Italy

{{Anchor|Etymology}}

{{Main|Name of Italy}}

File:Hadrian, denarius, 134-138 AD, RIC II 307.jpg of Roman emperor Hadrian displaying the inscription ITALIA on the verge of a personification of Italy holding scepter and cornucopia]]

Hypotheses for the etymology of Italia are numerous.Alberto Manco, Italia. Disegno storico-linguistico. 2009, Napoli, L'Orientale. {{ISBN|978-8-8950-4462-0}}. One theory suggests it originated from an Ancient Greek term for the land of the Italói, a tribe that resided in the region now known as Calabria. Originally thought to be named Vituli, some scholars suggest their totemic animal to be the calf (Latin: vitulus; Umbrian: vitlo; Oscan: Víteliú).J.P. Mallory and D.Q. Adams, Encyclopedia of Indo-European Culture (London: Fitzroy and Dearborn, 1997), 24. Several ancient authors said it was named after a local ruler Italus.Dionysius of Halicarnassus, Roman Antiquities, [https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Dionysius_of_Halicarnassus/1B*.html 1.35] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221215151343/https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Dionysius_of_Halicarnassus/1B%2A.html|date=15 December 2022}}, on LacusCurtius; Aristotle, Politics, [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0058%3Abook%3D7%3Asection%3D1329b#note-link2 7.1329b] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150910185719/http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0058%3Abook%3D7%3Asection%3D1329b|date=10 September 2015}}, on Perseus; Thucydides, The Peloponnesian War, [https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Thuc.+6.2.4&fromdoc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0200 6.2.4] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924213434/http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Thuc.+6.2.4&fromdoc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.01.0200|date=24 September 2015}}, on Perseus

The ancient Greek term for Italy initially referred only to the south of the Bruttium peninsula and parts of Catanzaro and Vibo Valentia. The larger concept of Oenotria and "Italy" became synonymous, and the name applied to most of Lucania as well. Before the Roman Republic's expansion, the name was used by Greeks for the land between the strait of Messina and the line connecting the gulfs of Salerno and Taranto, corresponding to Calabria. The Greeks came to apply "Italia" to a larger region.Pallottino, M., History of Earliest Italy, trans. Ryle, M & Soper, K. in Jerome Lectures, Seventeenth Series, p. 50 In addition to the "Greek Italy" in the south, historians have suggested the existence of an "Etruscan Italy", which consisted of areas of central Italy.Giovanni Brizzi, Roma. Potere e identità: dalle origini alla nascita dell'impero cristiano, Bologna, Patron, 2012 p. 94

The borders of Roman Italy, Italia, are better established. Cato's Origines describes Italy as the entire peninsula south of the Alps.{{Cite book|last=Carlà-Uhink|first=Filippo|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dSY-DwAAQBAJ&q=cato+italy+south+of+the+Alps&pg=PT49|title=The "Birth" of Italy: The Institutionalization of Italy as a Region, 3rd–1st Century BCE|date=25 September 2017|publisher=Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG|isbn=978-3-1105-4478-7}}; {{Cite book|last=Levene|first=D. S.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=aLsRDAAAQBAJ&q=cato+walls+of+Italy&pg=PA108|title=Livy on the Hannibalic War|date=17 June 2010|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-1981-5295-8|access-date=12 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240328152752/https://books.google.com/books?id=aLsRDAAAQBAJ&q=cato+walls+of+Italy&pg=PA108#v=snippet&q=cato%20walls%20of%20Italy&f=false|archive-date=28 March 2024|url-status=live}} In 264 BC, Roman Italy extended from the Arno and Rubicon rivers of the centre-north to the entire south. The northern area, Cisalpine Gaul, considered geographically part of Italy, was occupied by Rome in the 220s BC,{{Cite book|last=Carlà-Uhink|first=Filippo|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dSY-DwAAQBAJ&q=Tota+Italia+essays&pg=PT454|title=The "Birth" of Italy: The Institutionalization of Italy as a Region, 3rd–1st Century BCE|date=25 September 2017|publisher=Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG|isbn=978-3-1105-4478-7|access-date=12 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240211000755/https://books.google.com/books?id=dSY-DwAAQBAJ&q=Tota+Italia+essays&pg=PT454#v=snippet&q=Tota%20Italia%20essays&f=false|archive-date=11 February 2024|url-status=live}} but remained politically separated. It was legally merged into the administrative unit of Italy in 42 BC.{{Cite book|last=Williams|first=J. H. C.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RPj_FkEeVO4C&q=beyond+the+Rubicon|title=Beyond the Rubicon: Romans and Gauls in Republican Italy – J. H. C. Williams – Google Books|date=22 May 2020|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-1981-5300-9|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200522000630/https://books.google.it/books?id=RPj_FkEeVO4C&dq=beyond+the+Rubicon&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiI5YrC6rbkAhUvDmMBHXZOCMAQ6AEIKTAA|archive-date=22 May 2020}}; {{Cite book|last=Long|first=George|title=Decline of the Roman republic: Volume 2|year=1866}}; {{Cite web|last=Aurigemma|first=Salvatore|title=Gallia Cisalpina|url=http://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/gallia-cisalpina_(Enciclopedia-Italiana)|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230404054511/https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/gallia-cisalpina_(Enciclopedia-Italiana)|archive-date=4 April 2023|access-date=14 October 2014|website=treccani.it|publisher=Enciclopedia Italiana|language=it}} Sardinia, Corsica, Sicily, and Malta were added to Italy by Diocletian in 292 AD,{{Cite web|title=Italy (ancient Roman territory)|url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/297743/Italy|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131110232259/https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/297743/Italy|archive-date=10 November 2013|access-date=10 November 2013|website=Encyclopædia Britannica}} which made late-ancient Italy coterminous with the modern Italian geographical region.{{Cite web|title=La riorganizzazione amministrativa dell'Italia. Costantino, Roma, il Senato e gli equilibri dell'Italia romana|url=https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/la-riorganizzazione-amministrativa-dell-italia-costantino-roma-il-senato-e-gli-equilibri-dell-italia-romana_%28Enciclopedia-Costantiniana%29|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211119225335/https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/la-riorganizzazione-amministrativa-dell-italia-costantino-roma-il-senato-e-gli-equilibri-dell-italia-romana_(Enciclopedia-Costantiniana)|archive-date=19 November 2021|access-date=19 November 2021|language=it}}

The Latin Italicus was used to describe "a man of Italy" as opposed to a provincial, or one from the Roman province.Letters 9.23 The adjective italianus, from which Italian was derived, is from medieval Latin and was used alternatively with Italicus during the early modern period.ytaliiens (1265) [http://www.cnrtl.fr/etymologie/italien TLFi] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181029191636/http://www.cnrtl.fr/etymologie/italien|date=29 October 2018}} After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, the Ostrogothic Kingdom of Italy was created. After the Lombard invasions, Italia was retained as the name for their kingdom, and its successor kingdom within the Holy Roman Empire.{{Cite web|title=IL COMUNE MEDIEVALE|url=https://www.homolaicus.com/storia/medioevo/comune_medievale.htm|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120318214257/http://www.homolaicus.com/storia/medioevo/comune_medievale.htm|archive-date=18 March 2012|website=homolaicus.com}}

{{Main|History of Italy}}

{{Main|Prehistoric Italy|Italic peoples|Etruscan civilisation|Greek colonisation|Magna Graecia}}

File:Etruscan Painting 1.jpg fresco in the Monterozzi necropolis, 5th century BC]]

Lower Paleolithic artefacts, dating back 850,000 years, have been recovered from Monte Poggiolo.{{Cite web|last=Society|first=National Geographic|title=Erano padani i primi abitanti d'Italia|url=http://www.nationalgeographic.it/scienza/2012/01/20/news/erano_padani_iprimi_abitanti_ditalia-807204|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190626220707/http://www.nationalgeographic.it/scienza/2012/01/20/news/erano_padani_iprimi_abitanti_ditalia-807204|archive-date=26 June 2019|access-date=11 March 2019|website=National Geographic}} Excavations throughout Italy revealed a Neanderthal presence in the Middle Palaeolithic period 200,000 years ago,Kluwer Academic/Plenum Publishers 2001, ch. 2. {{ISBN|0-3064-6463-2}}. while modern humans appeared about 40,000 years ago at Riparo Mochi.42.7–41.5 ka (1σ CI).

{{Cite journal|last=Douka|first=Katerina|display-authors=etal|year=2012|title=A new chronostratigraphic framework for the Upper Palaeolithic of Riparo Mochi (Italy)|journal=Journal of Human Evolution|volume=62|issue=2|pages=286–299|doi=10.1016/j.jhevol.2011.11.009|pmid=22189428|bibcode=2012JHumE..62..286D }}; {{Cite web|date=29 January 2010|title=Istituto Italiano di Preistoria e Protostoria|url=http://www.iipp.it|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131015231105/http://www.iipp.it|archive-date=15 October 2013|publisher=IIPP}}

The ancient peoples of pre-Roman Italy were Indo-European, specifically the Italic peoples. The main historic peoples of possible non-Indo-European or pre-Indo-European heritage include the Etruscans, the Elymians and Sicani of Sicily, and the prehistoric Sardinians, who gave birth to the Nuragic civilisation. Other ancient populations include the Rhaetian people and Camunni, known for their rock drawings in Valcamonica.{{Cite web|title=Rock Drawings in Valcamonica|url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/94|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100703183257/http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/94|archive-date=3 July 2010|access-date=29 June 2010|publisher=UNESCO World Heritage Centre}} A natural mummy, Ötzi, dated 3400–3100 BC, was discovered in the Similaun glacier in 1991.{{Cite journal|last1=Bonani|first1=Georges|last2=Ivy|first2=Susan D.|display-authors=etal|year=1994|title=AMS {{SimpleNuclide|Carbon|14}} Age Determination of Tissue, Bone and Grass Samples from the Ötzal Ice Man|url=http://digitalcommons.library.arizona.edu/objectviewer?o=http%3A%2F%2Fradiocarbon.library.arizona.edu%2FVolume36%2FNumber2%2Fazu_radiocarbon_v36_n2_247_250_v.pdf|url-status=live|journal=Radiocarbon|volume=36|issue=2|pages=247–250|doi=10.1017/s0033822200040534|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100720211402/https://digitalcommons.library.arizona.edu/objectviewer?o=http%3A%2F%2Fradiocarbon.library.arizona.edu%2FVolume36%2FNumber2%2Fazu_radiocarbon_v36_n2_247_250_v.pdf|archive-date=20 July 2010|access-date=4 February 2016|doi-access=free}}

The first colonisers were the Phoenicians, who established emporiums on the coasts of Sicily and Sardinia. Some became small urban centers and developed parallel to Greek colonies.{{Cite journal|last1=Raclot|first1=Thierry|last2=Oudart|first2=Hugues|date=January 2000|title=CORPS GRAS ET OBESITE Acides gras alimentaires et obésité: aspects qualitatifs et quantitatifs|journal=Oléagineux, Corps gras, Lipides|volume=7|issue=1|pages=77–85|doi=10.1051/ocl.2000.0077|issn=1258-8210|doi-access=free}} During the 8th and 7th centuries, Greek colonies were established at Pithecusae, eventually extending along the south of the Italian Peninsula and the coast of Sicily, an area later known as Magna Graecia.Emilio Peruzzi, Mycenaeans in early Latium, (Incunabula Graeca 75), Edizioni dell'Ateneo & Bizzarri, Roma, 1980 Ionians, Doric colonists, Syracusans, and the Achaeans founded various cities. Greek colonisation placed the Italic peoples in contact with democratic forms of government and high artistic and cultural expressions.{{Cite web|title=II 1987: Uomini e vicende di Magna Grecia |url=https://www.bpp.it/Apulia/html/archivio/1987/II/art/R87II015.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210204123345/https://www.bpp.it/Apulia/html/archivio/1987/II/art/R87II015.html|archive-date=4 February 2021|access-date=31 January 2021|website=bpp.it}}

