opulent cathedrals with Arabic muqarnas and Latin inscriptions.

The Spanish ruled it from afar, and the Bourbons kept it poor.

Each era layered its language, cuisine, religion, and architecture onto the island. Some marks were bold, others buried. But none were ever fully lost. You can still find them in recipes, in ruins, and in the rhythm of everyday life.

So when a Sicilian in America says, "I'm not Italian, I'm Sicilian," they’re not being contrarian.

They’re bearing witness.

They’re honoring a legacy that predates the modern Italian state.

A legacy that includes saints and sultans, poets and pirates, rebels and kings.

A legacy that often found itself at odds with the centralized power of Rome, Naples, or Florence.

It’s not about rejecting being Italian. It’s about remembrance.

Sicily has always been a world unto itself.

To say "I'm Sicilian" is to speak from that world…with all its beauty, pain, and defiant pride still intact.