San Fratello formerly San Filadelfio, is a comune

Comune

In Italy, the comune is the basic administrative division, and may be properly approximated in casual speech by the English word township or municipality.-Importance and function:...

 (municipality) in the Province of Messina

Province of Messina

Messina is a province in the autonomous island region of Sicily in Italy. Its capital is the city of Messina.-Geography and demography :...

 in the Italian

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...

 region Sicily

Sicily

Sicily is a region of Italy, and is the largest island in the Mediterranean Sea. Along with the surrounding minor islands, it constitutes an autonomous region of Italy, the Regione Autonoma Siciliana Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to the arts, music, literature,...

, located about 110 km east of Palermo

Palermo

Palermo is a city in Southern Italy, the capital of both the autonomous 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; it is over 2,700 years old...

 and about 90 km west of Messina. San Fratello borders the following municipalities: Acquedolci

Acquedolci

Acquedolci is an Italian town and comune in the Province of Messina in Sicily.Its name, that can be translated in English as "fresh waters", probably came from the fresh water springs which are part of the town territory...

, Alcara li Fusi

Alcara li Fusi

Alcara li Fusi is a comune in the Province of Messina in the Italian region Sicily, located about 120 km east of Palermo and about 80 km west of Messina...

, Caronia

Caronia

Caronia is a town and comune on the north coast of Sicily, in the province of Messina, about half way between Tyndaris and Cephaloedium...

, Cesarò

Cesarò

Cesarò is a comune in the Province of Messina in the Italian region Sicily, located about 120 km east of Palermo and about 80 km southwest of Messina.It is included in the Parco dei Nebrodi....

, Militello Rosmarino

Militello Rosmarino

Militello Rosmarino is a comune in the Province of Messina in the Italian region Sicily, located about 120 km east of Palermo and about 80 km west of Messina...

, Sant'Agata di Militello

Sant'Agata di Militello

Sant'Agata di Militello is a comune in the Province of Messina in the Italian region Sicily, located about 120 km east of Palermo and about 80 km west of Messina...

. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 4,371 and an area of 67.1 km².

History

The name of San Fratello derives from three pious brothers Alfio, Cirino and Filadelfio. In their honour 10 May of every year is kept a festivity. The village was founded in the 11th century by Adelaide del Vasto

Adelaide del Vasto

Adelaide del Vasto was the third wife of Roger I of Sicily and mother of Roger II of Sicily, as well as Queen consort of Jerusalem due to her later marriage to Baldwin I of Jerusalem, as his third wife.-Family:She was the daughter of Manfred del Vasto Adelaide del Vasto (Adelasia, Azalaïs) (c....

, Roger I

Roger I of Sicily

Roger I , called Bosso and the Great Count, was the Norman Count of Sicily from 1071 to 1101. He was the last great leader of the Norman conquest of southern Italy.-Conquest of Calabria and Sicily:...

's wife. She came in Sicily together with Lombard

Lombards

The Lombards , also referred to as Longobards, were a Germanic tribe of Scandinavian origin, who from 568 to 774 ruled a Kingdom in Italy...

 colonists who spread their Gallo-Italic dialect which is still spoken in the village.

The comunes territory is part of the Nebrodi

Nebrodi

The Nebrodi a mountain range that runs along the north east of Sicily. Together with the Madonie and the Peloritani, they form the Sicilian Apennines....

 mountains and has had 2 major landslides of record. The first was in 1754 and a second large one in 1922. In February 2010, after a period of large amounts of rain in the region of Messina, another extensive landslide caused damage to homes. As a safety precaution, one-third of the population evacuate

Emergency evacuation

Emergency evacuation is the immediate and rapid movement of people away from the threat or actual occurrence of a hazard. Examples range from the small scale evacuation of a building due to a bomb threat or fire to the large scale evacuation of a district because of a flood, bombardment or...

d as of February 14.

Notable people

• Benedict the Moor
  Benedict the Moor
  Saint Benedict was an Italian saint who is venerated in the Catholic Church and Lutheran Church.-Life:He was born to Christopher and Diana Manasseri, Africans who were taken to San Fratello , a small town near Messina, Sicily, as slaves and later were converted to Christianity...
  
  
• Al Pacino
  Al Pacino
  Alfredo James "Al" Pacino is an American film and stage actor and director. He is famous for playing mobsters, including Michael Corleone in The Godfather trilogy, Tony Montana in Scarface, Alphonse "Big Boy" Caprice in Dick Tracy and Carlito Brigante in Carlito's Way, though he has also appeared...
  
  , descendant by his paternal line by people from San Fratello
• Bettino Craxi
  Bettino Craxi
  Benedetto Craxi was an Italian politician, head of the Italian Socialist Party from 1976 to 1993, the first socialist President of the Council of Ministers of Italy from 1983 to 1987.-Political career:...
  
  

See also

• Gallo-Italic of Sicily
• Norman conquest of Sicily