The first mention of a place called "San Severino" is  in a document (944 AD) of Bishop Eudone: "[...] Ego Eudo ... Episcopus in honore Beate (ae ) Marie (ae ) Virginis, et omnium caelestium agminum in Castello qui dicitur Sanctum Severinum ... c(o)epi  fundamento (a)edificare ecclesiam pro redemptionem animarum [...]"; i.e.: "I,  Eodone, Bishop, in honour of the Blessed Virgin Mary and all  souls of  saints,  have built foundations of a church in  Castle that is called  ‘San Severino’ for the salvation of souls ... "(the document is in Giuseppe Colucci, “Delle Antichità Picene” ["About the Antiquities of Piceno"], Appendix of documents, Document No. II, Fermo, 1790, Volume VIII,  p. III).

In Roman times the village was called "Septempeda", and as such it is mentioned in ancient authors as a thriving “Municipium”. With regard to the etymology, G. Colucci (p. 31) believes that the city was of Greek origin, founded by  Greeks of Sicily, as it appears in some documents a clear spelling of  Greek city name, i.e. “Septem-pedon”, perhaps so called because it was surrounded by seven hills, as does the first part of name ("Septem" - "seven"); as regards the  "pedon" ( most proper Greek name),  term refers to various concepts, such as "hamlet", "soil "," land ", “region”, but the same G. Colucci is not entirely sure of accuracy of interpretation, although considered very likely. Passing as correct the interpretation of Colucci, we could say that "Setpempeda" could therefore mean a "village between seven hills."

San Severino long maintained the name "Septempeda", for which it was so named in documents dating from the late fifteenth century. As Regards the new name, "San Severino", according to tradition, the city was involved in  Gothic War and it was destroyed by Totila; so, the inhabitants moved to a safer place, on the hill called “Monte Nero” [“Black Mountain”], where they founded a new city and a Cathedral in honour of their patron saint, Saint Severino, around whom, among other things, we know little, except that he probably lived in the sixth century AD. According to Colucci, San Severino was born in “Septempeda", but he cited several cases of some scholars of his time, who was hypothesized that San Severino was native of Camerino, or Hungarian. It is difficult in any way to determine the precise contours  of  personality patron saint of “Septempeda”, although contemporary studies seem to confirm the hypothesis of Colucci, so San Severino would be born precisely in " Septempeda ", and he would have been bishop of the City, to which he would have give his name, between 540 and 545 AD.

Transformed into a Municipality around the twelfth century, its municipal institutions are mentioned in a document (1177) of Emperor Frederick Barbarossa (1122-1190); in the struggles between Empire and Papacy, San Severino consistently sided with the Ghibellines and it sustained long territorial conflict with neighboring cities (Camerino, Tolentino, Cingoli) for the territory control; during the thirteenth it was enlarged, both by military and buying the surrounding castles, increasing its housing stock and creating the current Old Town. In the fourteenth century in San Severino made itself the Lordship of Smeducci, under whom the city had some economic development. After a brief period of domination under Francesco Sforza (1401-1466), the City came under control of Church State. In the sixteenth century San Severino took  title of city and diocese, and, from nineteenth century, it developed outside the walls in particular, but also  ancient village underwent changes and removals, due to reasons of slum clearance, which affects particularly the neighbourhoods, further undermined by  deterioration and unhealthy.