From top left: Monument to Victory, Palazzo del Governatore, Parma Cathedral, Palazzo della Pilotta with Monumento al Partigiano, Palazzo del Giardino in Parco Ducale, Baptistery of Parma, aerial view from the Baptistery
Parma (Italian:[ˈparma]ⓘ;Parmigiano:Pärma[ˈpɛːʁmɐ]) is a city in the region ofEmilia-Romagna inNorthern Italy, known for itsarchitecture,music, art,prosciutto (ham),cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 202,111 inhabitants as of 2025, Parma is the second most populous city inEmilia-Romagna after Bologna, the region's capital.[2] The city is home to theUniversity of Parma, one of the oldest universities in the world. Parma is divided into two parts by thestream of the same name. The district on the west side of the river isOltretorrente, meaningThe other side of the stream. Parma's Etruscan name was adapted by Romans to describe the round shield calledParma.
Parma was already a built-up area in theBronze Age. In the current position of the city rose aterramare.[3] The "terramare" (marl earth) were ancient villages built of wood on piles according to a defined scheme and squared form; constructed on dry land and generally in proximity to the rivers. During this age (between 1500 BC and 800 BC) the firstnecropoleis (on the sites of the present-day Piazza Duomo and Piazzale della Macina) were constructed.
The city was most probably founded and named by theEtruscans, for aparma orpalma (circular shield) was aLatin borrowing, as were many Roman terms for particular arms, and the namesParmeal,Parmni andParmnial appear in Etruscan inscriptions.Diodorus Siculus[4] reported that the Romans had changed their rectangular shields for round ones, imitating the Etruscans. Whether the Etruscan encampment acquired its name from its round shape, like a shield, or from its metaphorical function as a shield against the Gauls to the north, remains uncertain.
TheRoman colony was founded in 183 BC, together with Mutina (Modena); 2,000 families were settled. Parma had a certain importance as a road hub over theVia Aemilia and the Via Claudia. It had a forum, in what is today the central Garibaldi Square. In April 43 BC the city was destroyed.[5] SubsequentlyAugustus rebuilt it. During theRoman Empire, it gained the title ofJulia for its loyalty to the imperial house.
Attila sacked the city in 452,[6] and the Germanic kingOdoacer later gifted it to his followers. During theGothic War, however,Totila destroyed it. It was then part of theByzantineExarchate of Ravenna (changing its name toChrysopolis, "Golden City", probably due to the presence of the imperial treasury) and, from 569, of theLombard Kingdom of Italy. During the Middle Ages, Parma became an important stage of theVia Francigena, the main road connecting Rome to Northern Europe; several castles, hospitals and inns were built in the following centuries to host the increasing number of pilgrims who passed by Parma and Fidenza, following the Apennines via Collecchio, Berceto and the Corchia ranges before descending the Passo della Cisa into Tuscany, heading finally south toward Rome.
The city had a medieval Jewish community.[7] ThePalatine Library houses the largest collection of Hebrew manuscripts in Italy, and the second-largest in the world after the Bodleian Library in Oxford.[8]
UnderFrankish rule, Parma became the capital of a county in 774. Like most northern Italian cities, it was nominally a part of theHoly Roman Empire created byCharlemagne, but locally ruled by its bishops, the first being Guibodus. In the subsequent struggles between thePapacy and the Empire, Parma was usually a member of the Imperial party. Two of its bishops becameantipopes: Càdalo, founder of the cathedral, asHonorius II; and Guibert, asClement III. An almost independentcommune was created around 1140; a treaty between Parma andPiacenza of 1149 is the earliest document of acomune headed byconsuls.[9] After thePeace of Constance in 1183 confirmed the Italian communes' rights of self-governance, long-standing quarrels with the neighbouring communes ofReggio Emilia, Piacenza andCremona became harsher, with the aim of controlling the vital trading line over thePo River.
The struggle betweenGuelphs and Ghibellines was a feature of Parma too. In 1213, herpodestà was the GuelphRambertino Buvalelli. Then, after a long stance alongside the emperors, the Papist families of the city gained control in 1248. The city was besieged in 1247–48 by EmperorFrederick II, who was however defeated inthe battle that ensued but imperial forces revenged the loss soon afterwards and heavily defeated the Parmese. Frederick II recovered before his death in 1250, with Parma suing for peace.
