The name Ammiraglio ("admiral") derives from the founder of the church, the Syrian christian admiral and principal minister of King Roger II of Sicily, George of Antioch.
The foundation charter of the church (which was initially Eastern Orthodox), in ancient Greek and Arabic, is preserved and dates to 1143; construction may already have begun at this point.
The church had certainly been completed by the death of George in 1151, and he and his wife were interred in the narthex.
In 1184 the Arab traveller Ibn Jubayr visited the church, and later devoted a significant portion of his description of Palermo to its praise, describing it as "the most beautiful monument in the world."
After the Sicilian Vespers of 1282 the island's nobility gathered in the church for a meeting that resulted in the Sicilian crown being offered to Peter III of Aragon.

In 1193-94, a convent of Benedictine nuns was founded on adjacent property by Eloisa Martorana.
In 1433-34, under the rule of King Alfonso of Aragon, this convent absorbed the church, which has since then been commonly known as La Martorana.
 The nuns extensively modified the church between the 16th century and the 18th century, making major changes to the structure and the interior decoration.

The nuns of the Martorana were famous for their moulded marzipan, which they made in the form of various fruits.
Although the convent no longer exists, frutta di Martorana are still one of Palermo's most famous and distinctive foodstuffs.

In 1937 the church returned to the Byzantine rite with the Albanian community present in Palermo.
Today, it is used by the Italo-Albanian Catholic Church for their services and shares cathedral status with the church cathedral of San Demetrio Megalomartire in Piana degli Albanesi.

The church assumed and inherited the title of seat of the parish of the Italo-Albanians residing in San Nicolò dei Greci (for "Greeks" those Albanian populations were exchanged which, from the fifteenth century in Italy and Sicily, kept "Greek rite" or Byzantine, language, customs, identity) in 1945, after the homonymous church adjacent to the Italo-Albanian Seminary of Palermo was destroyed in the Second World War.

The church was recently restored and reopened for community worship in 2013; at that juncture clergy and the community was momentarily welcomed in the church of the Santa Macrina of the Italian-Albanian Basilian nuns in Palermo.

The parish of San Nicolò dei Greci does not have a real parish territory, but is the reference point for 15,000 faithful Arbëreshë  (the Albanian community of Sicily historically settled in the province of Palermo) residing in the city and who professes the Byzantine rite.

Since 2015, the airport of the "Arab-Norman Itinerary of Palermo, Cefalù and Monreale" as a World Heritage Site is one of the monuments proposed by UNESCO.
The name Ammiraglio ("admiral") derives from the founder of the church, the Syrian christian admiral and principal minister of King Roger II of Sicily, George of Antioch. The foundation charter of the church (which was initially Eastern Orthodox), in ancient Greek and Arabic, is preserved and dates to 1143; construction may already have begun at this point. The church had certainly been completed by the death of George in 1151, and he and his wife were interred in the narthex. In 1184 the Arab traveller Ibn Jubayr visited the church, and later devoted a significant portion of his description of Palermo to its praise, describing it as "the most beautiful monument in the world." After the Sicilian Vespers of 1282 the island's nobility gathered in the church for a meeting that resulted in the Sicilian crown being offered to Peter III of Aragon.
In 1193-94, a convent of Benedictine nuns was founded on adjacent property by Eloisa Martorana. In 1433-34, under the rule of King Alfonso of Aragon, this convent absorbed the church, which has since then been commonly known as La Martorana.  The nuns extensively modified the church between the 16th century and the 18th century, making major changes to the structure and the interior decoration.
The nuns of the Martorana were famous for their moulded marzipan, which they made in the form of various fruits. Although the convent no longer exists, frutta di Martorana are still one of Palermo's most famous and distinctive foodstuffs.
In 1937 the church returned to the Byzantine rite with the Albanian community present in Palermo. Today, it is used by the Italo-Albanian Catholic Church for their services and shares cathedral status with the church cathedral of San Demetrio Megalomartire in Piana degli Albanesi.
The church assumed and inherited the title of seat of the parish of the Italo-Albanians residing in San Nicolò dei Greci (for "Greeks" those Albanian populations were exchanged which, from the fifteenth century in Italy and Sicily, kept "Greek rite" or Byzantine, language, customs, identity) in 1945, after the homonymous church adjacent to the Italo-Albanian Seminary of Palermo was destroyed in the Second World War.
The church was recently restored and reopened for community worship in 2013; at that juncture clergy and the community was momentarily welcomed in the church of the Santa Macrina of the Italian-Albanian Basilian nuns in Palermo.
The parish of San Nicolò dei Greci does not have a real parish territory, but is the reference point for 15,000 faithful Arbëreshë  (the Albanian community of Sicily historically settled in the province of Palermo) residing in the city and who professes the Byzantine rite.
Since 2015, the airport of the "Arab-Norman Itinerary of Palermo, Cefalù and Monreale" as a World Heritage Site is one of the monuments proposed by UNESCO.
Church of Santa Maria dell'Ammiraglio