Amalfi

Amalfi
Comune
Comune di Amalfi
View of Amalfi from the sea
Flag
Amalfi within the Province of Salerno
Amalfi Location of Amalfi in Italy
Coordinates: 40°38′N 14°36′E / 40.633°N 14.600°E / 40.633; 14.600Coordinates: 40°38′N 14°36′E / 40.633°N 14.600°E / 40.633; 14.600
Country	Italy
Region	Campania
Province / Metropolitan city	Salerno (SA)
Frazioni	Lone, Pastena, Pogerola, Tovere, Vettica
Government
• Mayor	Alfonso Del Pizzo (Lista Civica Amalfi da Vivere)
Area
• Total	6.11 km2 (2.36 sq mi)
Elevation	6 m (20 ft)
Population (1 May 2009)
• Total	5,353
• Density	880/km2 (2,300/sq mi)
Demonym(s)	Amalfitani
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
• Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
Postal code	84011
Dialing code	089
Patron saint	Saint Andrew
Saint day	30 November
Website	Official website

Amalfi is a town and comune in the province of Salerno, in the region of Campania, Italy, on the Gulf of Salerno. It lies at the mouth of a deep ravine, at the foot of Monte Cerreto (1,315 metres, 4,314 feet), surrounded by dramatic cliffs and coastal scenery. The town of Amalfi was the capital of the maritime republic known as the Duchy of Amalfi, an important trading power in the Mediterranean between 839 and around 1200.

In the 1920s and 1930s, Amalfi was a popular holiday destination for the British upper class and .

Amalfi is the main town of the coast on which it is located, named Costiera Amalfitana (Amalfi Coast), and is today an important tourist destination together with other towns on the same coast, such as Positano, Ravello and others. Amalfi is included in the UNESCO World Heritage Sites.

A patron saint of Amalfi is Saint Andrew, the Apostle, whose relics are kept here at Amalfi Cathedral (Cattedrale di Sant'Andrea/Duomo di Amalfi).

First mentioned in the 6th century, Amalfi soon afterwards acquired importance as a maritime power, trading grain from its neighbours, salt from Sardinia and slaves from the interior, and even timber, in exchange for the gold dinars minted in Egypt and Syria, in order to buy the Byzantine silks that it resold in the West. Grain-bearing Amalfi traders enjoyed privileged positions in the Islamic ports, Fernand Braudel notes. The Amalfi tables (Tavole amalfitane ()) provided a maritime code that was widely used by the Christian port cities. Merchants of Amalfi were using gold coins to purchase land in the 9th century, while most of Italy worked in a barter economy. In the 8th and 9th century, when Mediterranean trade revived it shared with Gaeta the Italian trade with the East, while Venice was in its infancy, and in 848 its fleet went to the assistance of Pope Leo IV against the Saracens.