The Phoenicians are considered to be the first inhabitants of Paxos. Stravon supported the idea that the island’s name comes from the Phoenician word "paks" meaning geometrical trapezion, resembling the island’s shape.

The island's history has been mostly inseparable from that of Corfu.
Paxos watched from afar the naval battle of Corfu on the side of the ancient Athenians. Following the Hellenistic Period, Paxos became part of the Roman empire and after the 4rth Century A.D. became part of the Byzantine Empire. The Goths and the pirates terrified the Paxiots for more than 600 years.

After a brief period of time during which the Norman Robert Guiscard controlled the area, the Venetians landed on the island and stayed for more than 400 years.

Then the Turkish armadas and the fearsome Barbarosa tried unsuccessfully to conquer it. Napoleon managed it in 1789. After his downfall the English, the Russians and the French took turns in the struggle to control the area. Finally the English won. In 1854 Gladstone himself officially visited the island. In 1864 it was once more united to the mainland Greece as were the rest of the Ionian islands.

During the 2nd World War the island suffered under both the Italian and Nazi forces. In 1943 Greek Resistance allied with the remaining Italian soldiers and forced the Germans of the island, which was officially liberated in 1944.