The municipality was formed through a series of amalgamations taking place in 1952, 1969 and 1971. The number of pre-1952 units making up the present municipality is twenty.

Tomelilla Municipality is located in the south-eastern plains of Scania known as Österlen, which is an area notable for its beauty, and thus popular among painters as well as covered with summer cottages, country mansions, and so on.

There are 5 localities (or built-up areas)in Tomelilla Municipality. In the table they are listed according to the size of the population as of September 1, 2011. The municipal seat is in bold characters.

Tomelilla Municipality was made famous by Tage Danielsson (1928–1985) and Hans Alfredsson (1931-), who directed and acted in numerous movies that were filmed in and around the town of Tomelilla:

If it wasn't for these movies and their popularity, Tomelilla would not have been more than a spot on the map. Quite a few famous people today own houses in the countryside surrounding Tomelilla. To mention a few:

Tomelilla Municipality is known for the amusement park Tosselilla Summer Park, quite possibly the most visited amusement park in the province, and the Hallamölla waterfall.

Its coat of arms is from 2002. It depicts the bird kite, native to the area, in silver on a red shield.

Coordinates: 55°33′N 13°57′E / 55.550°N 13.950°E / 55.550; 13.950

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Wikipedia