[frankohn]

I agree with your analysis but Greek weren't merely conqueror, they are part of Sicily because they established themselves there and remained. Large part of Catania and Syracuse are of Greek ascent.

About the arable land, I don't know, Sicily is extremely fertile in general and there also some large plains as well like in Palermo. Sicily was extremely rich and prosper during the Normad period and for the Arabs who came before it was nothing short than a paradise.

[skrtskrt]

Sicily is fertile, but for example much of Calabria is very much not - too rocky/mountainous. The issue is not that there's no fertile land, but the fertile land relative to the population is not a lot in terms of just sustaining the South subsisting on its own, and it certainly doesn't have enough extra fertile land to develop as much agricultural export from the region as the north has.

And it's gotten much much worse in recent years with climate change the heat and drought is getting very serious in the south.