Agrigento (Girgenti in Sicilian) is an Italian town of 59,166 inhabitant capital of the province of Agrigento in Sicily. Throughout its history has had four names: Ἀκράγας for the Greeks, Agrigentum for the Romans, Kerkent for Arabs, Girgenti for the Normans, the official name of the city until 1929, when, during the fascist period, was used an Italianization of the name that the city had during the Roman Empire, Agrigento.
It is now also certain that the site where later arose the city of Akragas, was the site of the famous city of Kamikos first and most powerful city led by legendary Kokalos, which was the king that hosted Daedalus after his flight from the labyrinth of Minos on Crete. Agrigento territory has been inhabited since prehistoric times, as shown by the evidence related to the Copper Age and the Bronze Age, found near the present city. The birth of the polis is linked to the development of the polis Gela, in fact the city was founded in 581 BC by some inhabitants of Gela, originating in the islands of Rhodes and Crete. Agrigento is a major tourist centre due to its extraordinarily rich archaeological legacy. It also serves as an agricultural centre for the surrounding region. Sulphur and potash have been mined locally since Roman times and are exported from the nearby harbour of Porto Empedocle.
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