It is a city and district capital, which is also home to the city of 4 parishes, Conception and Estoi; Faro (Sé e São Pedro); Montenegro; Santa Bárbara de Nexe. This municipality is bordered to the north and west by São Brás de Alportel, east by Olhão, Loulé by west and south by oceanic expanse of the Atlantic.

The first marks left in Faro date back to the fourth century BC, a period of Phoenician colonization of the Western Mediterranean, to which put the name of Ossanoba, one of the most important urban centers in the southern region of Portugal, where the trade in agricultural products, fish and minerals had a higher turnout. Later, between centuries BC and VIII AD, the city was under Roman rule and Visigoth, having been conquered by the Moors in the year 713. This occupation prevailed until the ninth century, disappearing and giving way to Saint Mary Ibn Harun, the capital of a short-lived independent principality in the ninth century, being a heavily fortified city with a walled waist. Later renamed as is Harun, who gave the name of Faro.

With independence from Portugal in 1143, D. Afonso Henriques and his successors began its expansion to the south, reconquering territories and towns under Arab rule. In 1249, after the conquest of Alfonso III, the village of Santa Maria Ibn Harun, was renamed to Santa Maria de Faaron or Santa Maria de Faaram.

Over the centuries, Faro grew and became a prosperous city, both for its geographical position but also for its safe haven and exploitation and consequent commercialization of salt and agricultural products of the Algarve interior. During the time of the Portuguese Discoveries, trade intensified.

In the fourteenth century, the Jewish community is beginning to gain relevance and prestige in Faro, being one of its most important figures was the typographer Samuel Gacon, responsible for printing the “Pentateuch” in Hebrew, the first book printed in Portugal in 1487. With a distinct community, Faro became a remarkable region, with its artisans and enterprising people. However, the rise of this community was interrupted by the Edict issued by King Manuel I in 496, in which expelled from Portugal, if there was a conversion to Catholicism.

Consequently, the Jewish community no longer live in Portugal, and in particular in Faro. In the area where was the Jewish quarter, the Vila Adentro, was erected the Convent of Our Lady of the Assumption with the patronage of Queen Leonor, wife of King Manuel I. In 1499, the monarch promoted an urban change, creating new equipment in the city, namely a hospital, the Holy Spirit Church (Church of Mercy), Customs and Butchery – out of alcaçarias and along the coast.

In the year 1540, John III Faro raises the city and in 1577, the seat of the Algarve bishopric is transferred to here, leaving Silves. In 1596, British troops, the command of Count Essex, sacked and burned the city, causing great damage to both the walls, churches and material heritage.

The seventeenth and eighteenth century is a monument of great expansion for Faro, with a new walled waist, covering a built-up area and culture of land, in a semicircle in front of the Ria Formosa.

With the earthquake of 1755, the Algarve has suffered damage. The city of Faro had damage in both ecclesiastical heritage, from churches, convents to the Episcopal Palace; the walls, the castle with towers and bastions, the barracks, the body of the guard, warehouses, the customs building, the chain, the convents of San Francisco and Santa Clara were totally destroyed.

Until the late nineteenth century, the city grew within the limits of About seventeenth century, however, in recent decades, especially more recently, both the city and the county got a boost and has grown so much because of their agricultural activities, fishing and crafts, but also due to the tourist boom.