The civic coat of arms of Taviano has  a red background and it represents a palm branch. There are no certain historical news about the origins of this small town but the human presence on this territory during the Neolithic Age is testified by a menhir and a dolmen. The menhir was called "Crucicchie" and it was  2.50 metres tall. Now nothing has left of this menhir except for a modest documentation. The dolmen is named after the place where it is situated, “fondo specchi”. According to some historians this centre was built by the Cretans while for others it was founded  during the Roman domination. Probably this lands were given to the centurion Octavianus for his courage on the battleground. He built hiw own house and that of his soldiers and later the village became bigger and bigger. An other hypothesis is that the first centre was founded by Caesar Octavianus, the first Roman emperor. However the Roman origins of  Taviano are proved by the recoveries of Roman graves and Byzantine coins. The feudal age started in 1190, when the Norman king Tancredi  gave the feud to Ottavio Foggetti, that became the first Earl of Taviano. In the XIII century Taviano was ruled by  the descendants of the Foggetti family, while in the XIV century it was governed by the Manuppellos, the Del Balzos, the dell' Amendoleas, the Minutolos and the Brunswichs. In the XV century the small town was under the control of the Orsini Del Balzos and later of the Borbones. From the XVI century to the following one there were the Foggettis again, and then the De Franchis and the Personès. The last vassals were the Caracciolos, that governed the centre until the abolition of the feudal system. The most well-known people of Taviano are: Alberto Ferruccio Piccinni (lawyer), Angelo d' Ambrosio (a chemist), Filippo Lanzano (notary), Sancia Foggetta (abbess), Vito Ippazio Previtero (a man of letters and priest), Onofrio Scategni (lawyer) and Alberto De Blasi (surgeon).