 The historical name of locality is documented by an 11th century parchment as "Sancto Elpidio Majore" to distinguish it from other places in Sant'Elpidio Morico Brand Fermana.The abbreviation of "majore" was later changed to "mare" ("sea" in Italian).The town occupies the site of the ancient Roman city of "Cluana", destroyed by the Visigoths in the early 5th century.