{{Main|Ancient Rome|Roman expansion in Italy|Roman Italy}}

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| caption2 = {{legend|#b23938|The Roman Empire in AD 117 at its greatest extent{{Cite book|last=Bennett, Julian|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qk_tofvS8EsC|title=Trajan: Optimus Princeps : a Life and Times|publisher=Routledge|year=1997|isbn=978-0-415-16524-2}}}} {{legend|#d28989|Vassal states}}

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Italy's history goes back to numerous Italic peoples—notably including the ancient Romans, who conquered the Mediterranean world during the Roman Republic and ruled it for centuries during the Roman Empire.{{Cite book |last1=Carl Waldman |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kfv6HKXErqAC |title=Encyclopedia of European Peoples |last2=Catherine Mason |publisher=Infobase Publishing |year=2006 |isbn=978-1-4381-2918-1 |page=586 |access-date=23 February 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230311102543/https://books.google.com/books?id=kfv6HKXErqAC |archive-date=11 March 2023 |url-status=live}}; {{Cite book |last=Mommsen |first=Theodor |author-link=Theodor Mommsen |title=History of Rome, Book II: From the Abolition of the Monarchy in Rome to the Union of Italy |publisher=Reimer & Hirsel |year=1855 |location=Leipzig}}; {{Cite book |last=Lazenby |first=John Francis |url=https://archive.org/details/hannibalswarmili00laze |title=Hannibal's War: A Military History of the Second Punic War |date=4 February 1998 |publisher=University of Oklahoma Press |isbn=978-0-8061-3004-0 |page=[https://archive.org/details/hannibalswarmili00laze/page/29 29] |quote=Italy homeland of the Romans. |url-access=registration |via=Internet Archive}}

Ancient Rome, a settlement on the River Tiber in central Italy, founded in 753 BC, was ruled for 244 years by a monarchical system.{{Cite web |date=2009-11-24 |title=Rome founded {{!}} April 21, 753 B.C. |url=https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/april-21/rome-founded |access-date=2025-04-10 |website=HISTORY |language=en}} In 509 BC, the Romans, favouring a government of the Senate and the People (SPQR), expelled the monarchy and established an oligarchic republic.{{Cite web |title=The Roman Republic {{!}} World Civilizations I (HIS101) – Biel |url=https://courses.lumenlearning.com/suny-fmcc-boundless-worldhistory/chapter/the-roman-republic/ |access-date=2025-04-10 |website=courses.lumenlearning.com}}

The Italian Peninsula, named Italia, was consolidated into a unified entity during Roman expansion, the conquest of new territories often at the expense of the other Italic tribes, Etruscans, Celts, and Greeks. A permanent association, with most of the local tribes and cities, was formed, and Rome began the conquest of Western Europe, North Africa, and the Middle East. In the wake of Julius Caesar's assassination in 44 BC, Rome grew into a massive empire stretching from Britain to the borders of Persia, engulfing the whole Mediterranean basin, in which Greek, Roman, and other cultures merged into a powerful civilisation. The long reign of the first emperor, Augustus, began an age of peace and prosperity. Roman Italy remained the metropole of the empire, homeland of the Romans and territory of the capital.{{Cite journal|last=Morcillo|first=Marta García|title=The Glory of Italy and Rome's Universal Destiny in Strabo's Geographika, in: A. Fear – P. Liddel (eds), Historiae Mundi. Studies in Universal History. Duckworth: London 2010: 87-101. |url=https://www.academia.edu/362374|url-status=live|journal=Historiae Mundi: Studies in Universal History|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220114073554/https://www.academia.edu/362374|archive-date=14 January 2022|access-date=20 November 2021}}; {{Cite book|last=Keaveney|first=Arthur|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ojoOAAAAQAAJ|title=Arthur Keaveney: Rome and the Unification of Italy|date=January 1987|publisher=Croom Helm|isbn=978-0-7099-3121-8|access-date=20 November 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240211000835/https://books.google.com/books?id=ojoOAAAAQAAJ|archive-date=11 February 2024|url-status=live}}; {{Cite book|last=Billanovich|first=Giuseppe|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=fVylk1KUS84C&dq=Italia+domina+provinciarum&pg=PR13|title=Libreria Universitaria Hoepli, Lezioni di filologia, Giuseppe Billanovich e Roberto Pesce: Corpus Iuris Civilis, Italia non erat provincia, sed domina provinciarum, Feltrinelli, p.363|publisher=Roberto Pesce|year=2008|isbn=978-8-8965-4309-2|language=it|access-date=20 November 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240211000801/https://books.google.com/books?id=fVylk1KUS84C&dq=Italia+domina+provinciarum&pg=PR13#v=onepage&q=Italia%20domina%20provinciarum&f=false|archive-date=11 February 2024|url-status=live}}

The Roman Empire was among the largest in history, wielding great economical, cultural, political, and military power.{{Cite web |date=2024-06-04 |title=The Roman Empire at its greatest expansion |url=https://trizioeditore.it/en/blogs/notizie/impero-romano-massima-espansione-mappa-storia |access-date=2025-04-10 |website=Trizio Editore |language=en}} At its greatest extent, it had an area of {{Convert|5|e6km2|abbr=off}}.{{Cite journal|last=Taagepera|first=Rein|author-link=Rein Taagepera|year=1979|title=Size and Duration of Empires: Growth-Decline Curves, 600 B.C. to 600 A.D|journal=Social Science History|volume=3|issue=3/4|pages=115–138|doi=10.2307/1170959|jstor=1170959}}; {{Cite journal|last1=Turchin|first1=Peter|last2=Adams|first2=Jonathan M.|last3=Hall|first3=Thomas D|year=2006|title=East–West Orientation of Historical Empires|url=http://peterturchin.com/PDF/Turchin_Adams_Hall_2006.pdf|url-status=live|journal=Journal of World-Systems Research|volume=12|issue=2|page=222|doi=10.5195/JWSR.2006.369|issn=1076-156X|archive-url=http://arquivo.pt/wayback/20160517210851/http://peterturchin.com/PDF/Turchin_Adams_Hall_2006.pdf|archive-date=17 May 2016|access-date=6 February 2016|doi-access=free}} The Roman legacy has deeply influenced Western civilisation shaping the modern world. The widespread use of Romance languages derived from Latin, numerical system, modern Western alphabet and calendar, and the emergence of Christianity as a world religion, are among the many legacies of Roman dominance.{{Cite book|last=Richard|first=Carl J.|title=Why we're all Romans: the Roman contribution to the western world|publisher=Rowman & Littlefield|year=2010|isbn=978-0-7425-6779-5|edition=1st pbk.|location=Lanham, MD|pages=xi–xv}}

{{Main|Italy in the Middle Ages}}

After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, Italy fell under the Odoacer's kingdom, and was seized by the Ostrogoths.{{Cite book|last=Sarris|first=Peter|title=Empires of faith: the fall of Rome to the rise of Islam, 500–700|publisher=Oxford UP|year=2011|isbn=978-0-1992-6126-0|edition=1st. pub.|location=Oxford|page=118}} Invasions resulted in a chaotic succession of kingdoms and the supposed "Dark Ages". The invasion of another Germanic tribe in the 6th century, the Lombards, reduced Byzantine presence and ended political unity of the peninsula. The north formed the Lombard kingdom, central-south was also controlled by the Lombards, and other parts remained Byzantine.{{Cite web|title=History of Italy|url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Italy/Lombards-and-Byzantines|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220929150112/https://www.britannica.com/place/Italy/Lombards-and-Byzantines|archive-date=29 September 2022|access-date=29 September 2022|website=Encyclopædia Britannica}}

File:Marco Polo Mosaic from Palazzo Tursi.jpg, 13th-century explorer]]

The Lombard kingdom was absorbed into Francia by Charlemagne in the late 8th century and became the Kingdom of Italy.{{Cite web|title=Carolingian and post-Carolingian Italy, 774–962|url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Italy/Carolingian-and-post-Carolingian-Italy-774-962|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221007160553/https://www.britannica.com/place/Italy/Carolingian-and-post-Carolingian-Italy-774-962|archive-date=7 October 2022|access-date=7 October 2022|website=Encyclopædia Britannica}} The Franks helped form the Papal States. Until the 13th century, politics was dominated by relations between the Holy Roman Emperors and the Papacy, with city-states siding with the former (Ghibellines) or with the latter (Guelphs) for momentary advantage.{{Cite book|last=Nolan|first=Cathal J.|title=The age of wars of religion, 1000–1650: an encyclopedia of global warfare and civilization |publisher=Greenwood Press|year=2006|isbn=978-0-3133-3045-2|edition=1. publ.|location=Westport (Connecticut)|page=360}} The Germanic emperor and Roman pontiff became the universal powers of medieval Europe. However, conflict over the Investiture Controversy and between Guelphs and Ghibellines ended the imperial-feudal system in the north, where cities gained independence.{{Cite book|last=Jones|first=Philip|author-link=Philip Jones (historian)|title=The Italian city-state: from Commune to Signoria|publisher=Clarendon Press|year=1997|isbn=978-0-1982-2585-0|location=Oxford|pages=55–77}} In 1176, the Lombard League of city-states, defeated Holy Roman Emperor Frederick Barbarossa, ensuring their independence.

