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POPULATION
61,3 million people
AREA
116,348 square miles
CAPITAL
Roma (Rome), which is often called “Eternal City”,
with 2,6 million inhabitants and Italy’s biggest city
NICKNAME
“Bel Paese” which means “Beautiful country”
GOVERNMENT
Democracy, Republic
HEAD OF STATE
Giorgio Napolitano
LANGUAGE
Italian (German, French and Ladin are sometimes spoken in
northern Italy)
RELIGION
mainly Christians (Roman Catholic 90%)
CURRENCY
1 Euro = 100 cents; before 2001 Italian lira
NATIONAL ANTHEM
Fratelli d’Italia (Brothers of Italy)
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FLAG
Its name is “TRICOLORE” which means “Three
colours”, that is to say the three virtues: HOPE
(green), FAITH (white) and CHARITY (red).
LITERACY RATE
more than 99% of the population can read and write
HISTORY
The country has a long history, as Rome, its capital,
was founded in 753 BC. After the Roman Empire
broke down in 395 AD, there were many separate
kingdoms and city states. However, Italy became one
nation only in 1861 and since then it includes the
islands of Sicily and Sardinia. It was a kingdom until
1946 after the second World War, where Italy sided
with the German Nazis. Italy is a founding member of
the European Union (EU) and the NATO
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POSITION
Italy lies in Southern Europe
SHAPE
It is easy to recognize Italy in a world map for its shape;
it’s like a high-heeled boot.
GEOGRAPHY
In the North, the mountain range of the Alps separates
Italy from the other European countries: France,
Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia.
-Monte Bianco (Mont Blanc), in the Alps, is the
highest mountain:4807m.
-The Po is the longest river in Italy.
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GEOGRAPHY
-In
the south of Italy there are three active volcanoes:
Vesuvius, near Naples, Etna in Sicily and Stromboli off
the coast of Italy
-Italy is subdivided in 20 regions like Tuscany (aroud
Florence), Veneto (around Venice) and Lazio (around
Rome)
-Italy surrounds two of the world’s smallest countries:
San Marino in Northern Italy, the oldest republic in the
world and the Vatican City in Rome, the smallest
country in the world: The Vatican City is led by the Pope
and is the headquarters of the Roman Catholic Church.
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TOP 10 PAINTERS
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LEONARDO da VINCI
MICHELANGELO
RAFFAELLO
CARAVAGGIO
BOTTICELLI
TIZIANO
BERNINI
DONATELLO
CANALETTO
CORREGGIO
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TOP 10 AUTHORS
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DANTE ALIGHIERI
PETRARCA
BOCCACCIO
MANZONI
LEOPARDI
MACHIAVELLI
FOSCOLO
CARDUCCI
D’ANNUNZIO
PASCOLI
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ROME
Piazza Navona
Castel Sant’Angelo
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Palazzo
Fori Imperiali
Venezia
Colosseo
Fontana
diS.
Trevi
Piazza
Pietro
Terme
di
Piazza
di
Spagna
Caracalla
Rome (Roma), the capital city, is full of history. Looking
around while walking, you can admire its magnificent ancient
monuments (Fori Imperiali, the Colosseo, Terme di Caracalla),
its interesting medieval churches (Santa Francesca Romana,
San Giorgio al Velabro, San Clemente), the beautiful fountains
like the famous “Fontana di Trevi”, a lot of museums,
Renaissance palaces (Palazzo Venezia, Palazzo Farnese) and
its unforgettable squares (Piazza di Spagna, Piazza Navona,
Piazza del Popolo, Piazza San Giovanni)
The Vatican and San Pietro Church are also found in Rome.
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VENICE
Piazza San Marco
Ponte di Rialto
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Venice (Venezia) is a special city because it was built
on water, in the middle of a lagoon.
It’s one of the most romantic places in the world with
its hundred canals, San Marco square and its
unforgettable bridges. The Bridge of Sighs (Ponte dei
sospiri) is the most famous. A very nice experience is
sailing through the canals on the “gondola”, the
typical venetian boat.
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FLORENCE
Santa Maria del Fiore
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Immagine storica
Ponte
Cattedrale
Vecchio
Santa Maria del Fiore
Palazzo Vecchio
Florence (Firenze). The regional capital of Tuscany,
is one of the most important Renaissance
architectural and art centres.
Dante Alighieri was born here and the Medici family
lived and ruled in this city for many years. Thanks
to them the most famous artists and painters
produced their works of art living in their courts.
The Dome with its famous bell tower by Giotto, the
Baptisery, the medieval Town Hall, Santa Croce
Church and Ponte Vecchio (the old bridge) over
Arno river are some of the most visited places.
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MILAN
Galleria
Panettone
il classico dolce
natalizio milanese
Duomo di Milano
Cotoletta alla Milanese,
piatto della tradizione
gastronomica ambrosiana
Milan (Milano), in the North of Italy, is one of
Europe’s richest cities. It is famous for its fashion
boutiques, art galleries and restaurants.
If you go to Milan don’t miss the Dome, a huge
Gothic church, and “La Scala” theatre, one of the
world’s most famous opera and ballet houses.
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NAPLES
Vista Vesuvio
Sfogliatella
Pastiera
Piazza
Plebiscito
Pizza
Caffè
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Maschio
Naples (Napoli) lies on the coast, south of Rome. It Angioino
is
surely one of the most vibrant cities in Italy. From its
wonderful gulf you can have an impressive view of
Vesuvius, one of the three active volcanoes in Italy
In Naples you can find many historical and artistic
treasures, but most of all its special PIZZA, the
SFOGLIATELLA, BABA’ and PASTIERA, three typical
delicious cakes. Another incomparable thing to taste
is COFFEE. They say it is so unique because of the
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water used to prepare it.