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Allegedly, the origin of the town dates back to the marine regression when men founded the first settlements based on hunting and fishery. The fist villages appeared during the 5th millennium B.C., when agriculture and farming began: firestones, ceramics, and fossil remains are the few traces of this distant, fascinating world. Let’s keep on following the path of history up to 3000 years ago, when a population with an impressive heritage of legends and mystery arrived in the area: the Veneti, a highly-civilised people, who, according to the evidence found, spoke a language called “Veneto”, deriving from the Etrurian language and only attested in this area.
They lived in peace in the lagoon but soon mixed with another population of Celtic origin, the “Carni”, who were settled eastern: the immigration process was so influencing that the region was named “Carnorum Regio”, namely the Region of the Carni. The real history of Bibione began when it went under the rule of the Romans during the Imperial age: Rome colonised the regions “Venetia” and Friuli, and founded, in 181 B.C., the colony of Aquileia.
According to various studies on the subject, the name “Bibione” is of Latin or ancient Roman origin: the most valued opinion is that long time ago there was a small group of isles, the “Bibiones” located among the ancient mouth of the river Tagliamento, the present Port of Baseleghe.
This assumption derives from the archaeological excavations carried out in the "Duna Mutteron dei Frati" area, within the Val Grande di Bibione.
During the first excavations in 1833, archaeologists brought to light ancient Roman buildings featuring brickworks and mosaic floors, as well as everyday life objects such as coloured glasses, earthenware, and pieces of amphorae. However, the most interesting foundings were two copper coins, portraying the Roman Emperors Julian and Flavio Vittore, which enable us to date the building back to the 4th-century A.C.
In 1932 new excavations brought to the discovery of other building foundations and objects dating back to Imperial Rome. Around the year 1000, Bibione went within the jurisdiction of the Bishops of Concordia. With the rise of the Venetian Republic, in 1300-1400, the Venetian seigniory settled here, and the area from the mouth of the river Tagliamento to the Port of Baseleghe fell in the hands of Constantine first and then the Triestine Antonio Caccia. Unlike other villages, Bibione was long forgotten because of its geographical distance from the most significant historical events; moreover, the area was populated by fishermen and surrounded by thick pinewoods inhabited by wild animals.
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