Pontebba

Pontebba
—  Comune  —
Comune di Pontebba
Pontebba Location of Pontebba in Italy
Coordinates: 46°30′N 13°19′E
Country	Italy
Region	Friuli-Venezia Giulia
Province	Province of Udine (UD)
Frazioni	Aupa, Frattis, Lagleise San Leopoldo, Studena Alta, Studena Bassa, Pietratagliata
Government
• Mayor	Isabella De Monte
Area
• Total	97.7 km2 (37.7 sq mi)
Population (Dec. 2004)
• Total	1,683
• Density	17.2/km2 (44.6/sq mi)
Demonym	Pontebbani
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
• Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
Postal code	33016
Dialing code	0428
Patron saint	Natività di Maria
Saint day	September 8
Website	Official website

Pontebba (Friulian: Ponteibe, German: Pontafel, Slovene: Tablja) is a comune (municipality) in the Province of Udine in the Italian region Friuli-Venezia Giulia. It is located about 100 km northwest of Trieste and about 50 km north of Udine, on the border with Austria. As of 31 December 2004, Pontebba had a population of 1,683 and an area of 97.7 km².

The municipality contains the frazioni (subdivisions, mainly villages and hamlets) Aupa, Frattis, Laglesie San Leopoldo, Studena Alta, Studena Bassa and Pietratagliata.

Pontebba borders the following municipalities: Dogna in the south, Hermagor-Pressegger See (Austria) in the north, Malborghetto Valbruna in the east and Moggio Udinese in the west.

History

Historic border stone on the Fella river

Pontebba, named after Italian: ponte meaning "bridge", is situated at the confluence of the Pontebbana creek and the Fella river, itself a tributary to the Tagliamento. Since the early 10th century the Pontebbana formed the border between the March of Verona, the former Lombard duchy of Friuli in the south and the Bavarian march of Carinthia in the north. After the 1420 conquest of the Patriarchate of Aquileia, the Pontebba settlement south of the creek belonged to the terra firma of the Republic of Venice; it was twinned with Pontafel north of the bridge, at first part of the Carinthian Canal Valley exclave held by the Imperial Prince-Bishopric of Bamberg, since 1759 incorporated into the Inner Austrian territories of the Habsburg dynasty.

After World War I by the order of the Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye the border of the Kingdom of Italy with the Federal State of Austria was shifted up the Canal Valley north to the town of Tarvisio. The two settlements of Pontebba and Pontafel finally merged on 15 August 1924. During World War II, the rail road line through the town was the target of heavy aerial bombardment by the United States Army Air Forces as it was used by Germany to transport supplies to Italy. However, the aerial bombardment did not succeed in damaging the rail line, which is still in use today.

Sports

Aquile Friuli-Venezia Giulia, the region's flagship ice hockey team, plays its home games at the PalaVuerich arena in Pontebba and is affiliated with the local ice sports society Sport Ghiaccio Pontebba. The team is a member of the Serie A and won the 2008 Italian Cup.

Demographic evolution

Transport

Pontebba can be reached via the A23 autostrada, European route E55, running from Palmanova and the A4 to Tarvisio and the Austrian A2 Süd Autobahn, as well as by the parallel Strada Statale 13 Pontebbana. Here the Strade Provinciale 110 to the Naßfeld Pass (Italian: Passo di Pramollo) branches off.

The Pontebba train station is at the new Pontebbana railway line from Udine to Tarvisio and the Austrian border. Opened in 2000 it replaces the old k.k. Staatsbahn Tarvis-Pontafel built in 1879.

Notable residents

• Adele Faccio, politician
• Ernesto Lomasti, mountaineer

External links

• www.comune.pontebba.ud.it/sito/index.htm