Carona is first mentioned in 926 as
Calauna. The hamlet of Ciona was first mentioned in 1213. During the
Middle Ages the village of Carona and the hamlet of Ciona formed a
Kastlanei of the
Bishop of Como. During the Middle Ages, the Church of Santa Maria was built in the hamlet of Torello. After 1349, the church was supported by a community of
Augustinians Canons from the nearby monastery (built in 1217 by Guglielmo Della Torre). For the village's loyalty to the
Visconti and
Guelph families, it received its coat of arms. According to
Swiss Confederation law, it enjoyed a special status (
terra separata) which included exemption from certain laws and taxes. The old, medieval statutes were renewed in 1470. The Carona
romanesque village church of San Giorgio was first mentioned in 1425. Two years later it was raised to become a
parish church. The church of S. Marta was built in the 14th century, and was formerly known as the Church of SS Pietro e Paolo. The
Baroque pilgrimage church of Madonna d'Ongero was built in 1624, to the west of the village in the forest. The church of S. Maria delle Grazie was built in Ciona. The last two churches as well as the homes of the village from the 17th and 18th centuries represent the growing wealth of the village, through emigration of artists from Carona. The Carona artist families, including the Aprile, Casella, Scala and Solari families, were active throughout Europe during the 15th-18th centuries. The village remained an agricultural and grazing village until the beginning of the 19th century, when
Lugano developed into a tourist destination. In 1943, the S. Grato hill was cleared and farming began on the hill. However, the buildings were later converted into a vacation complex. After centuries of decline, the population doubled in the 1970s and 80s, as new homes were built outside the historic core village. In 2000 21% of the population spoke German. There is a major swimming pool and sports center, that serve the surrounding communities. ==Geography==