By 1328,Rolando de' Rossi was madesignore of Parma. In 1331, the city submitted to KingJohn of Bohemia. Parma fell under the control ofMilan in 1341. After a short-lived period of independence under the Terzi family (1404–1409), theSforza imposed their rule (1440–1449) through their associated families ofPallavicino, Rossi, Sanvitale and Da Correggio. These created a kind of newfeudalism, building towers and castles throughout the city and the land. These fiefs evolved into truly independent states: the Landi governed the higherTaro's valley from 1257 to 1682. The Pallavicino seignory extended over the eastern part of today's province, with the capital inBusseto. Parma's territories were an exception for Northern Italy, as its feudal subdivision frequently continued until more recent years. For example, Solignano was a Pallavicino family possession until 1805, andSan Secondo belonged to the Rossi well into the 19th century.
Between the 14th and the 15th centuries, Parma was at the centre of the Italian Wars. TheBattle of Fornovo was fought in its territory. TheFrench held the city in 1500–1521, with a short Papal parenthesis in 1512–1515. After the foreigners were expelled, Parma belonged to thePapal States until 1545.
In that year theFarnese pope,Paul III, detached Parma andPiacenza from the Papal States and gave them as a duchy to his illegitimate son,Pier Luigi Farnese, whose descendants ruled in Parma until 1731, whenAntonio Farnese, last male of the Farnese line, died. In 1594 a constitution was promulgated, theUniversity enhanced and the Nobles' College founded. There was also an important Jesuit college in Parma: it was the largest owned by the order in the entire region of Emilia-Romagna and it acquired a strong reputation in the scientific field, given that FathersGiuseppe Biancani,Niccolò Cabeo andMario Bettinus, all members of the order, taught there.[10] The war to reduce the barons' power continued for several years: in 1612Barbara Sanseverino was executed in the central square of Parma, together with six other nobles charged of plotting against the duke. At the end of the 17th century, after the defeat of Pallavicini (1588) and Landi (1682) the Farnese duke could finally hold with firm hand all Parmense territories. The castle of the Sanseverino inColorno was turned into a luxurious summer palace byFerdinando Bibiena.
In the Treaty of London (1718) it was promulgated that the heir to the combinedDuchy of Parma andPiacenza would beElisabeth Farnese's elder son withPhilip V of Spain,Don Carlos. In 1731, the fifteen-year-old Don Carlos became Charles I Duke of Parma and Piacenza, at the death of his childless great uncle Antonio Farnese. In 1734, Charles I conquered the kingdoms of Naples and Sicily, and was crowned as the King of Naples and Sicily on 3 July 1735, leaving the Duchy of Parma to his brotherPhilip (Filippo I di Borbone-Parma). All the outstanding art collections of the duke's palaces of Parma,Colorno andSala Baganza were moved toNaples.
The city of Parma, divided by the river of the same name, with the imposing Romanesque Cathedral of the Ascension of the Virgin prominent on the right bank. 16th century.
Parma was under French influence after thePeace of Aachen (1748). Parma became a modern state with the energetic action of prime ministerGuillaume du Tillot. He created the bases for a modern industry and fought strenuously against the church's privileges. The city lived a period of particular splendour: theBiblioteca Palatina (Palatine Library), the Archaeological Museum, the Picture Gallery and the Botanical Garden were founded, together with the Royal Printing Works directed byGiambattista Bodoni, aided by theAmoretti Brothers as skilled and inspired punchcutters.
After the restoration of the Duchy of Parma by the 1814–15Vienna Congress, theRisorgimento's upheavals had no fertile ground in the tranquil duchy. In 1847, afterMarie Louise, Duchess of Parma's death, it passed again to theHouse of Bourbon, the last of whom was stabbed in the city and left it to his widow, Luisa Maria of Berry. On 15 September 1859 the dynasty was declared deposed, and Parma entered the newly formed province of Emilia underLuigi Carlo Farini. With theplebiscite of 1860 the former duchy became part of the unifiedKingdom of Italy.
The loss of the capital role provoked an economic and social crisis in Parma. It started to recover its role of industrial prominence after the railway connection withPiacenza andBologna of 1859, and withFornovo andSuzzara in 1883.Trade unions were strong in the city, in which a notable General Strike was declared from 1 May to 6 June 1908. The struggle withFascism had its most dramatic moment in August 1922, when the regime officerItalo Balbo attempted to enter the popular quarter of Oltretorrente. The citizens organized into theArditi del Popolo ("The people's daring ones") and pushed back thesquadristi. This episode is considered the first example of Resistance in Italy.
