Italy

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Italy's Information


Capital	Rome
Languages	Italian (official), German (parts of Trentino-Alto Adige region are predominantly German speaking), French (small French-speaking minority in Valle d'Aosta region), Slovene (Slovene-speaking minority in the Trieste-Gorizia area)
Ethnic Groups	Italian (includes small clusters of German-, French-, and Slovene-Italians in the north and Albanian-Italians and Greek-Italians in the south)
Religion	Christian 80% (overwhelmingly Roman Catholic with very small groups of Jehovah's Witnesses and Protestants), Muslim (about 800,000 to 1 million), atheist and agnostic 20%
Government	Parliamentary republic
Independance	17 March 1861 (Kingdom of Italy proclaimed; Italy was not finally unified until 1871)
Area	301,340.00 km²
Water Area	7,200.00 km²
Land Area	294,140.00 km²
Population	62,007,540.00 Despite a distinctive pattern with an industrial north and an agrarian south, a fairly even population distribution exists throughout most of the country, with coastal areas, the Po River Valley, and urban centers (particularly Milan, Rome, and Naples), attracting larger and denser populations
Location	Southern Europe, a peninsula extending into the central Mediterranean Sea, northeast of Tunisia
No. Bordering Countries	6
Bordering Countries	Austria 404 km, France 476 km, Holy See (Vatican City) 3.4 km, San Marino 37 km, Slovenia 218 km, Switzerland 698 km
GDP(PPP)	$2,220,000,000,000.00 (USD)
GDP (Per Capita)	$36,300.00 (USD)
Export Partners	Its major export partners are Germany, France, and the United States.
Export Commodities	Its main exports are engineering products, textiles and clothing, and production machinery.
Import Partners	Its major import partners are Germany, France, and China.
Import Commodities	Its major imports include engineering products, chemicals, and transport equipment.
Climate	Predominantly Mediterranean; alpine in far north; hot, dry in south
Terrain	Mostly rugged and mountainous; some plains, coastal lowlands

Where is Italy?

Located in Southern Europe, Italy has a 1,836.00 km border with Austria (404 km), France (476 km), Holy See (Vatican City) (3.4 km), San Marino (37 km), Slovenia (218 km) and Switzerland (698 km). It has a 7,600.00 km coastline. Italy's long coastline and developed economy entices tens of thousands of illegal immigrants from southeastern Europe and northern Africa.

The capital city of Italy has been Rome since 1870. It is the fourth most populous city in the country and the fourth-most populous in the European Union. The city is home to more than 2.8 million people, with even more people living in the metropolitan area. Rome is found in the central-western region of Italy in Lazio, on River Tiber.

Geography

Italy has a mean elevation of 538 m above sea level.

It has a Mediterranean climate, although it is also alpine in the far north and dry in the south. Its terrain is mostly rugged and mountainous with some plains and coastal lowlands.

Population

Italy has a population of 62,007,540 making it the 23rd largest in the world. The population of the country is rather evenly distributed.

Italian is the official language; German, French and Slovene spoken in certain areas. The major ethnicity is Italian. The majority of the population is Christian.

Italy is home to many languages, but the main language is Italian, which is spoken by more than 97% of the total population. There are many dialects of Italian, which vary from city to city. The Italian alphabet shares similarities with the English alphabet, but does not have the letters J, K, W, X and Y. There are other minority languages used in Italy like Greek, English, German, Slovene, Ladin, French, Croatian, Albanian, Occitan, Climbrian, Catalan and many more.

Government

Italy is an independent country. The Kingdom of Italy was proclaimed in 1861. Its constitution was last ratified in 1947.

Italy is a democratic republic that is headed by the president. The president is elected by electoral colleges for a term of seven years which can be renewed. The president appoints the prime minister who appoints ministers of the government. The republic’s parliament is divided into two houses, The Senate and the Chamber of Deputies, both located in Rome. The president has three official residences: the Quirinial Palace, Villa Roseberry and Tenuta di Casterlporziano.

Economy

Factoring in Purchasing Power Parity, Italy's GDP is $2,220,000,000,000.00 (USD) with $36,300.00 (USD) per capita. This makes it the 12th largest economy and its citizens the 49th richest in the world. The currency of Italy is the Euro (EUR).

Its major export partners are Germany, France, and the United States. Its main exports are engineering products, textiles and clothing, and production machinery. Its major import partners are Germany, France, and China. Its major imports include engineering products, chemicals, and transport equipment.

Flag

Italy’s flag is a tricolour. It features three equal-sized green, white and red pales which run vertically. It has been in use since 18th June 1946, although it was formally adopted on 1st January 1948. However, the tricolour was used for the first time in 1974. Except for the proportions and the choice of colours, the flag of Italy is similar to the flag of Ireland, the Mexican flag and that of Ivory Coast.