The Pallavicini (plural, singular = Pallavicino) are an Italian noble family whose name dates back to the 11th century.

The first known representative of this name was Oberto il Pelavicino († 1148), a descendant of the frankish house of Obertenghi from the early Middle Ages.

The Lombard branch expanded its ancestral holdings in the 13th century and established its own state, the Stato Pallavicino, in the Emilia region between Cremona, Parma, and Piacenza.

[2][3] Through the descendants of Guy and his brother Rubino, sons of Guglielmo, a branch of the family rose to prominence in the Latin Empire founded after the Fourth Crusade in 1204.

The first Pallavicino fief was created by Oberto II, who received it from Holy Roman Emperor Frederick Barbarossa in 1162.