Hatay is an inexhaustible treasure-house of history and a center of civilization. The region is one of the earliest settlements in Anatolia. Archeological excavations indicated that the site has been populated since the Paleolithic period. From 3000 BC onwards, Hatay was controlled successively by the Akkadians, the Hurrians, the Hittites, the Assyrians, the Persians, the Macedonians, the Romans, the Arabs, the Byzantines, the Seljuks, the Crusaders, the Mamluks and the Ottomans. In 1939, it became a province of the Republic of Turkey.

The name of the province dates back to late Hittite Principalities period about 1200 - 1100 BC, after the fall of Hittite Empire. During this period, the Hittite principalities in this region united to form Hattena Kingdom. Present name "Hatay" is given by Atatürk (founder of the Republic of Turkey ) in 1936