Porto Empedocle
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Comune di Porto Empedocle Vigata | |
|---|---|
 Municipal coat of arms |
|
  |
|
| Country |  Italy |
| Region | Sicily |
| Province | Agrigento (AG) |
| Elevation | 2 m (7 ft) |
| Area | 24 km² (9 sq mi) |
| Population (as of 2001) | |
| - Total | 15,828 |
| - Density | 660/km² (1,709/sq mi) |
| Time zone | CET, UTC+1 |
| Coordinates | |
| Gentilic | Empedoclini |
| Dialing code | 0922 |
| Postal code | 92014 |
| Patron | San Gerlando |
| - Day | February 25 |
| Website: [http://www.comune.portoempedocle.ag.it/ (Italian) | |
Porto Empedocle is a town and comune in Italy on the coast of the Strait of Sicily, administratively part of the province of Agrigento. It is the namesake of Empedocles (Greek: Ἐμπεδοκλῆς, ca. 490–430 BC), a Greek pre-Socratic philosopher and a citizen of the city of Agrigentum (present-day Agrigento), in his day a Greek colony in Sicily. The primary industries of Porto Empedocle are agriculture, fishing, ironworking, pharmaceuticals and rock salt refining.
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, ordered a tower built to protect the territory's reserves of harvested grain in the fifteenth century. The tower was later converted to a prison and is now a social and cultural center.
Trade increased in the area after the completion of the harbor wall in 1763. The comune became autonomous in 1853. The town it took its present name in 1863. It is named after the Agrigentine philosopher Empedocles.
In 2003, the town changed its official denomination to Porto Empedocle Vigata, after the name of the fictional town where the popular novels by Andrea Camilleri, famous Italian writer and native of Porto Empedocle, about detective Inspector Montalbano are placed.
The main church is Parrocchia Maria SS.del Buon Consiglio, which located in the center of the town.
[edit] External links
- Repubblica.it - Porto Empedocle becomes Vigata (Italian)
- Parrocchia Maria SS.del Buon Consiglio (Italian)
.svg/30px-Flag_of_Sicily_(revised).svg.png){kind=small} |
This Sicilian location article is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. |
|
|||||||||