View ofPalazzo della Pilotta in Piazza della Pace. The rebuilt part on the right is where once was the church of St. Peter.
DuringWorld War II, Parma was a strong centre ofpartisan resistance. The train station and marshalling yards were targets for high altitude bombing by the Allies in the spring of 1944. Much of thePalazzo della Pilotta, situated not far (half a mile) from the train station, was destroyed. Along with it theTeatro Farnese and part of theBiblioteca Palatina were destroyed by Allied bombs; some 21,000 volumes of the library's collection were lost. Several other monuments were also damaged: Palazzo del Giardino, Steccata and San Giovanni churches, Palazzo Ducale, Paganini theater and the monument toVerdi. However, Parma did not see widespread destruction during the war. Parma was liberated from the German occupation (1943–1945) on 26 April 1945 by the partisan resistance and theBrazilian Expeditionary Force.[11]
While modern city politics has been dominated (as in much of Emilia-Romagna) by the left, in 1998 Parma elected centre-right candidate Elvio Ubaldi as mayor, again in 2002, and in 2007 elected the centre-right candidate Pietro Vignali. During their terms, Parma suffered from fiscal mismanagement, Vignali left office in 2011 with the city's debts amounting to over 600 million euros. In 2012, the city elected Federico Pizzarotti as mayor, making him the first mayor of a provincial capital to hail fromFive Star Movement.[12][13]
In Parma, the average annual high temperature is 17 °C (63 °F), the annual low temperature is 9 °C (48 °F), and the annual precipitation is 777 millimetres (30.59 inches).
The following data comes from the weather station located at the university in the city center. It is affected by theurban heat island phenomenon. Parma has amid-latitude, four-seasonhumid subtropical climate (Köppen:Cfa) with heavycontinental influences due to the city's inland position. Relatively nearby coastal areas likeGenoa have far milder climates with cooler summers and milder winters, with the mountains separating Parma from theMediterranean Sea acting as a barrier to the sea air. The city receives approximately 45 cm of snow each winter.
Climate data for Parma (1991–2020 normals, extremes 1878–present)
As of 2025, Parma has a population of 198,986, of which 48.7% are male and 51.3% are female. Minors total 15.2% of the population, and pensioners number 22.6%. This compares with the Italian average of 14.9% and 24.7% respectively.[citation needed] In the 10 years between 2011 and 2021, the population of Parma grew by 11.1%, while Italy as a whole declined by 0.7%.[18] In the same period foreign born residents in Parma experienced +385.02% growth, while in Italy growth was of +274.75%.[19] The current birth rate of Parma is 8.62 births per 1,000 inhabitants compared to the Italian average of 8.01 births.
LateMannerist façade of the church of San Giovanni Evangelista, bySimone Moschino (1604), with sculpture by Giambattista Carra da Bissone[21]Façade of the church of San Francesco del Prato
Baptistery (begun 1196) – pink Verona marble baptistery by Antelami, adjacent to the cathedral.
San Giovanni Evangelista (10th century; rebuilt 1498 & 1510) – abbey church behind the cathedral's apse, with a late-Mannerist façade by Simone Moschino. The cupola is frescoed with Correggio'sVision of St. John the Evangelist (1520–22), a landmark in illusionistic perspective ceilings. Cloisters and library also notable.
San Francesco del Prato (13th century) – Gothic church used as a jail from the Napoleonic era until the 1990s, when its 16 façade windows were reopened. The Oratory of the Concezione contains frescoes byMichelangelo Anselmi andFrancesco Rondani.
Santa Croce (12th century) – Romanesque church with a nave and two aisles ending in a semicircular apse. Rebuilt in 1415 and again in 1635–66. Nave frescoes byGiovanni Maria Conti, Francesco Reti and Antonio Lombardi date from these periods.
San Sepolcro (1275) – church erected over an earlier building; interiors renovated in 1506, 1603 and 1701. The Baroque bell tower dates to 1616 and its bells to 1753. Adjacent stands the former monastery (1493–95) of the Lateran Canons.