City-states—e.g. Milan, Florence, Venice—played a crucially innovative role in financial development by devising banking practices, and enabling new forms of social organisation.{{Cite book|last=Niall|first=Ferguson|title=The Ascent of Money: The Financial History of the World|publisher=Penguin|year=2008}} In coastal and southern areas, maritime republics dominated the Mediterranean and monopolised trade to the Orient. They were independent thalassocratic city-states, in which merchants had considerable power. Although oligarchical, the relative political freedom they afforded was conducive to academic and artistic advancement.{{Cite book|last=Lane|first=Frederic C.|title=Venice, a maritime republic|publisher=Johns Hopkins University Press|year=1991|isbn=978-0-8018-1460-0|edition=4. print.|location=Baltimore|page=73}} The best-known maritime republics were Venice, Genoa, Pisa, and Amalfi.G. Benvenuti – Le Repubbliche Marinare. Amalfi, Pisa, Genova, Venezia – Newton & Compton editori, Roma 1989; Armando Lodolini, Le repubbliche del mare, Biblioteca di storia patria, 1967, Roma. {{Cite book|last=Peris|first=Persi|title=Conoscere l'Italia|publisher=Istituto Geografico De Agostini|year=1982|pages=74}}; {{Cite web|title=Repubbliche Marinare|url=http://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/repubbliche-marinare|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190829104758/http://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/repubbliche-marinare|archive-date=29 August 2019|access-date=13 September 2019|website=Treccani.it|publisher=Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana|language=it}}; {{Cite web|title=Repubbliche marinare|url=https://thes.bncf.firenze.sbn.it/termine.php?id=29771|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200101131949/https://thes.bncf.firenze.sbn.it/termine.php?id=29771|archive-date=1 January 2020|access-date=13 September 2019|website=thes.bncf.firenze.sbn.it|publisher=National Central Library (Florence)|language=it}} Each had dominion over overseas lands, islands, lands on the Adriatic, Aegean, and Black seas, and commercial colonies in the Near East and North Africa.{{Cite book|last=Zorzi|first=Alvise|author-link=Alvise Zorzi|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IP5OAAAAMAAJ&q=%22even+in+countries+where+aid+is+near+at+hand+%22+%22attack+from+the+sea%22|title=Venice: The Golden Age, 697 – 1797 |publisher=Abbeville Press|year=1983|isbn=0-8965-9406-8|location=New York|page=255|access-date=16 September 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230202182132/https://books.google.com/books?id=IP5OAAAAMAAJ&q=%22even+in+countries+where+aid+is+near+at+hand+%22+%22attack+from+the+sea%22|archive-date=2 February 2023|url-status=live}}

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| footer = Left: flag of the Italian Navy. Clockwise, from upper left: the coat of arms of Venice, Genoa, Pisa and Amalfi.
Right: trade routes, colonies of the Genoa and Venice.

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Venice and Genoa were Europe's gateways to the East, and producers of fine glass, while Florence was a centre of silk, wool, banking, and jewellery. The wealth generated meant large public and private artistic projects could be commissioned. The republics participated in the Crusades, providing support, transport, but mostly taking political and trading opportunities. Italy first felt the economic changes which led to the commercial revolution: Venice was able to sack Byzantine's capital and finance Marco Polo's voyages to Asia; the first universities were formed in Italian cities, and scholars such as Aquinas obtained international fame; capitalism and banking families emerged in Florence, where Dante and Giotto were active around 1300.{{Cite web |last=Sée |first=Henri |title=Modern Capitalism Its Origin and Evolution |url=http://www.efm.bris.ac.uk/het/see/ModernCapitalism.pdf |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131007010542/http://www.efm.bris.ac.uk/het/see/ModernCapitalism.pdf |archive-date=7 October 2013 |access-date=29 August 2013 |website=University of Rennes |publisher=Batoche Books}} In the south, Sicily had become an Arab Islamic emirate in the 9th century, thriving until the Italo-Normans conquered it in the late 11th century, together with most of the Lombard and Byzantine principalities of southern Italy.{{cite book |last=Ali |first=Ahmed Essa with Othman |title=Studies in Islamic civilization: the Muslim contribution to the Renaissance |year=2010 |publisher=International Institute of Islamic Thought |location=Herndon, VA |isbn=978-1-56564-350-5 |pages=38–40}} The region was subsequently divided between the Kingdom of Sicily and Kingdom of Naples.{{efn|Kingdom of Naples is used by historians, but not by its rulers, who kept the original 'Kingdom of Sicily' (i.e., there existed two Kingdoms of Sicily).}}Eleni Sakellariou, Southern Italy in the Late Middle Ages: Demographic, Institutional and Economic Change in the Kingdom of Naples, c.1440–c.1530 (Brill, 2012), pp. 63–64. The Black Death of 1348 killed perhaps a third of Italy's population.Stéphane Barry and Norbert Gualde, "The Biggest Epidemics of History" (La plus grande épidémie de l'histoire), in L'Histoire n° 310, June 2006, pp. 45–46; "[http://www.brown.edu/Departments/Italian_Studies/dweb/plague/effects/death_toll.shtml Plague]". Brown University. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090831003435/http://www.brown.edu/Departments/Italian_Studies/dweb/plague/effects/death_toll.shtml|date=31 August 2009}}

{{Main|Italian Renaissance|History of early modern Italy}}

File:Italy 1494.svg before the Italian Wars in 1494]]

During the 1400s and 1500s, Italy was the birthplace and heart of the Renaissance. This era marked the transition from the medieval period to the modern age and was fostered by the wealth accumulated by merchant cities and the patronage of dominant families.Strathern, Paul The Medici: Godfathers of the Renaissance (2003) Italian polities were now regional states effectively ruled by princes, in control of trade and administration, and their courts became centres of the arts and sciences. These princedoms were led by political dynasties and merchant families, such as the Medici of Florence. After the end of the Western Schism, newly elected Pope Martin V returned to the Papal States and restored Italy as the sole centre of Western Christianity. The Medici Bank was made the credit institution of the Papacy, and significant ties were established between the Church and new political dynasties.[http://www.florentine-society.ru/Medici_Chapel_Mysteries.htm Peter Barenboim, Sergey Shiyan, Michelangelo: Mysteries of Medici Chapel, SLOVO, Moscow, 2006]. {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511133416/http://www.florentine-society.ru/Medici_Chapel_Mysteries.htm|date=11 May 2011}}. {{ISBN|5-8505-0825-2}}.

File:Leonardo self.jpg, quintessential Renaissance man, in a self-portrait ({{circa}} 1512)]]

In 1453, despite activity by Pope Nicholas V to support the Byzantines, the city of Constantinople fell to the Ottomans. This led to the migration of Greek scholars and texts to Italy, fuelling the rediscovery of Greek humanism.Encyclopædia Britannica, Renaissance, 2008, O.Ed.; Har, Michael H. History of Libraries in the Western World, Scarecrow Press Incorporate, 1999. {{ISBN|0-8108-3724-2}}.

Norwich, John Julius, A Short History of Byzantium, 1997, Knopf. {{ISBN|0-6794-5088-2}}. Humanist rulers such as Federico da Montefeltro and Pope Pius II worked to establish ideal cities, founding Urbino and Pienza. Pico della Mirandola wrote the Oration on the Dignity of Man, considered the manifesto of the Renaissance. In the arts, the Italian Renaissance exercised a dominant influence on European art for centuries, with artists such as Leonardo da Vinci, Botticelli, Michelangelo, Raphael, Giotto, Donatello, and Titian, and architects such as Filippo Brunelleschi, Andrea Palladio, and Donato Bramante. Italian explorers and navigators from the maritime republics, eager to find an alternative route to the Indies to bypass the Ottomans, offered their services to monarchs of Atlantic countries and played a key role in ushering the Age of Discovery and colonization of the Americas. The most notable were: Christopher Columbus, who opened the Americas for conquest by Europeans;Encyclopædia Britannica, 1993 ed., Vol. 16, pp. 605ff / Morison, Christopher Columbus, 1955 ed., pp. 14ff John Cabot, the first European to explore North America since the Norse;{{Cite web|year=2007|title=Catholic Encyclopedia "John & Sebastian Cabot"|url=http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/03126d.htm|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200518005335/https://www.newadvent.org/cathen/03126d.htm|archive-date=18 May 2020|access-date=17 May 2008|publisher=newadvent}} and Amerigo Vespucci, for whom the continent of America is named.{{Cite book|last=Eric Martone|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=MHJ1DQAAQBAJ&pg=PA109|title=Italian Americans: The History and Culture of a People|publisher=ABC-CLIO|year=2016|isbn=978-1-6106-9995-2|page=504|access-date=22 November 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240211001055/https://books.google.com/books?id=MHJ1DQAAQBAJ&pg=PA109|archive-date=11 February 2024|url-status=live}}{{Cite book|last=Greene|first=George Washington|author-link=George Washington Greene|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=1qsuAAAAYAAJ&pg=PAPA13|title=The Life and Voyages of Verrazzano|publisher=Folsom, Wells, and Thurston|year=1837|location=Cambridge University|page=13|access-date=18 August 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240211000806/https://books.google.com/books?id=1qsuAAAAYAAJ&pg=PAPA13#v=onepage&q&f=false|archive-date=11 February 2024|url-status=live|via=Google Books}}

A defensive alliance known as the Italic League was formed between Venice, Naples, Florence, Milan, and the Papacy. Lorenzo the Magnificent de Medici was the Renaissance's greatest patron, his support allowed the League to abort invasion by the Turks. The alliance, however, collapsed in the 1490s; the invasion of Charles VIII of France initiated a series of wars in the peninsula. During the High Renaissance, popes such as Julius II (1503–1513) fought for control of Italy against foreign monarchs; Paul III (1534–1549) preferred to mediate between the European powers to secure peace. In the middle of such conflicts, the Medici popes Leo X (1513–1521) and Clement VII (1523–1534) faced the Protestant Reformation in Germany, England and elsewhere.

In 1559, at the end of the Italian wars between France and the Habsburgs, about half of Italy (the southern Kingdoms of Naples, Sicily, Sardinia, and the Duchy of Milan) was under Spanish rule, while the other half remained independent (many states continued to be formally part of the Holy Roman Empire). The Papacy launched the Counter-Reformation, whose key events include: the Council of Trent (1545–1563); adoption of the Gregorian calendar; the Jesuit China mission; the French Wars of Religion; end of the Thirty Years' War (1618–1648); and the Great Turkish War. The Italian economy declined in the 1600s and 1700s.

File:Flag of Repubblica Cispadana1.jpg, the first Italian tricolour adopted by a sovereign Italian state (1797)]]

During the War of the Spanish Succession (1700–1714), Austria acquired most of the Spanish domains in Italy, namely Milan, Naples and Sardinia; the latter was given to the House of Savoy in exchange for Sicily in 1720. Later, a branch of the Bourbons ascended to the throne of Sicily and Naples. During the Napoleonic Wars, north and central Italy were reorganised as Sister Republics of France and, later, as a Kingdom of Italy.Napoleon Bonaparte, "The Economy of the Empire in Italy: Instructions from Napoleon to Eugène, Viceroy of Italy", Exploring the European Past: Texts & Images, Second Edition, ed. Timothy E. Gregory (Mason: Thomson, 2007), 65–66. The south was administered by Joachim Murat, Napoleon's brother-in-law. 1814's Congress of Vienna restored the situation of the late 18th century, but the ideals of the French Revolution could not be eradicated, and re-surfaced during the political upheavals that characterised the early 19th century. The first adoption of the Italian tricolour by an Italian state, the Cispadane Republic, occurred during Napoleonic Italy, following the French Revolution, which advocated national self-determination.{{Cite book |last1=Maiorino |first1=Tarquinio |title=Il tricolore degli italiani. Storia avventurosa della nostra bandiera |last2=Marchetti Tricamo |first2=Giuseppe |last3=Zagami |first3=Andrea |publisher=Arnoldo Mondadori Editore |year=2002 |isbn=978-8-8045-0946-2 |page=156 |language=it}}

[http://www.esteri.it/MAE/EN/Benvenuti_in_Italia/Conoscere_Italia/bandieraInno.htm The tri-coloured standard]. Getting to Know Italy, Ministry of Foreign Affairs (retrieved 5 October 2008). {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080223131121/http://www.esteri.it/MAE/EN/Benvenuti_in_Italia/Conoscere_Italia/bandieraInno.htm|date=23 February 2008}}. This event is celebrated by Tricolour Day.Article 1 of the law n. 671 of 31 December 1996 ("National celebration of the bicentenary of the first national flag")

