Mentioned by the 6th-century geographer Stephanus of Byzantium,[4] the city was called Tamíathis (Ancient Greek: Ταμίαθις) in the Hellenistic period.

[5] Under the Rashid caliph Umar (579–644), the Arabs took the city and successfully resisted the attempts by the Byzantine Empire to recover it, especially in 739, 821, 921 and 968.

His fleet arrived there in 1249 and quickly captured the fort, which he refused to hand over to the nominal king of Jerusalem, to whom it had been promised during the Fifth Crusade.

[4] The diocese was nominally restored in the 17th century when established as Latin titular archbishopric of Damietta of the Romans (Latin: Tamiathis or Tomiathianus Romanorum; Italian: Damiata in Curiate) and had the following incumbents of the intermediary archiepiscopal rank : Demoted in 1925 as Titular bishopric, it has been vacant for decades, having had the following incumbents, all of the episcopal (lowest) rank: Established in 1900 as titular bishopric of Damietta of the Melkite Greeks (Latin: Tamiathis or Tomiathianus Graecorum Melkitarum; Italian: Damiata), it was suppressed in 1935, after a single incumbent of this episcopal (lowest) rank: Restored in 1961 as Titular archbishopric, it has had the following incumbents of the archiepiscopal (intermediary) rank: Köppen-Geiger climate classification system classifies its climate as hot desert (BWh), but blowing winds from the Mediterranean Sea greatly moderate the temperatures, typical to the Egypt's north coast, making its summers moderately hot and humid while its winters mild and moderately wet where sleet and hail are also common.

Port Said, Kosseir, Ras El Bar, Baltim, Damietta and Alexandria have the least temperature variation in Egypt.

In addition to the Egyptian market, its furniture is sold in Arab countries, Africa, Europe, the United States, and almost all over the world.

As of 2010[update], EMethanex, the Egyptian division of Methanex Corporation, a Canadian owned company, was building a 3600 MTPD methanol plant.

Damietta also has a woodworking industry and is also noted for its White Domiati cheese and other dairy products[22] and Pâtisserie and Egyptian desserts.