Utica is an ancient city located between
Carthage in the south and
Hippo Diarrhytus (now
Bizerte) in the north, near the outflow of the
Medjerda River into the
Mediterranean Sea. It is traditionally considered to be the first colony to have been founded by the
Phoenicians in
North Africa. After the defeat of
Carthage by
Rome, Utica was an important Roman colony for seven centuries. Today, Utica no longer exists, and its remains are located in
Bizerte Governorate in
Tunisia - not on the coast where it once lay, but further inland because deforestation and agriculture upriver led to massive erosion and the Medjerda River silted over its original mouth.