{{Main|Unification of Italy}}

The birth of the Kingdom of Italy was the result of efforts of Italian nationalists and monarchists loyal to the House of Savoy to establish a united kingdom encompassing the entire Italian Peninsula. By the mid-19th century, rising Italian nationalism led to revolution.{{Cite web|title=Risorgimento in 'Dizionario di Storia'|url=https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/risorgimento_(Dizionario-di-Storia)|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220922035556/https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/risorgimento_(Dizionario-di-Storia)|archive-date=22 September 2022|access-date=22 September 2022|website=treccani.it|language=it-IT}} Following the Congress of Vienna in 1815, the political and social Italian unification movement, or Risorgimento, emerged to unite Italy by consolidating the states and liberating them from foreign control. A radical figure was the patriotic journalist Giuseppe Mazzini, founder of the political movement Young Italy in the 1830s, who favoured a unitary republic and advocated a broad nationalist movement. 1847 saw the first public performance of "Il Canto degli Italiani", which became the national anthem in 1946.{{Cite book|last1=Maiorino|first1=Tarquinio|last2=Marchetti Tricamo|first2=Giuseppe|last3=Zagami|first3=Andrea|title=Il tricolore degli italiani. Storia avventurosa della nostra bandiera|year=2002|publisher=Arnoldo Mondadori Editore|language=it|isbn=978-8-8045-0946-2|page=18}}; {{Cite web|title=Fratelli d'Italia|url=https://www.quirinale.it/page/inno|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230426052752/https://www.quirinale.it/page/inno|archive-date=26 April 2023|access-date=1 October 2021|language=it}}

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| footer = Giuseppe Mazzini (left), highly influential leader of the Italian revolutionary movement; and Giuseppe Garibaldi (right), celebrated as one of the greatest generals of modern times{{cite web |url={{Google books|iWK7AAAAIAAJ |page=PA133 |keywords=Garibaldi+one+of+the+greatest+generals+of+modern+time |text= |plainurl=yes}}|title=Scholar and Patriot|publisher=Manchester University Press|via=Google Books}} and as the "Hero of the Two Worlds" because of his military enterprises in South America and Europe,{{Cite web|title=Giuseppe Garibaldi (Italian revolutionary)|url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/225978/Giuseppe-Garibaldi|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140226091529/https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/225978/Giuseppe-Garibaldi|archive-date=26 February 2014|access-date=6 March 2014}} who fought in many military campaigns that led to Italian unification

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The most famous member of Young Italy was the revolutionary and general Giuseppe GaribaldiDenis Mack Smith, Modern Italy: A Political History, (University of Michigan Press, 1997) p. 15. A literary echo may be found in the character of Giorgio Viola in Joseph Conrad's Nostromo. who led the republican drive for unification in southern Italy. However, the Italian monarchy of the House of Savoy, in the Kingdom of Sardinia, whose government was led by Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour, also had ambitions of establishing a united Italian state. In the context of the 1848 liberal revolutions that swept Europe, an unsuccessful First Italian War of Independence was declared against Austria. In 1855, Sardinia became an ally of Britain and France in the Crimean War.Enrico Dal Lago, "Lincoln, Cavour, and National Unification: American Republicanism and Italian Liberal Nationalism in Comparative Perspective". The Journal of the Civil War Era 3#1 (2013): 85–113.; William L. Langer, ed., An Encyclopedia of World Cup History. 4th ed. 1968. pp 704–7. Sardinia fought the Austrian Empire in the Second Italian War of Independence of 1859, with the aid of France, resulting in liberating Lombardy. On the basis of the Plombières Agreement, the Sardinia ceded Savoy and Nice to France, an event that caused the Niçard exodus.{{Cite web|date=28 August 2017|title="Un nizzardo su quattro prese la via dell'esilio" in seguito all'unità d'Italia, dice lo scrittore Casalino Pierluigi|url=https://www.montecarlonews.it/2017/08/28/notizie/argomenti/altre-notizie-1/articolo/un-nizzardo-su-quattro-prese-la-via-dellesilio-in-seguito-allunita-ditalia-dice-lo-scrittore.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200219165302/http://www.montecarlonews.it/2017/08/28/notizie/argomenti/altre-notizie-1/articolo/un-nizzardo-su-quattro-prese-la-via-dellesilio-in-seguito-allunita-ditalia-dice-lo-scrittore.html|archive-date=19 February 2020|access-date=14 May 2021|language=it}}

In 1860–1861, Garibaldi led the drive for unification in Naples and Sicily.Mack Smith, Denis (1997). Modern Italy; A Political History. Ann Arbor: The University of Michigan Press. {{ISBN|0-4721-0895-6}}. Teano was the site of a famous meeting between Garibaldi and Victor Emmanuel II, the last king of Sardinia, during which Garibaldi shook Victor Emanuel's hand and hailed him as King of Italy. Cavour agreed to include Garibaldi's southern Italy in a union with the Kingdom of Sardinia in 1860. This allowed the Sardinian government to declare a united Italian kingdom on 17 March 1861,{{Cite news|date=17 March 2017|title=Everything you need to know about March 17th, Italy's Unity Day|url=https://www.thelocal.it/20170317/everything-to-know-about-march-17th-italys-unity-unification-risorgimento-day|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170617212538/https://www.thelocal.it/20170317/everything-to-know-about-march-17th-italys-unity-unification-risorgimento-day|archive-date=17 June 2017|access-date=17 July 2017}} with Victor Emmanuel II as its first king. In 1865, the kingdom's capital was moved from Turin to Florence. In 1866, Victor Emmanuel II, allied with Prussia during the Austro-Prussian War, waged the Third Italian War of Independence, which resulted in Italy annexing Venetia. Finally, in 1870, as France abandoned Rome during the Franco-Prussian War, the Italians captured the Papal States, unification was completed, and the capital moved to Rome.

{{Main|Kingdom of Italy|Italian diaspora|Italian Empire|Military history of Italy during World War I}}

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Sardinia's constitution was extended to all of Italy in 1861, and provided basic freedoms for the new state; but electoral laws excluded the non-propertied classes. The new kingdom was governed by a parliamentary constitutional monarchy dominated by liberals. As northern Italy quickly industrialised, southern and northern rural areas remained underdeveloped and overpopulated, forcing millions to migrate and fuelling a large and influential diaspora. The Italian Socialist Party increased in strength, challenging the traditional liberal and conservative establishment. In the last two decades of the 19th century, Italy developed into a colonial power{{Cite web |title=The Italian Colonial Empire |url=http://www.allempires.com/article/index.php?q=italian_colonial |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120224012449/http://www.allempires.com/article/index.php?q=italian_colonial |archive-date=24 February 2012 |access-date=17 June 2012 |publisher=All Empires |quote=At its peak, just before WWII, the Italian Empire comprehended the territories of present time Italy, Albania, Rhodes, Dodecanese, Libya, Ethiopia, Eritrea, the majority of Somalia and the little concession of Tientsin in China}} by subjugating Eritrea, Somalia, Tripolitania, and Cyrenaica in Africa.(Bosworth (2005), p. 49.) In 1913, male universal suffrage was adopted. The pre-World War I period was dominated by Giovanni Giolitti, prime minister five times between 1892 and 1921.

File:Sacrario militare di Redipuglia agosto 2014.JPG is a World War I memorial. It is the largest war memorial in Italy and one of the largest in the world.{{Cite web|url=https://www.rai.it/ufficiostampa/assets/template/us-articolo.html?ssiPath=/articoli/2021/10/Redipuglia-Il-sacrario-della-Grande-Guerra-c1dc61c5-9a1c-44c8-b203-9d16d943d7ec-ssi.html#:~:text=Il%20sacrario%20militare%20di%20Redipuglia,caduti%20durante%20la%20Grande%20Guerra.|title=Redipuglia. Il sacrario della Grande Guerra|language=it|access-date=23 June 2024|archive-date=25 June 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240625213329/https://www.rai.it/ufficiostampa/assets/template/us-articolo.html?ssiPath=/articoli/2021/10/Redipuglia-Il-sacrario-della-Grande-Guerra-c1dc61c5-9a1c-44c8-b203-9d16d943d7ec-ssi.html#:~:text=Il%20sacrario%20militare%20di%20Redipuglia,caduti%20durante%20la%20Grande%20Guerra.|url-status=live}}]]

Italy entered into the First World War in 1915 with the aim of completing national unity, so it is also considered the Fourth Italian War of Independence,{{Cite web|date=6 March 2015|title=Il 1861 e le quattro Guerre per l'Indipendenza (1848–1918) |url=http://www.piacenzaprimogenita150.it/index.php?it%2F176%2Fil-1861-e-le-quattro-guerre-per-lindipendenza-1848-1918|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220319075828/http://www.piacenzaprimogenita150.it/index.php?it%2F176%2Fil-1861-e-le-quattro-guerre-per-lindipendenza-1848-1918|archive-date=19 March 2022|access-date=12 March 2021|language=it}} from a historiographical perspective, as the conclusion of the unification of Italy.{{Cite web|title=La Grande Guerra nei manifesti italiani dell'epoca|url=http://www.beniculturali.it/mibac/export/MiBAC/sito-MiBAC/Contenuti/MibacUnif/Eventi/visualizza_asset.html_1239896580.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150923183754/http://www.beniculturali.it/mibac/export/MiBAC/sito-MiBAC/Contenuti/MibacUnif/Eventi/visualizza_asset.html_1239896580.html|archive-date=23 September 2015|access-date=12 March 2021|language=it}}; {{Cite book|last=Genovesi|first=Piergiovanni|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_LntMIUOXngC&q=%22quarta+guerra+d%27indipendenza%22&pg=PA41|title=Il Manuale di Storia in Italia, di Piergiovanni Genovesi|date=11 June 2009|publisher=FrancoAngeli|isbn=978-8-8568-1868-0|language=it|access-date=12 March 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240116110143/https://books.google.com/books?id=_LntMIUOXngC&q=%22quarta+guerra+d%27indipendenza%22&pg=PA41#v=snippet&q=%22quarta%20guerra%20d'indipendenza%22&f=false|archive-date=16 January 2024|url-status=live}} Italy, nominally allied with the German and Austro-Hungarian empires in the Triple Alliance, in 1915 joined the Allies, entering World War I with a promise of substantial territorial gains that included west Inner Carniola, the former Austrian Littoral, and Dalmatia, as well as parts of the Ottoman Empire. The country's contribution to the Allied victory earned it a place as one of the "Big Four" powers. Reorganisation of the army and conscription led to Italian victories. In October 1918, the Italians launched a massive offensive, culminating in victory at the Battle of Vittorio Veneto.Burgwyn, H. James: Italian foreign policy in the interwar period, 1918–1940. Greenwood Publishing Group, 1997. p. 4. {{ISBN|0-2759-4877-3}}.

Schindler, John R.: Isonzo: The Forgotten Sacrifice of the Great War. Greenwood Publishing Group, 2001. p. 303. {{ISBN|0-2759-7204-6}}.

Mack Smith, Denis: Mussolini. Knopf, 1982. p. 31. {{ISBN|0-3945-0694-4}}. This marked the end of war on the Italian Front, secured dissolution of the Austro-Hungarian Empire, and was instrumental in ending the war less than two weeks later.

