Molfetta, Medieval coastal city in Puglia, Italy
Molfetta is a coastal town in the Metropolitan City of Bari in Puglia, southern Italy, that stretches along the Adriatic Sea and includes a working fishing harbor with traditional boats. Narrow lanes paved with pale stone lead uphill from the water through the old center, where two-story houses with balconies and laundry lines frame the streets.
Written records first mention the settlement in 925 as Melfi on the Sant'Andrea peninsula. Control shifted over centuries between Norman, Swabian, and Aragonese rulers before the town became part of unified Italy in the 19th century.
The name derives from the medieval Latin Melphicta, referring to the rocky coastline where fishermen gathered their catches. Locals still speak a dialect called Molfettese, blending Italian with older Apulian sounds that echo through the morning markets near the waterfront.
The old center is easy to explore on foot, though flat shoes help on the cobblestones. The train station offers direct connections to Bari and other towns along the Adriatic coast, while ferries run to select ports across the sea.
Within the town limits lies the Pulo, a circular cave that drops 23 meters (75 feet) and holds Neolithic remains. Archaeologists found pottery shards and wall fragments there, pointing to settlement thousands of years old.
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