Trapani ( it, Provincia di Trapani, scn, Pruvincia di Tràpani; officially ''Libero consorzio comunale di Trapani'') is a
province
A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions out ...
in the autonomous island region of
Sicily
(man) it, Siciliana (woman)
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, demographics_type1 = Ethnicity
, demographics1_footnotes =
, demographi ...
, southern
Italy
Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...
. Following the suppression of the Sicilian provinces, it was replaced in 2015 by the Free municipal consortium of Trapani. Its capital is the city of
Trapani
Trapani ( , ; scn, Tràpani ; lat, Drepanum; grc, Δρέπανον) is a city and municipality (''comune'') on the west coast of Sicily, in Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Trapani. Founded by Elymians, the city is still an imp ...
. It has an area of and a total population of 433,826 (2017). There are 25
comune
The (; plural: ) is a local administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions ('' regioni'') and provinces (''province''). The can also ...
s (Italian: ''comuni'') in the province (see
Comuni of the Province of Trapani).
History
The area now covered by the province was occupied successively by the
Carthaginians
The Punic people, or western Phoenicians, were a Semitic people in the Western Mediterranean who migrated from Tyre, Phoenicia to North Africa during the Early Iron Age. In modern scholarship, the term ''Punic'' – the Latin equivalent of the ...
,
Greeks
The Greeks or Hellenes (; el, Έλληνες, ''Éllines'' ) are an ethnic group and nation indigenous to the Eastern Mediterranean and the Black Sea regions, namely Greece, Cyprus, Albania, Italy, Turkey, Egypt, and, to a lesser extent, ot ...
and latterly by the
Romans. The port of Trapani, first known as Drepana, then Drepanon, was inhabited by the
Sicani and the
Elymi
The Elymians ( grc-gre, Ἔλυμοι, ''Élymoi''; Latin: ''Elymi'') were an ancient tribal people who inhabited the western part of Sicily during the Bronze Age and Classical antiquity.
Origins
According to Hellanicus of Lesbos, the Elymians ...
becoming a prosperous
Phoenician trading centre by the 8th century BC. It was taken by the Carthaginians in 260 BC and by the Romans in 240 BC, becoming a ''civitas romana'' until 440 AD when it was sacked by the
Vandals
The Vandals were a Germanic peoples, Germanic people who first inhabited what is now southern Poland. They established Vandal Kingdom, Vandal kingdoms on the Iberian Peninsula, Mediterranean islands, and North Africa in the fifth century.
The ...
, then by the
Byzantines and ultimately by the
Muslims
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...
in 830. In the 16th century, it received privileges under Emperor
Charles V of Spain who also strengthened the town walls. Trapani became the provincial capital in 1817.
Geography
The province of Trapani borders the
Tyrrhenian Sea
The Tyrrhenian Sea (; it, Mar Tirreno , french: Mer Tyrrhénienne , sc, Mare Tirrenu, co, Mari Tirrenu, scn, Mari Tirrenu, nap, Mare Tirreno) is part of the Mediterranean Sea off the western coast of Italy. It is named for the Tyrrhenian pe ...
to the north, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and the
Strait of Sicily
The Strait of Sicily (also known as Sicilian Strait, Sicilian Channel, Channel of Sicily, Sicilian Narrows and Pantelleria Channel; it, Canale di Sicilia or the Stretto di Sicilia; scn, Canali di Sicilia or Strittu di Sicilia, ar, مضيق ص ...
to the west. It is bordered to the east with only the provinces of
Palermo
Palermo ( , ; scn, Palermu , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital of both the autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan province. The city is noted for its ...
and
Agrigento
Agrigento (; scn, Girgenti or ; grc, Ἀκράγας, translit=Akrágas; la, Agrigentum or ; ar, كركنت, Kirkant, or ''Jirjant'') is a city on the southern coast of Sicily, Italy and capital of the province of Agrigento. It was one o ...