During the war, more than 650,000 Italian soldiers and as many civilians died,{{Cite book|last=Mortara|first=G|title=La Salute pubblica in Italia durante e dopo la Guerra|publisher=Yale University Press|year=1925|location=New Haven}} and the kingdom was on the brink of bankruptcy. The Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye (1919) and Treaty of Rapallo (1920) allowed for annexation of Trentino Alto-Adige, the Julian March, Istria, the Kvarner Gulf, and the Dalmatian city of Zara. The subsequent Treaty of Rome (1924) led to annexation of Fiume by Italy. Italy did not receive other territories promised by the Treaty of London, so this outcome was denounced as a "mutilated victory", by Benito Mussolini, which helped lead to the rise of Italian fascism. Historians regard "mutilated victory" as a "political myth", used by fascists to fuel Italian imperialism.G.Sabbatucci, La vittoria mutilata, in AA.VV., Miti e storia dell'Italia unita, Il Mulino, Bologna 1999, pp.101–106 Italy gained a permanent seat in the League of Nations's executive council.

{{Main|Fascist Italy|Military history of Italy during World War II|Italian Civil War|Italian campaign (World War II)}}

File:Benito Mussolini portrait as dictator (retouched).jpg titled himself Duce and ruled the country from 1922 to 1943.]]

The socialist agitations that followed the devastation of the Great War, inspired by the Russian Revolution, led to counter-revolution and repression throughout Italy. The liberal establishment, fearing a Soviet-style revolution, started to endorse the small National Fascist Party, led by Mussolini. In October 1922, the Blackshirts of the National Fascist Party organised a mass demonstration and the "March on Rome" coup. King Victor Emmanuel III appointed Mussolini as prime minister, transferring power to the fascists without armed conflict.{{Cite book|last=Lyttelton|first=Adrian|title=The Seizure of Power: Fascism in Italy, 1919–1929 |date=2008|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-0-4155-5394-0|location=New York|pages=75–77}}; {{Cite news|title=March on Rome {{!}} Italian history|url=https://www.britannica.com/event/March-on-Rome|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150504055509/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/508871/March-on-Rome|archive-date=4 May 2015|access-date=25 July 2017|work=Encyclopædia Britannica}} Mussolini banned political parties and curtailed personal liberties, establishing a dictatorship. These actions attracted international attention and inspired similar dictatorships in Nazi Germany and Francoist Spain.

Fascism was based upon Italian nationalism and imperialism, seeking to expand Italian possessions via irredentist claims based on the legacy of the Roman and Venetian empires.{{Cite book|last=Rodogno|first=Davide|author-link=Davide Rodogno|title=Fascism's European Empire: Italian Occupation during the Second World War|date=2006|publisher=Cambridge University Press|location=Cambridge, England|page=88}}; {{Cite book|last=Kallis|first=Aristotle A.|title=Fascist ideology: territory and expansionism in Italy and Germany, 1922–1945 |date=2000|publisher=Routledge|location=London, England; New York City, USA|pages=41}}; {{Cite book|last1=Ball|first1=Terence|title=The Cambridge History of Twentieth-Century Political Thought|last2=Bellamy|first2=Richard|pages=133}}; {{Cite book|last=Stephen J. Lee|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=u-mm5UDlzBEC&pg=PA157|title=European Dictatorships, 1918–1945 |date=2008|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-0-4154-5484-1|pages=157–158|access-date=8 February 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240211001320/https://books.google.com/books?id=u-mm5UDlzBEC&pg=PA157#v=onepage&q&f=false|archive-date=11 February 2024|url-status=live}} For this reason the fascists engaged in interventionist foreign policy. In 1935, Mussolini invaded Ethiopia and founded Italian East Africa, resulting in international isolation and leading to Italy's withdrawal from the League of Nations. Italy then allied with Nazi Germany and the Empire of Japan, and strongly supported Francisco Franco in the Spanish Civil War. In 1939, Italy annexed Albania.

Italy entered World War II on 10 June 1940. At different times, Italians advanced in British Somaliland, Egypt, the Balkans, and eastern fronts. They were, however, defeated on the Eastern Front as well as in the East African and North African campaigns, losing their territories in Africa and the Balkans. Italian war crimes included extrajudicial killings and ethnic cleansingJames H. Burgwyn (2004). [http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/routledg/rmis/2004/00000009/00000003/art00005 General Roatta's war against the partisans in Yugoslavia: 1942] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130921054155/http://www.ingentaconnect.com/content/routledg/rmis/2004/00000009/00000003/art00005|date=21 September 2013}}, Journal of Modern Italian Studies, Volume 9, Number 3, pp. 314–329(16) by deportation of about 25,000 people—mainly Yugoslavs—to Italian concentration camps and elsewhere. Yugoslav Partisans perpetrated their own crimes against the ethnic Italian population during and after the war, including the foibe massacres. An Allied invasion of Sicily began in July 1943, leading to the collapse of the Fascist regime on 25 July. Mussolini was deposed and arrested by order of King Victor Emmanuel III. On 8 September, Italy signed the Armistice of Cassibile, ending its war with the Allies. The Germans, with the assistance of Italian fascists, succeeded in taking control of north and central Italy. The country remained a battlefield, with the Allies moving up from the south.

File:01 partigiani a milano1.jpg in Milan during the final insurrection leading to the liberation of Italy in April 1945]]

In the north, the Germans set up the Italian Social Republic (RSI), a Nazi puppet state and collaborationist regime with Mussolini installed as leader after he was rescued by German paratroopers. What remained of the Italian troops was organised into the Italian Co-belligerent Army, which fought alongside the Allies, while other Italian forces, loyal to Mussolini, opted to fight alongside the Germans in the National Republican Army. German troops, with RSI collaboration, committed massacres and deported thousands of Jews to death camps. The post-armistice period saw the emergence of the Italian Resistance, who fought a guerrilla war against the Nazi German occupiers and collaborators.G. Bianchi, La Resistenza, in: AA.VV., Storia d'Italia, vol. 8, pp. 368-369. This has been described as an Italian civil war due to fighting between partisans and fascist RSI forces.{{Cite web|title=Storia della guerra civile in Italia|url=http://www.istitutobiggini.it/storia_pisano.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221013183444/https://www.istitutobiggini.it/storia_pisano.pdf|archive-date=13 October 2022|access-date=28 August 2023}}; See the books from Italian historian Giorgio Pisanò Storia della guerra civile in Italia, 1943–1945, 3 voll., Milano, FPE, 1965 and the book L'Italia della guerra civile ("Italy of civil war"), published in 1983 by the Italian writer and journalist Indro Montanelli as the fifteen volume of the Storia d'Italia ("History of Italy") by the same author.{{Cite book|last=Pavone|first=Claudio|title=Una guerra civile. Saggio storico sulla moralità della Resistenza|date=1991|publisher=Bollati Boringhieri|isbn=8-8339-0629-9|location=Torino|page=238|language=it}} In April 1945, with defeat looming, Mussolini attempted to escape north,{{Citation|last=Viganò|first=Marino|title=Un'analisi accurata della presunta fuga in Svizzera|date=2001|work=Nuova Storia Contemporanea|volume=3|language=it}} but was captured and summarily executed by partisans.{{Cite news|date=28 April 1945|title=1945: Italian partisans kill Mussolini |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/april/28/newsid_3564000/3564529.stm|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111126075555/http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/april/28/newsid_3564000/3564529.stm|archive-date=26 November 2011|access-date=17 October 2011|publisher=BBC News}}

Hostilities ended on 29 April 1945, when the German forces in Italy surrendered. Nearly half a million Italians died in the conflict,{{Cite encyclopedia|title=Italy – Britannica Online Encyclopedia|encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica|url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/297474/Italy|access-date=2 August 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120306095718/https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/297474/Italy|archive-date=6 March 2012|url-status=live}} society was divided, and the economy all but destroyed—per capita income in 1944 was at its lowest point since 1900.{{Cite book|title=Liberal and fascist Italy, 1900–1945 |date=2002|publisher=Oxford University Press|editor-last=Lyttelton|editor-first=Adrian|page=13}} The aftermath left Italy angry with the monarchy for its endorsement of the Fascist regime, contributing to a revival of Italian republicanism.{{Cite encyclopedia|title=Italia|encyclopedia=Dizionario enciclopedico italiano|publisher=Treccani|date=1970|volume=VI|page=456|language=it}}

{{Main|History of the Italian Republic}}

Italy became a republic after the 1946 Italian institutional referendum{{Cite AV media|url=https://archive.org/details/1946-06-06_Damage_Foreshadows_A-Bomb_Test|title=Damage Foreshadows A-Bomb Test, 1946/06/06 (1946) |publisher=Universal Newsreel|year=1946|access-date=22 February 2012}} held on 2 June, a day celebrated since as Festa della Repubblica. This was the first time women voted nationally.{{Cite web|title=Italia 1946: le donne al voto, dossier a cura di Mariachiara Fugazza e Silvia Cassamagnaghi |url=http://www.insmli.it/pubblicazioni/35/Voto%20donne%20versione%20def.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110520041048/http://www.insmli.it/pubblicazioni/35/Voto%20donne%20versione%20def.pdf|archive-date=20 May 2011|access-date=30 May 2011}}; {{Cite news|title=La prima volta in cui le donne votarono in Italia, 75 anni fa|url=https://www.ilpost.it/2021/03/10/primo-voto-italia-donne-10-marzo-1946|access-date=24 August 2021|work=Il Post|date=10 March 2021|language=it-IT|archive-date=23 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210823162103/https://www.ilpost.it/2021/03/10/primo-voto-italia-donne-10-marzo-1946|url-status=live}} Victor Emmanuel III's son, Umberto II, was forced to abdicate. The Republican Constitution was approved in 1948. Under the Treaty of Paris between Italy and the Allied Powers, areas next to the Adriatic Sea were annexed by Yugoslavia, resulting in the Istrian-Dalmatian exodus, which involved the emigration of around 300,000 Istrian and Dalmatian Italians.{{Cite web|last=Tobagi|first=Benedetta|title=La Repubblica italiana {{!}} Treccani, il portale del sapere|url=http://www.treccani.it/scuola/lezioni/storia/la_repubblica_italiana.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160305001726/http://www.treccani.it/scuola/lezioni/storia/la_repubblica_italiana.html|archive-date=5 March 2016|access-date=28 January 2015|publisher=Treccani.it}} Italy lost all colonial possessions, ending the Italian Empire.

