The district developed under Arab rule, around the citadel of the emir. It retains its Arabic name “al haklisah”, meaning “the chosen one, the pure one”, and its oriental atmosphere, emphasised by its Arab-Norman monuments. Centred on Piazza della Kalsa, it extends as far as Corso Vittorio Emanuele. Visitors enter La Kalsa through the porta dei Greci, which opens out onto the square on which stands Santa Teresa alla Kalsa with its Baroque façade.