Accadia ( Irpino: ) is a town and ''

comune A (; : , ) is an administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions () and provinces (). The can also have the City status in Italy, titl ...

'' in the province of Foggia in the

Apulia Apulia ( ), also known by its Italian language, Italian name Puglia (), is a Regions of Italy, region of Italy, located in the Southern Italy, southern peninsular section of the country, bordering the Adriatic Sea to the east, the Strait of Ot ...

region of southeast Italy. Until the mid-20th century it was just within the eastern frontier of the region of

Campania Campania is an administrative Regions of Italy, region of Italy located in Southern Italy; most of it is in the south-western portion of the Italian Peninsula (with the Tyrrhenian Sea to its west), but it also includes the small Phlegraean Islan ...

in the

province of Avellino The province of Avellino () is a province in the Campania Campania is an administrative Regions of Italy, region of Italy located in Southern Italy; most of it is in the south-western portion of the Italian Peninsula (with the Tyrrhenian Sea ...

. The town occupies a hilltop at of elevation, in the Daunian Mountains along the Apennines. It is not far from

Foggia Foggia (, ; ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) of Apulia, in Southern Italy, capital of the province of Foggia. In 2013, its population was 153,143. Foggia is the main city of a plain called Tavoliere delle Puglie, Tavoliere, also know ...

on the rich agricultural plains of the Tavoliere delle Puglie in the east, nor from

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

to the west. Population increases in summer when many of its migrant labour force return home to take up temporary residence and visit family. Accadia borders the municipalities of Bovino, Deliceto, Monteleone di Puglia, Panni, and Sant'Agata di Puglia.

History

The town originated as a settlement of Daunians (or maybe Hirpini) during the 1st millennium BC. Later it was part of the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ruled the Mediterranean and much of Europe, Western Asia and North Africa. The Roman people, Romans conquered most of this during the Roman Republic, Republic, and it was ruled by emperors following Octavian's assumption of ...

. Its name stems from Latin ''aqua cadiva'' ("falling water"), which contrasts with nearby Acquatorta village ("channeled water"). In the past it had a much larger population. A Neapolitan army sacked it during the Bourbon period. They took the town gates as booty, and these are still in the civic museum in Naples. These events are recorded on a

frieze In classical architecture, the frieze is the wide central section of an entablature and may be plain in the Ionic order, Ionic or Corinthian order, Corinthian orders, or decorated with bas-reliefs. Patera (architecture), Paterae are also ...

on the clock tower on the main square in the centre of the town. There is one remaining Roman arch at a former entrance to the town. There has been extensive redevelopment of the former old quarter of town, which was abandoned after an earthquake in the 1930s. At this time a large portion of the population emigrated and established a colony in Buffalo, New York, in the United States.

Twin towns

* San Marco in Lamis, Italy, since 2008 Accadia has also a friendship agreement with Spello, also in Italy.

References

External links

* Cities and towns in Apulia {{Apulia-geo-stub