File:Alcide de Gasperi 2.jpg, first republican prime minister of Italy and one of the Founding fathers of the European Union]]

Fears of a Communist takeover proved crucial in 1948, when the Christian Democrats, under Alcide De Gasperi, won a landslide victory.{{Cite book|last1=Lawrence S. Kaplan|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UV-ti1sYcbcC|title=NATO 1948: The Birth of the Transatlantic Alliance |last2=Morris Honick|date=2007|publisher=Rowman & Littlefield|isbn=978-0-7425-3917-4|pages=52–55|access-date=5 January 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240116110143/https://books.google.com/books?id=UV-ti1sYcbcC|archive-date=16 January 2024|url-status=live}}; {{Cite book|author=Robert Ventresca|title=From Fascism to Democracy: Culture and Politics in the Italian Election of 1948 |publisher=University of Toronto Press|date=2004|pages=236–37}} Consequently, in 1949 Italy became a member of NATO. The Marshall Plan revived the economy, which, until the late 1960s, enjoyed a period called the Italian economic miracle. In the 1950s, Italy became a founding country of the European Communities, a forerunner of the European Union. From the late 1960s until the early 1980s, the country experienced the Years of Lead, characterised by economic difficulties, especially after the 1973 oil crisis; social conflicts; and terrorist massacres.{{Cite web|year=1995|title=Commissione parlamentare d'inchiesta sul terrorismo in Italia e sulle cause della mancata individuazione dei responsabili delle stragi (Parliamentary investigative commission on terrorism in Italy and the failure to identify the perpetrators)|url=http://www.isn.ethz.ch/php/documents/collection_gladio/report_ital_senate.pdf|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060819211212/http://www.isn.ethz.ch/php/documents/collection_gladio/report_ital_senate.pdf |archive-date=19 August 2006|access-date=2 May 2006|language=it}}; {{In lang|en|it|fr|de}} {{Cite web|title=Secret Warfare: Operation Gladio and NATO's Stay-Behind Armies|url=http://www.isn.ethz.ch/php/collections/coll_gladio.htm#Documents|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060425182721/http://www.isn.ethz.ch/php/collections/coll_gladio.htm|archive-date=25 April 2006|access-date=2 May 2006|publisher=Swiss Federal Institute of Technology / International Relation and Security Network}}; {{Cite web|date=24 June 2000|title=Clarion: Philip Willan, Guardian, 24 June 2000, p. 19 |url=http://www.cambridgeclarion.org/press_cuttings/us.terrorism_graun_24jun2000.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100329113138/http://www.cambridgeclarion.org/press_cuttings/us.terrorism_graun_24jun2000.html|archive-date=29 March 2010|access-date=24 April 2010|publisher=Cambridgeclarion.org}}

The economy recovered and Italy became the world's fifth-largest industrial nation after it gained entry into the G7 in the 1970s. However, national debt skyrocketed past 100% of GDP. Between 1992 and 1993, Italy faced terror attacks perpetrated by the Sicilian Mafia as a consequence of new anti-mafia measures by the government.{{Cite web|date=8 March 2012|title=New Arrests for Via D'Amelio Bomb Attack|url=https://www.corriere.it/International/english/articoli/2012/03/08/borsellino.shtml|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121013204755/http://www.corriere.it/International/english/articoli/2012/03/08/borsellino.shtml|archive-date=13 October 2012|access-date=9 February 2019|website=Corriere della Sera}} Voters—disenchanted with political paralysis, massive public debt and extensive corruption uncovered by the Clean Hands investigation—demanded radical reform. The Christian Democrats, who had ruled for almost 50 years, underwent a crisis and disbanded, splitting into factions.The so-called "Second Republic" was born by forceps: not with a revolt of Algiers, but formally under the same Constitution, with the mere replacement of one ruling class by another: {{Cite journal|last=Buonomo|first=Giampiero|year=2015|title=Tovaglie pulite|journal=Mondoperaio Edizione Online}} The Communists reorganised as a social-democratic force. During the 1990s and 2000s, centre-right (dominated by media magnate Silvio Berlusconi) and centre-left coalitions (led by professor Romano Prodi) alternately governed.

In 2011, amidst the Great Recession, Berlusconi resigned and was replaced by the technocratic cabinet of Mario Monti.{{Cite news|last=Hooper|first=John|date=16 November 2011|title=Mario Monti appoints technocrats to steer Italy out of economic crisis|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/nov/16/mario-monti-technocratic-cabinet-italy|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200319230844/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/nov/16/mario-monti-technocratic-cabinet-italy|archive-date=19 March 2020|access-date=19 March 2020|work=The Guardian}} In 2014, Matteo Renzi became prime minister and the government started constitutional reform. This was rejected in a 2016 referendum and Paolo Gentiloni became prime minister.{{Cite news|date=12 December 2016|title=New Italian PM Paolo Gentiloni sworn in|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-38295549|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191129122857/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-38295549|archive-date=29 November 2019|access-date=19 March 2020|publisher=BBC News}}

During the European migrant crisis of the 2010s, Italy was the entry point and leading destination for most asylum seekers entering the EU. Between 2013 and 2018, it took in over 700,000 migrants,{{Cite news|date=21 May 2018|title=What will Italy's new government mean for migrants?|url=https://www.thelocal.it/20180521/what-will-italys-new-government-mean-for-migrants|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190401231010/https://www.thelocal.it/20180521/what-will-italys-new-government-mean-for-migrants|archive-date=1 April 2019|access-date=8 June 2018|work=The Local Italy}} mainly from sub-Saharan Africa,{{Cite news|date=18 July 2017|title=African migrants fear for future as Italy struggles with surge in arrivals|url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-italy-migrants-africa/african-migrants-fear-for-future-as-italy-struggles-with-surge-in-arrivals-idUSKBN1A30QD|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190402002627/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-italy-migrants-africa/african-migrants-fear-for-future-as-italy-struggles-with-surge-in-arrivals-idUSKBN1A30QD|archive-date=2 April 2019|access-date=8 June 2018|work=Reuters}} which put a strain on the public purse and led to a surge in support for far-right or euro-sceptic parties.{{Cite news|title=Italy starts to show the strains of migrant influx|url=http://www.thelocal.it/20150519/migrant-surge-tests-italys-humanitarian-instincts|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170429061446/https://www.thelocal.it/20150519/migrant-surge-tests-italys-humanitarian-instincts|archive-date=29 April 2017|access-date=10 January 2017|work=The Local}}; {{Cite news|title=Italy's far right jolts back from dead|url=http://www.politico.eu/article/italys-other-matteo-salvini-northern-league-politicians-media-effettosalvini|access-date=10 January 2017|work=Politico|date=3 February 2016|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170119122156/http://www.politico.eu/article/italys-other-matteo-salvini-northern-league-politicians-media-effettosalvini|archive-date=19 January 2017}} After the 2018 general election, Giuseppe Conte became prime minister of a populist coalition.{{Cite news|date=24 May 2018|title=Opinion – The Populists Take Rome|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/24/opinion/populists-rome-five-star-movement.html|url-access=subscription|url-status=live|archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220103/https://www.nytimes.com/2018/05/24/opinion/populists-rome-five-star-movement.html|archive-date=3 January 2022|access-date=2 June 2018|work=The New York Times}}{{Cbignore}}

With almost 200,000 victims, Italy was one of the countries with the most deaths in the COVID-19 pandemic{{Cite news|last=Ellyatt|first=Holly|date=19 March 2020|title=Italy's lockdown will be extended, prime minister says as death toll spikes and hospitals struggle|url=https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/19/italys-death-rate-reaches-record-high-hospitals-in-lombardy-struggle.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200319084719/https://www.cnbc.com/2020/03/19/italys-death-rate-reaches-record-high-hospitals-in-lombardy-struggle.html|archive-date=19 March 2020|access-date=19 March 2020|publisher=CNBC}} and one of the most affected economically.[https://www.agi.it/economia/news/2020-04-14/coronavirus-fmi-crisi-economica-8331041/ L'Italia pagherà il conto più salato della crisi post-epidemia] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200527124958/https://www.agi.it/economia/news/2020-04-14/coronavirus-fmi-crisi-economica-8331041|date=27 May 2020}}, AGI In February 2021, after a government crisis, Conte resigned. Mario Draghi, former president of the European Central Bank, formed a national unity government supported by most main parties,{{Cite news|date=12 February 2021|title=Mario Draghi sworn in as Italy's new prime minister|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-56049115|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220319075829/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-56049115|archive-date=19 March 2022|access-date=13 February 2021}} pledging to implement an economic stimulus to face the crisis caused by the pandemic.{{Cite web|date=12 February 2021|title=Mario Draghi's new government to be sworn in on Saturday|url=http://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/12/mario-draghis-new-italian-government-to-be-sworn-in-on-saturday|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210419104552/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/feb/12/mario-draghis-new-italian-government-to-be-sworn-in-on-saturday|archive-date=19 April 2021|access-date=19 February 2021|website=The Guardian}} In 2022, Giorgia Meloni was sworn in as Italy's first female prime minister.{{Cite news|date=21 October 2022|title=Who is Giorgia Meloni? The rise to power of Italy's new far-right PM|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-63351655|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221024023546/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-63351655|archive-date=24 October 2022|access-date=24 October 2022|publisher=BBC News}}

{{Main|Geography of Italy}}

{{Further|Geology of Italy|Volcanism of Italy|List of rivers of Italy|List of lakes of Italy|List of islands of Italy|Italy (geographical region)}}

File:Italy relief location map.jpg

Italy, whose territory largely coincides with the eponymous geographical region,{{Citation |title=Italia |volume=VI |page=413 |year=1970 |publisher=Treccani |language=it |encyclopedia=Dizionario enciclopedico italiano}} is located in Southern Europe{{Cite web |title=Southern Europe, a peninsula extending into the central Mediterranean Sea, northeast of Tunisia |url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/italy |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210701235642/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/italy |archive-date=1 July 2021 |access-date=17 August 2021 |website=The World Factbook |publisher=Central Intelligence Agency}} (and is also considered part of Western Europe{{efn|name=WE}}) between latitudes 35° and 47° N, and longitudes 6° and 19° E. To the north, from west to east, Italy borders France, Switzerland, Austria, and Slovenia, and is roughly delimited by the Alpine watershed, enclosing the Po Valley and the Venetian Plain. It consists of the entirety of the Italian Peninsula, Sicily and Sardinia (the biggest islands of the Mediterranean), and many smaller islands. Some of Italy's territory extends beyond the Alpine basin, and some islands are located outside the Eurasian continental shelf.

The country's area is {{Convert|301230|km2|0|abbr=out}}, of which {{Convert|294020|km2|0|abbr=on}} is land and {{Convert|7210|km2|0|abbr=on}} is water.{{Cite web|date=30 October 2014|title=Principali dimensioni geostatistiche e grado di urbanizzazione del Paese|url=https://www.istat.it/it/archivio/137001|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141117054950/https://www.istat.it/it/archivio/137001|archive-date=17 November 2014|access-date=22 March 2019|website=istat.it}} Including the islands, Italy has a coastline of {{Convert|7600|km|0|abbr=off}} on the Mediterranean Sea, the Ligurian and Tyrrhenian seas,{{Cite encyclopedia|title=Tyrrhenian Sea|encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica|publisher=Cambridge University Press|url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Tyrrhenian-Sea|access-date=18 July 2017|editor-last=Chisholm|editor-first=Hugh|editor-link=Hugh Chisholm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180711020502/https://www.britannica.com/place/Tyrrhenian-Sea|archive-date=11 July 2018|url-status=live}} the Ionian Sea,{{Cite book|url=https://iho.int/uploads/user/pubs/standards/s-23/S-23_Ed3_1953_EN.pdf|title=Limits of Oceans and Seas|publisher=Organisation hydrographique internationale|year=1953|edition=3rd|access-date=28 December 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111008191433/http://www.iho.int/iho_pubs/standard/S-23/S-23_Ed3_1953_EN.pdf|archive-date=8 October 2011|issue=28}} and the Adriatic Sea.{{Sfn|Cushman-Roisin|Gačić|Poulain|2001|pp=1–2}} Its border with France runs for {{Convert|488|km|0|abbr=on}}; Switzerland, {{Convert|740|km|0|abbr=on}}; Austria, {{Convert|430|km|0|abbr=on}}; and Slovenia, {{Convert|232|km|0|abbr=on}}. The sovereign states of San Marino and Vatican City (the smallest country in the world and headquarters of the worldwide Catholic Church under the governance of the Holy See) are enclaves within Italy,{{Cite encyclopedia|year=2012|title=San Marino|encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica|url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/521449/San-Marino|access-date=1 March 2011|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110511180105/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/521449/San-Marino|archive-date=11 May 2011|url-status=live}}; {{Cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-17994868|title=Vatican country profile|year=2018|publisher=BBC News|access-date=24 August 2018|archive-date=25 August 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180825011001/https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-17994868|url-status=live}} while Campione d'Italia is an Italian exclave in Switzerland.{{Cite web|title=Democracy in Figures|url=http://demo.istat.it/index_e.php|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210126215040/http://demo.istat.it/index_e.php|archive-date=26 January 2021|access-date=28 May 2021|website=Italian National Institute of Statistics}} The border with San Marino is {{Convert|39|km|0|abbr=on}} long, that with Vatican City, {{Convert|3.2|km|1|abbr=on}}.

