Leptis Magna
The Arch of Septimius Severus
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 Shown within Libya
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| Alternate name | Lepcis Magna, Neapolis, Lpqy |
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| Location | Khoms, Libya |
| Region | Tripolitania |
| Coordinates | 32°38′21″N 14°17′26″E / 32.63917°N 14.29056°ECoordinates: 32°38′21″N 14°17′26″E / 32.63917°N 14.29056°E |
| Type | Settlement |
| History | |
| Founded | 7th c. BC |
| Abandoned | 7th c. AD |
| Periods | Iron Age to Byzantine |
| Cultures | Carthaginian, Libyco-Berber Roman |
| Official name | Archaeological Site of Leptis Magna |
| Type | Cultural |
| Criteria | i, ii, iii |
| Designated | 1982 (6th session) |
| Reference no. | 183 |
| State Party | Libya |
| Region | Arab States |
Leptis Magna (also Lepcis; Neo-Punic lpqy) was a prominent city in Roman Libya. Originally a Punic foundation, it was greatly expanded under emperor Septimius Severus (r. 193–211), who was a native of the city. Legio III Augusta was stationed here to defend the city against Berber incursions, and after the legion's dissolution under Gordian III in 238, the city was increasingly open to raids in the later part of the 3rd century. Diocletian re-instated the city as provincial capital, and the city grew again in prosperity until it fell to the Vandals in 439. It was re-incorporated into the Eastern Empire in 533, but continued to be plagued by Berber raids and never recovered its former importance. It fell to the Muslim invasion in c. 647 and was abandoned.
The ruins of Leptis Magna are located in Khoms, Libya, 130 km (81 mi) east of Tripoli, on the coast where the Wadi Lebda meets the sea. The site is one of best preserved Roman ruins in the Mediterranean.
The Latin name was Lepcis Magna (also spelled Leptis in some inscriptions; also Leptimagnensis Civitas, adjective Leptitanos, Leptitanus) The Greek name was Λέπτις μεγάλη Leptis megale or Νεάπολις Neapolis. The city was called "Greater" (magna, he megale) in contrast with Leptis Parva in modern-day Tunisia. The Neo-Punic (Roman era) name is recorded as lpqy (or '-lpqy, with article). The name appears to be Semitic in origin, tentatively connected to the Arabic root lfq "to fabricate, piece together", taken to refer to the foundation or construction of the city. The modern Arabic name is لَبْدَة Labdah.
The Punic city was founded in the second half of the 7th century BC. Little is known about the old city, but it appears to have been powerful enough to repel Dorieus' attempt to establish a Greek colony nearby in c. 515 BC. A 4th to 3rd century BC necropolis was found under the Roman theatre. It nominally remained part of Carthage's dominions until the end of the Third Punic War in 146 BC and then became part of the Roman Republic, although from about 111 BC onward, it was for all intents and purposes an independent city.
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