a region in southeastern Italy on the Adriatic

Apulia (official Italian name: Puglia ['pua]) is a region in southeastern Italy bordering the Adriatic Sea in the east, the Ionian Sea to the southeast, and the Strait of Òtranto and Gulf of Taranto in the south. Its southern portion known as Salento, a peninsula, forms the heel of the Italian "boot." The region comprises 7,469 square miles (19,345 km²), and its population is about 4 million.