File:Monte Bianco DSF1243-m.jpg (Monte Bianco) in Aosta Valley, the highest point in the European Union]]

Over 35% of Italian territory is mountainous.{{Cite book|last=Riganti|first=dir. da Alberto|title=Enciclopedia universale Garzanti.|publisher=Garzanti|year=1991|isbn=8-8115-0459-7|edition=Nuova ed. aggiornata e ampliata.|location=Milano}} The Apennine Mountains form the peninsula's backbone, and the Alps form most of its northern boundary, where Italy's highest point is located on the summit of Mont Blanc (Monte Bianco) at {{Cvt|4810|m|ft}}. Other well-known mountains include the Matterhorn (Monte Cervino) in the western Alps, and the Dolomites in the eastern Alps. Many parts of Italy are of volcanic origin. Most small islands and archipelagos in the south are volcanic islands. There are active volcanoes: Mount Etna in Sicily (the largest in Europe), Vulcano, Stromboli, and Vesuvius.

Most rivers of Italy drain into the Adriatic or Tyrrhenian Sea.{{Cite web|title=List of Italian rivers|url=http://www.comuni-italiani.it/fiumi|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170916010640/http://www.comuni-italiani.it/fiumi|archive-date=16 September 2017|access-date=30 July 2018|publisher=comuni-italiani.it}} The longest is the Po, which flows from the Alps on the western border, and crosses the Padan plain to the Adriatic.{{Cite magazine|last=Zwingle|first=Erla|date=May 2002|title=Italy's Po River Punished for centuries by destructive floods, northern Italians stubbornly embrace their nation's longest river, which nurtures rice fields, vineyards, fisheries—and legends|url=http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/0205/feature6|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071223133709/http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/ngm/0205/feature6|archive-date=23 December 2007|access-date=6 April 2009|magazine=National Geographic}} The Po Valley is the largest plain, with {{Convert|46000|km2|abbr=on}}, and contains over 70% of the country's lowlands. The largest lakes are, in descending size: Garda ({{Convert|367.94|km2|sqmi|0|abbr=on|disp=or}}), Maggiore ({{Convert|212.51|km2|sqmi|0|abbr=on|disp=or}}), and Como ({{Convert|145.9|km2|sqmi|0|abbr=on|disp=or}}).{{Cite web|title=Morphometric and hydrological characteristics of some important Italian lakes|url=http://www.iii.to.cnr.it/limnol/cicloac/lagit.htm|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100205043503/http://www.iii.to.cnr.it/limnol/cicloac/lagit.htm|archive-date=5 February 2010|access-date=3 March 2010|publisher=Istituto per lo Studio degli Ecosistemi|location=Verbania Pallanza}}

{{Main|Climate of Italy}}

File:Italy Köppen.svg map of Italy{{Cite journal|last1=Beck|first1=Hylke E.|last2=Zimmermann|first2=Niklaus E.|last3=McVicar|first3=Tim R.|last4=Vergopolan|first4=Noemi|last5=Berg|first5=Alexis|last6=Wood|first6=Eric F.|author-link6=Eric Franklin Wood|date=30 October 2018|title=Present and future Köppen-Geiger climate classification maps at 1-km resolution|journal=Scientific Data|volume=5|page=180214|bibcode=2018NatSD...580214B|doi=10.1038/sdata.2018.214|pmc=6207062|pmid=30375988}}]]

Italy's climate is influenced by the seas that surround the country on every side except the north, which constitute a reservoir of heat and humidity. Within the southern temperate zone, they determine a Mediterranean climate with local differences.{{Cite web|title=Che cosa significa clima temperato e cosa significa clima continentale|url=https://www.ideegreen.it/cosa-significa-clima-temperato-cosa-significa-clima-continentale-141457.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220308180036/https://www.ideegreen.it/cosa-significa-clima-temperato-cosa-significa-clima-continentale-141457.html|archive-date=8 March 2022|access-date=8 March 2022|language=it}} Because of the length of the peninsula and the mostly mountainous hinterland, the climate is highly diverse. In most inland northern and central regions, the climate ranges from humid subtropical to humid continental and oceanic. The Po Valley is mostly humid subtropical, with cool winters and hot summers.Adriana Rigutti, Meteorologia, Giunti, p. 95, 2009.; Thomas A. Blair, Climatology: General and Regional, Prentice Hall pp. 131–132 The coastal areas of Liguria, Tuscany, and most of the south generally fit the Mediterranean climate stereotype, as in the Köppen climate classification.

Conditions on the coast are different from those in the interior, particularly during winter when the higher altitudes tend to be cold, wet, and often snowy. The coastal regions have mild winters, and hot and generally dry summers; lowland valleys are hot in summer. Winter temperatures vary from {{Convert|0|C}} in the Alps to {{Convert|12|C}} in Sicily; so, average summer temperatures range from {{Convert|20|C}} to over {{Convert|25|C}}. Winters can vary widely with lingering cold, foggy, and snowy periods in the north, and milder, sunnier conditions in the south. Summers are hot across the country, except at high altitude, particularly in the south. Northern and central areas can experience strong thunderstorms from spring to autumn.{{Cite web|title=Climate Atlas of Italy|url=http://clima.meteoam.it/atlanteClimatico.php?ling=eng|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121114223307/http://clima.meteoam.it/atlanteClimatico.php?ling=eng|archive-date=14 November 2012|access-date=30 September 2012|publisher=Network of the Air Force Meteorological Service}}

{{Main|Fauna of Italy|Flora of Italy}}

{{Further|Italian garden}}

Italy's varied geography, including the Alps, Apennines, central Italian woodlands, and southern Italian Garigue and Maquis shrubland, contribute to habitat diversity. As the peninsula is in the centre of the Mediterranean, forming a corridor between Central Europe and North Africa, and having {{Cvt|8,000|km}} of coastline, Italy has received species from the Balkans, Eurasia, and the Middle East. Italy has probably the highest level of faunal biodiversity in Europe, with over 57,000 species recorded, representing more than a third of all European fauna,{{Cite web|title=Italy's Fifth National Report to the Convention on Biological Diversity|url=http://www.minambiente.it/sites/default/files/archivio/allegati/biodiversita/italian_fifth_report_cbd.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150518094031/http://www.minambiente.it/sites/default/files/archivio/allegati/biodiversita/italian_fifth_report_cbd.pdf|archive-date=18 May 2015|access-date=17 May 2015|publisher=Italian Ministry for the Environment, Land and Sea|page=7}} and the highest level of biodiversity of animal and plant species within the EU.{{Cite web|title=Italy – Main Details|url=https://www.cbd.int/countries/profile/?country=it|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120512013114/http://www.cbd.int/countries/profile.shtml?country=it|archive-date=12 May 2012|access-date=10 September 2023|publisher=Convention on Biological Diversity}}

File:C. l. italicus in MNP.jpg, the national animal of Italy]]

The fauna of Italy includes 4,777 endemic animal species,{{Cite web|title=Checklist E Distribuzione Della Fauna Italiana|url=https://faunaitalia.it/documents/CKmap_ITA.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230109172951/https://faunaitalia.it/documents/CKmap_ITA.pdf|archive-date=9 January 2023|access-date=10 March 2022|page=29|language=it}} which include the Sardinian long-eared bat, Sardinian red deer, spectacled salamander, brown cave salamander, Italian newt, Italian frog, Apennine yellow-bellied toad, Italian wall lizard, and Sicilian pond turtle. There are 119 mammals species,{{Cite web|title=Mammiferi d'Italia – Ministero della Transizione Ecologica|url=https://www.mite.gov.it/sites/default/files/archivio/biblioteca/qcn_14.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220529064555/https://www.mite.gov.it/sites/default/files/archivio/biblioteca/qcn_14.pdf|archive-date=29 May 2022|access-date=11 March 2022|page=7|language=it}} 550 bird species,{{Cite web|title=Uccelli|url=https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/uccelli|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220311153732/https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/uccelli|archive-date=11 March 2022|access-date=11 March 2022|language=it}} 69 reptile species,{{Cite web|last1=Peter Uetz|last2=Jakob Hallermann|last3=Jiri Hosek|title=Distribution: italy|url=https://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/advanced_search?location=italy&submit=Search|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230109172951/https://reptile-database.reptarium.cz/advanced_search?location=italy&submit=Search|archive-date=9 January 2023|access-date=22 June 2021|website=The Reptile Database}} 39 amphibian species,{{Cite web|title=Quali sono gli anfibi autoctoni?|url=http://www.legambienteanimalhelp.it/anfibi-autoctoni|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220319075835/http://www.legambienteanimalhelp.it/anfibi-autoctoni|archive-date=19 March 2022|access-date=11 March 2022|language=it}} 623 fish species,{{Cite web|title=All fishes reported from Italy|url=http://www.fishbase.us/country/CountryChecklist.php?what=list&trpp=50&c_code=380&csub_code=&cpresence=present&sortby=alpha2&vhabitat=all2|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240116110724/http://www.fishbase.us/country/CountryChecklist.php?what=list&trpp=50&c_code=380&csub_code=&cpresence=present&sortby=alpha2&vhabitat=all2|archive-date=16 January 2024|access-date=10 March 2022}} and 56,213 invertebrate species, of which 37,303 are insect species.{{Cite web|title=Dove operiamo|url=https://www.cittametropolitana.mi.it/gev/dove_operiamo/index.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230109172951/https://www.cittametropolitana.mi.it/gev/dove_operiamo/index.html|archive-date=9 January 2023|access-date=11 March 2022|language=it}}

The flora of Italy was traditionally estimated to comprise about 5,500 vascular plant species.Pignatti, S. (1982). Flora d'Italia. Edagricole, Bologna, vol. 1–3, 1982 However, {{As of|2005|lc=y}}, 6,759 species are recorded in the Data bank of Italian vascular flora.{{Cite web|title=Riccardo Guarino, Sabina Addamiano, Marco La Rosa, Sandro Pignatti Flora Italiana Digitale:an interactive identification tool for the Flora of Italy|url=http://www.openstarts.units.it/dspace/bitstream/10077/3767/1/Guarino%20et%20al,%20bioidentify.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161226162840/https://www.openstarts.units.it/dspace/bitstream/10077/3767/1/Guarino%20et%20al%2C%20bioidentify.pdf|archive-date=26 December 2016}} Italy has 1,371 endemic plant species and subspecies,{{Cite web|title=An inventory of vascular plants endemic to Italy|url=http://biotaxa.org/Phytotaxa/article/view/phytotaxa.168.1.1|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200624045915/https://www.biotaxa.org/Phytotaxa/article/view/phytotaxa.168.1.1|archive-date=24 June 2020|access-date=12 March 2022}} which include Sicilian fir, Barbaricina columbine, Sea marigold, Lavender cotton, and Ucriana violet. Italy is a signatory to the Berne Convention on the Conservation of European Wildlife and Natural Habitats and the Habitats Directive.