. The territory has few flat areas, although with the exception of the mountains of Sparagio (1,110 m) and Inici (1065 m),
most land is under 1000 metres. The northwestern part is rugged in comparison to the south. The province also includes the archipelago of the
Egadi Islands
The Aegadian Islands ( it, Isole Egadi; scn, Ìsuli Ègadi, la, Aegates Insulae; gr, Aἰγάται Νῆσοι, , the islands of goats) are a group of five small mountainous islands in the Mediterranean Sea off the northwest coast of Sicily ...
belonging to the comune of
Favignana, the island of
Pantelleria which is the largest of Sicily, in the comune of the same name, and the
Stagnone Islands, which belong to the comune of
Marsala
Marsala (, local ; la, Lilybaeum) is an Italian town located in the Province of Trapani in the westernmost part of Sicily. Marsala is the most populated town in its province and the fifth in Sicily.
The town is famous for the docking of Gius ...
. The Egadi Islands consist of three main islands, Favignana, Levanzo and Marettimo and two islets, Formica and Maraone.
The province of Trapani has a number of rivers but most are not of notable size or importance, except for the
Belice
The Belice, , is a river of western Sicily. It is about long. From its main source near Piana degli Albanesi it runs south and west for as the Belice Destro ("right Belice") until it is joined near Poggioreale by its secondary branch, the B ...
on the border of the province,
and the
Birgi
Birgi is a small town located in the Ödemiş district of İzmir province in Turkey. Its current name is a distortion of its medieval Greek name, Pyrgion (Greek: Πυργίον, meaning "Little Tower").
History
In antiquity, the town was know ...
, with a length of about 40 km. Other rivers include the torrential Modione, Mazaro, the Fiume, the Salemi and the Sossius, the latter of which flows into the Mediterranean Sea at the resort of
Berbaro.
Natural lakes include the Gorghi Tondi and Preola, in the comune of
Mazara del Vallo, and the
Lago di Venere in Pantelleria. There are also three man-made lakes, Lago Rubino, created by a dam across the
Cuddia River, which is part of the catchment area of the Birgi, at Lago Trinità in
Castelvetrano, and the lake of the same name at the resort of
Paceco. However, there is also a coastal lagoon, the
Stagnone Lagoon, within a 2000 hectare reserve on the stretch of coast between Punta Alga and Cape San Teodoro,
near Marsala, in an area which was once an important naval base and commercial for the Phoenicians. The waters are shallow and very salty, with marshland. The lagoon consists of four islands: Isola Longa Santa Maria, San Pantaleo and Schola.
Population
Here below are listed the ''Comuni'' with more than 10,000 inhabitants:
*
Marsala
Marsala (, local ; la, Lilybaeum) is an Italian town located in the Province of Trapani in the westernmost part of Sicily. Marsala is the most populated town in its province and the fifth in Sicily.
The town is famous for the docking of Gius ...
(82,456);
*Trapani (67,141);
*
Mazara del Vallo (51,573);
*
Alcamo (45,406);
*
Castelvetrano (30,783);
*
Erice
Erice (; scn, Èrici) is a historic town and '' comune'' in the province of Trapani, Sicily, in southern Italy.
Geography
The main town of Erice is located on top of Mount Erice, at around above sea level, overlooking the city of Trapani ...
(27,046);
*
Castellammare del Golfo (15,072);
*
Valderice (11,852);
*
Campobello di Mazara (11,607);
*
Paceco (11,148);
*
Salemi
Salemi is a town and ''comune'' in southwestern Sicily, Italy, administratively part of the province of Trapani.
History
Salemi is where Giuseppe Garibaldi announced the annexation of Sicily on May 14, 1860, as part of the Expedition of the T ...
(10,378);
*
Partanna (10,324).
The nearby island of
Pantelleria, noted for its wine production,
and the
Aegadian Islands
The Aegadian Islands ( it, Isole Egadi; scn, Ìsuli Ègadi, la, Aegates Insulae; gr, Aἰγάται Νῆσοι, , the islands of goats) are a group of five small mountainous islands in the Mediterranean Sea off the northwest coast of Sicily, ...
are also administratively a part of Trapani province. The Province of Trapani is a major centre for
viticulture
Viticulture (from the Latin word for '' vine'') or winegrowing (wine growing) is the cultivation and harvesting of grapes. It is a branch of the science of horticulture. While the native territory of '' Vitis vinifera'', the common grape vine, r ...
.
Religion
*
Maria Santissima della Confusione
References
External links
*
Official website
{{Authority control
Trapani
Trapani ( , ; scn, Tràpani ; lat, Drepanum; grc, Δρέπανον) is a city and municipality (''comune'') on the west coast of Sicily, in Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Trapani. Founded by Elymians, the city is still an imp ...