A detailed analysis of near-source strong motion and leveling data, together with the results of teleseismic waveform modeling by Westaway and Jackson (1987) and aftershock studies by Deschamps and King (1984), allows a satisfactory kinematic description of the complex normal faulting associated with the magnitude Ms=6.9, November 23, 1980, Irpinia earthquake (southern Italy). The three main rupture episodes, starting at about 0, 20 and 40 s, are here associated with better constrained source parameters than in previous studies. We first evaluated the triggering time for the 11 closest accelerometers by using the well-recorded 40-s strong motion phases. This gave the absolute time and location of the dominant episodes of faulting. The first rupture propagated mainly toward the northwest on a NE dipping normal fault, at a mean velocity close to 3 km/s for about 20 km, and continued 15 km further on smaller subfaults. It was associated with surface breakage in the southeastern part. The second rupture started from the southeastern end of the first rupture, about 18 s after it, and propagated about 20 km toward the southeast on a low-angle normal fault dipping 20 ¿NE. It was associated with secondary faulting on steeper planes reaching the surface. The third and last episode at 39 s nucleated near the first hypocenter, at shallower depth, and the rupture possibly propagated on a 10- to 15-km-long normal fault, striking SE, antithetic to the first activated fault. A clear correlation appears between the strength of the geological formations and the existence of surface breakage and shallow aftershock activity. ¿ American Geophysical Union 1989