ATTALIA

(At·ta·liʹa) [Of (Belonging to) Attalus].

At the close of Paul’s first missionary tour he embarked from the seaport town of Attalia on the coast of Pamphylia in Asia Minor, heading for Antioch in Syria, about 500 km (300 mi) distant.​—Ac 14:24-26.

Attalia, modern Antalya, was founded by Attalus II, king of Pergamum (159-138 B.C.E.), at the mouth of the Cataractes River. It became the chief port of the province of Pamphylia, serving as an outlet for the rich interior region of SW Phrygia and being the natural point of embarkation from central Asia Minor to Syria and Egypt. Although it was originally the port for the nearby city of Perga, which lies about 13 km (8 mi) inland, Attalia had displaced that city in importance in apostolic times.