[1] It is named after the historical region making up the western and north-eastern portions of Emilia-Romagna, where the cities of Parma and Bologna are located.
For much of the clubs' early history, games were not contested, so the first fixture was not until 6 November 1983, despite Bologna being formed in 1909 and Parma just four years later in 1913.
The first meeting was an eventful 3–3 draw at the Stadio Ennio Tardini in what remains the fixture's highest scoring game and the lowest level at which it has been fought.
In 1990, the derby was contested in Serie A for the first time, after Parma joined Bologna in Italian football's top tier.
The teams would not meet again until Bologna's return to Serie A in 1996, but then proceeded to play each other on an annual basis for nine consecutive years.
The bottom three sides were to be relegated and to split the two Emilian sides, the traditional spareggio was required, involving a two-legged play-off to decide which of the two would remain in Serie A. Bologna won the first leg in the Stadio Ennio Tardini 1–0 on 14 June 2005, but succumbed to 2–1 aggregate defeat following Parma's two-goal victory in Bologna, securing the Crociati a place in Italy's top division.
In 2009–10, both teams managed 2–1 wins at home, preceding a three-match run of goalless draws, a result that occurred for the tenth time in the 36 meetings up to that point.
The promotion of Reggiana and Piacenza to Serie A in 1993 meant that each of the 6 Emilian provinces had had one team in Italian football's top division since its foundation in 1929; SPAL is based in Ferrara.
Promotion to Serie A in 2013 preceded a move to the Stadio Città del Tricolore in Reggio Emilia, Reggiana's home ground.