Pedara, whose name probably derives from the latin "ad pedes arae" (at the foot of the ara), referring to an altar dedicated to Jovis Etneo, is located on the Southern slopes of the Etna and was inhabited since the Greek period.
From the Norman domination to the XVI century Pedara was ruled by the Archbishop of Catania. In 1693, it was destroyed by a terrible earthquake, and it was rebuilt thanks to don Diego Pappalardo, an architect and Knight from Malta. The suburb was a dominion of the Di Giovanni family, and subsequently passed to the noble Alliata family from Villafranca, who possessed it until the abolition of the feudal rights.
Architecturally interesting is the Chiesa Madre, completed in 1705, preserving a typical quadrangular bell-tower with a conic dome, the Chiesa della Madonna delle Grazie and the Chiesa Maria della Stella.