Santa Caterina d'Alessandria (14th century) – Gothic church noted for its lancet windows and simple brick façade.
Palazzo del Giardino (1561) – designed byJacopo Barozzi da Vignola for DukeOttavio Farnese on the former Sforza castle site; enlarged in the 17th–18th centuries. Includes thePalazzo Eucherio Sanvitale with 16th-century decorations attributed to Gianfrancesco d'Agrate and a fresco byParmigianino. The annexed Ducal Park was laid out in French style in 1749.
The Cittadella (16th century) – fortress erected by DukeAlessandro Farnese, adjacent to the old city walls.
Pons Lapidis (reign of Augustus, 1st century AD) – ruins of an ancient Roman stone bridge also known as the Roman Bridge or Theoderic's Bridge.
Orto Botanico di Parma (est. 1773) – botanical garden maintained by the University of Parma.
Teatro Farnese (1618–19) – all-wood theatre designed by Giovan Battista Aleotti; commissioned by Duke Ranuccio I Farnese for the visit ofCosimo I de' Medici.
Teatro Regio (1821–29) – city opera house by Nicola Bettoli, featuring a Neoclassical façade and a porch with a double window order.
Auditorium Niccolò Paganini – concert hall designed byRenzo Piano.
Museo Lombardi – exhibits art and historical items related toMaria Luigia of Habsburg andNapoleon Bonaparte, as well as documents of the Duchy of Parma in the 18th–19th centuries.
The comune (municipality) of Parma is subdivided into a number offrazioni:Alberi, Baganzola, Beneceto, Botteghino, Ca'Terzi, Calestano, Carignano, Carpaneto, Cartiera, Casalbaroncolo, Casalora di Ravadese, Casaltone, Case Capelli, Case Cocconi, Case Crostolo, Case Nuove, Case Rosse, Case Vecchie, Casino dalla Rosa, Casagnola, Castelletto, Castelnovo, Cervara, Chiozzola, Coloreto, Colorno, Corcagnano, Eia, Fontanini, Fontanellato, Fontevivo, Gaione, Ghiaiata Nuova, Il Moro, La Catena, La Palazzina, Malandriano, Marano, Marore, Martorano, Molino di Malandriano, Osteria San Martino, Panocchia, Paradigna, Pedrignano, Pilastrello, Pizzolese, Ponte, Porporano, Pozzetto Piccolo, Quercioli, Ravadese, Ronco Pascolo, Rosa,San Pancrazio, San Prospero, San Ruffino, San Secondo, Sissa, Soragna, Terenzo, Tizzano Val Parma, Traversetolo, Trecasali, Valera, Viarolo, Viazza, Vicofertile, Vicomero, Vigatto, Vigheffio, Vigolante.
Parma has a thriving economy, and the food sector is very developed. Some of the players in this sector includeBarilla, which is based in the city.Chiesi Farmaceutici, in the pharma industry, is headquartered in Parma. TheEuropean Food Safety Authority is also based in Parma.
^Domenico, Roy Palmer (2002). "Parma".The Regions of Italy: A Reference Guide to History and Culture. Westport, Connecticur: Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 93.ISBN9780313307331. Retrieved5 May 2019.Atila the Hun put Parma to the torch in 452, as did Totila the Ostrogoth in the mid-500s. It was rebuilt a number of times as a Lombard capital, the site of a Byzantine treasury, and, from the ninth century, a bishopric.
^Italy's poetic Parma region - "Italy has one of the oldest European Diaspora communities and a Jewish presence has been documented in Rome for more than 2,200 years. However, Jews only arrived in the Emilia-Romagna region during the 13th century."
^Parma - "The Palatine Library is as well home to the largest Italian collection of Hebrew manuscripts, and the second largest in the world after the Bodleian Library in Oxford. The documents were a gift of Maria Luigia Duchess."
^G. Drei,Le Carte degli archivi parmensi del secolo XII (Parma, 1950) doc. no. 194; the genesis of the Parmesan commune is studied by R. Schumann, "Authority and the commune: Parma, 833–1033", (Parma: Deputazione di storia patria, series 2.2, VIII) 1973.
^Gatto, Romano (2019). "Jesuit mathematics". In Ines G. Županov (ed.).The Oxford Handbook of the Jesuits. Oxford: Oxford University Press. p. 646.ISBN9780190639655.
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