Vibo Valentia

views updated

Vibo Valentia (vē´bō välān´tyä), town (1991 pop. 34,836), Calabria, S Italy, near the Tyrrhenian Sea. It is an agricultural and commercial center. A flourishing Roman town, Vibo was destroyed by the Arabs in the 9th cent. and was rebuilt by Emperor Frederick II in the 13th cent. The town has suffered from numerous earthquakes (especially in 1783 and 1905), but Frederick II's castle still stands. There are also Greek ruins. Vibo was known until 1928 as Monteleone di Calabria.