Sicilians are Greeks

Answer 1

Yes and no. Sicilians are descended, in large part, from both ancient Greek and later Byzantine Greek settlers, however Sicilians are part of the Italian Republic, speak Italian, and are Roman Catholics, like other Italians. So they are Italians, but they also have certain distinct cultural traditions that have been influenced by the many different invaders and settlers from different lands that have come to Sicily throughout the ages. The Greeks were one of the major groups to have an impact on Sicily, both culturally and genetically. In addition to a generous dose of Greek blood, Sicilians also have mainland Italian ancestry from the indigenous Siculi (who gave the island its name), who came from southern Italy, the Romans, and from medieval settlers from northern Italy who arrived after the Normans expelled many of the Arabs who were living on the island back then. Thus, Sicilians also have Arab, Norman, and also French and Spanish ancestry, however Greek and Italian are the two principal ancestries of Sicilians. The Arabs were known as "Moors" or "Saracens" in medieval times and these were general terms for Muslims. Some of Sicily's Moors/Saracens were also Berbers and Spanish Muslims (Spain had been conquered earlier by Moors). The Muslim Moors repopulated various parts of Sicily after having taken Sicily from the Byzantines, and most Moorish settlers were men. The spread of Islam and the Arabic language during this time in Sicily was the result of two developments: A large influx of Moorish settlers who repopulated Palermo and other communities and the conversion of many native Sicilians (mainly of Greek, Roman, and Siculi ancestry) to Islam. Throughout the Arab period, many Greek-speaking Orthodox Christians remained on the island at rates of up to 50% according to many historians, and again, many of the Arabic-speaking Muslims were native Sicilians who "went Arab" in order to escape prejudice. The Normans (a French/Viking people from Normandy who were French-speaking Catholics) arrived in Sicily at the invitation of the Pope who wanted them to expel the Muslims. Although largely tolerant of the Muslim and Greek Christian communities, Sicily gradually became Latinized over time as a large influx of Italian settlers (many of these from northern Italy) repopulated parts of Sicily as many of the island's Muslims left the island. Sicily's population was thus radically altered under the period of Norman rule as many Muslims left or were later on expelled after repeated uprisings against the new Christian rulers under the reign of Frederick II, only to be replaced by Italian and French Catholic settlers who gradually brought Sicily under the Italian sphere. Some of the Muslims (and hence some people with Arab and Berber roots) remained in Sicily and assimilated into its increasingly Latin Catholic society, and the Greek-speaking Orthodox Christians did the same. Hence, today's Sicilians have a mixture of Greek, mainland Italian, Arab, Berber, French, Norman, and also some Spanish blood as small groups of Spaniards occasionally immigrated to Sicily during the later centuries of Spanish rule). A few other ethnic strains are present as well, in small percentages, such as Albanian, German, and Phoenician. Source: I'm a Sicilian-American who loves history heh.