Italy has many botanical and historic gardens.{{Cite web|title=I parchi fioriti e gli orti botanici più belli d'Italia|date=July 2016 |url=https://initalia.virgilio.it/i-parchi-fioriti-e-gli-orti-botanici-piu-belli-ditalia-3693|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230109172952/https://initalia.virgilio.it/i-parchi-fioriti-e-gli-orti-botanici-piu-belli-ditalia-3693|archive-date=9 January 2023|access-date=14 March 2022|language=it}}; {{Cite web|url=https://www.casevacanza.it/idee/i-giardini-piu-belli-d-italia|title=Top10: i giardini più belli d'Italia|access-date=15 March 2022|language=it|archive-date=9 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230109172951/https://www.casevacanza.it/idee/i-giardini-piu-belli-d-italia|url-status=live}} The Italian garden is stylistically based on symmetry, axial geometry, and the principle of imposing order on nature. It influenced the history of gardening, especially French and English gardens.{{Cite web|date=11 March 2022|title=Alla scoperta delle meraviglie del giardino all'italiana|url=https://www.tuttogreen.it/giardino-all-italiana|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230109172951/https://www.tuttogreen.it/giardino-all-italiana|archive-date=9 January 2023|access-date=28 March 2022|language=it}} The Italian garden was influenced by Roman and Italian Renaissance gardens.

The Italian wolf is the national animal of Italy,{{Cite web|last=Sheri Foster|date=January 2021|title=What is Italy national animal?|url=https://it.yourtripagent.com/4052-what-is-italy-s-national-animal|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230109172951/https://it.yourtripagent.com/4052-what-is-italy-s-national-animal|archive-date=9 January 2023|access-date=15 November 2021|website=Yourtrip.com}}; {{Cite web|url=https://www.affaritaliani.it/culturaspettacoli/il-lupo-grigio-degli-appennini-e-l-animale-dell-italia-544778.html|title=Il lupo grigio degli appennini e l animale dell Italia|author=James Hansen|date=June 2018|access-date=15 November 2021|archive-date=26 November 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221126224852/https://www.affaritaliani.it/culturaspettacoli/il-lupo-grigio-degli-appennini-e-l-animale-dell-italia-544778.html|url-status=live}} while the national tree is the strawberry tree.{{Cite web|date=3 October 2011|title=Il corbezzolo simbolo dell'Unità d'Italia. Una specie che resiste agli incendi|url=http://www.altovastese.it/cultura/il-corbezzolo-simbolo-unita-italia-specie-che-resiste-agli-incendi|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160205120852/http://www.altovastese.it/cultura/il-corbezzolo-simbolo-unita-italia-specie-che-resiste-agli-incendi|archive-date=5 February 2016|access-date=25 January 2016|language=it}} The reasons for this are that the Italian wolf, which inhabits the Apennine Mountains and the Western Alps, features prominently in Latin and Italian cultures, such as the legend of the founding of Rome,{{Cite book|last=Livy|title=The history of Rome|publisher=Printed for A. Strahan|others=George Baker (trans.)|year=1797}} while the green leaves, white flowers, and red berries of the strawberry tree, native to the Mediterranean, recall the colours of the flag. The national bird is the Italian sparrow,{{cite web|title=Passero Italiano: L'uccello nazionale d'Italia|date=18 December 2022|url=https://www.concaternanaoggi.it/passero-italiano-luccello-nazionale-ditalia/|publisher=Conca Ternana Oggi|access-date=22 August 2024|archive-date=22 August 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240822123815/https://www.concaternanaoggi.it/passero-italiano-luccello-nazionale-ditalia/|url-status=live}} while the national flower is the flower of the strawberry tree.{{cite web|url=https://www.msn.com/it-it/notizie/mondo/qual-%C3%A8-il-fiore-nazionale-dei-paesi-del-mondo/ss-AA1eWqXE#image=25|title=Il fiore nazionale dell'Italia (e quello degli altri Paesi del mondo)|website=MSN|access-date=26 August 2024|language=it|archive-date=2 October 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241002211951/https://www.msn.com/it-it/notizie/mondo/qual-%C3%A8-il-fiore-nazionale-dei-paesi-del-mondo/ss-AA1eWqXE#image=25|url-status=live}}

{{See also|List of national parks of Italy|List of regional parks of Italy|List of Marine Protected Areas of Italy}}

File:National and Regional Parks of Italy.svg

After its quick industrial growth, Italy took time to address its environmental problems. After improvements, Italy now ranks 84th in the world for ecological sustainability.{{Cite web|title=Italy – Environment|url=http://dev.prenhall.com/divisions/hss/worldreference/IT/environment.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090701064224/http://dev.prenhall.com/divisions/hss/worldreference/IT/environment.html|archive-date=1 July 2009|access-date=2 August 2010|publisher=Dev.prenhall.com}} The total area protected by national parks, regional parks, and nature reserves covers about 11% of Italian territory,{{Cite web|title=Regione e aree protette|url=https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/regione-e-aree-protette_%28L%27Italia-e-le-sue-Regioni%29|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220111173345/https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/regione-e-aree-protette_%28L%27Italia-e-le-sue-Regioni%29|archive-date=11 January 2022|access-date=11 January 2022|language=it}} and 12% of Italy's coastline is protected.{{Cite web|title=Le aree protette in Italia|url=http://www.uccellidaproteggere.it/La-conservazione/Cosa-fa-l-Italia-Le-azioni/Le-aree-protette-in-Italia|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220302220957/http://www.uccellidaproteggere.it/La-conservazione/Cosa-fa-l-Italia-Le-azioni/Le-aree-protette-in-Italia|archive-date=2 March 2022|access-date=2 March 2022|language=it}}

Italy has been one of the world's leading producers of renewable energy, in 2010 ranking as the fourth largest provider of installed solar energy capacity{{Cite web|date=15 July 2010|title=Renewables 2010 Global Status Report |url=http://www.ren21.net/Portals/97/documents/GSR/REN21_GSR2011.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110820095506/http://www.ren21.net/Portals/97/documents/GSR/REN21_GSR2011.pdf|archive-date=20 August 2011|access-date=16 July 2010|publisher=REN21}}; {{Cite web|title=Photovoltaic energy barometer 2010 – EurObserv'ER |url=https://www.eurobserv-er.org/pdf/baro196.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101011224419/http://www.eurobserv-er.org/pdf/baro196.pdf|archive-date=11 October 2010|access-date=30 October 2010}} and sixth largest of wind power capacity.{{Cite web|date=February 2011|title=World Wind Energy Report 2010 |url=http://www.wwindea.org/home/images/stories/pdfs/worldwindenergyreport2010_s.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110904232058/http://www.wwindea.org/home/images/stories/pdfs/worldwindenergyreport2010_s.pdf|archive-date=4 September 2011|access-date=8 August 2011|publisher=World Wind Energy Association}} Renewable energy provided approximately 37% Italy's energy consumption in 2020.{{Cite web|date=25 May 2021|title=Renewables provided 37% of Italy's energy in 2020 – English |url=https://www.ansa.it/english/news/2021/05/25/renewables-provided-37-of-italys-energy-in-2020_1a075060-c823-4076-a338-79367427dfd2.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211023040922/https://www.ansa.it/english/news/2021/05/25/renewables-provided-37-of-italys-energy-in-2020_1a075060-c823-4076-a338-79367427dfd2.html|archive-date=23 October 2021|access-date=28 May 2021|website=ANSA.it}}

The country operated nuclear reactors between 1963 and 1990 but, after the Chernobyl disaster and referendums, the nuclear programme was terminated, a decision overturned by the government in 2008, with plans to build up to four nuclear power plants. This was in turn struck down by a referendum following the Fukushima nuclear accident.{{Cite web|last=Duncan Kennedy|date=14 June 2011|title=Italy nuclear: Berlusconi accepts referendum blow|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-13741105|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110612112154/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-13741105|archive-date=12 June 2011|access-date=20 April 2013|publisher=BBC News}}

Air pollution remains severe, especially in the industrialised north. Italy is the twelfth-largest carbon dioxide producer.United Nations Statistics Division, Millennium Development Goals indicators: [http://mdgs.un.org/unsd/mdg/SeriesDetail.aspx?srid=749&crid= Carbon dioxide emissions ({{CO2}}), thousand metric tons of {{CO2}}] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091225014715/http://mdgs.un.org/unsd/mdg/SeriesDetail.aspx?srid=749&crid=|date=25 December 2009}} (collected by CDIAC); Human-produced, direct emissions of carbon dioxide only. Excludes other greenhouse gases; land-use, land-use-change and forestry (LULUCF); and natural background flows of {{CO2}} (See also: Carbon cycle) Extensive traffic and congestion in large cities continue to cause environmental and health issues, even if smog levels have decreased since the 1970s and 1980s, with smog becoming an increasingly rare phenomenon and levels of sulphur dioxide decreasing.{{Cite web|title=Environment and Health in Italy – Executive Summary|url=https://www.euro.who.int/en/home|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100303051309/http://www.euro.who.int/document/hms/ehiexes_e.pdf|archive-date=3 March 2010|publisher=World Health Organization}}

Deforestation, illegal building, and poor land-management policies have led to significant erosion in Italy's mountainous regions, leading to ecological disasters such as the 1963 Vajont Dam flood, the 1998 Sarno,{{Cite news|last=Nick Squires|date=2 October 2009|title=Sicily mudslide leaves scores dead|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/italy/6255575/Sicily-mudslide-leaves-scores-dead.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091006082824/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/italy/6255575/Sicily-mudslide-leaves-scores-dead.html|archive-date=6 October 2009|access-date=2 October 2009|work=The Daily Telegraph|location=London}} and the 2009 Messina mudslides.

{{Main|Politics of Italy}}

Italy has been a unitary parliamentary republic since 1946, when the monarchy was abolished. The president of Italy, Sergio Mattarella since 2015, is Italy's head of state. The president is elected for a single seven-year term by the Italian Parliament and regional voters in joint session. Italy has a written democratic constitution that resulted from a Constituent Assembly formed by representatives of the anti-fascist forces that contributed to the defeat of Nazi and Fascist forces during the liberation of Italy, in World War II.Smyth, Howard McGaw Italy: From Fascism to the Republic (1943–1946) The Western Political Quarterly vol. 1 no. 3 (pp. 205–222), September 1948.{{JSTOR|442274}}

Italy plays a major role in many economic, military, cultural, and political affairs, and is one of the EU big three. It is widely considered to be a regional power,Gabriele Abbondanza, Italy as a Regional Power: the African Context from National Unification to the Present Day (Rome: Aracne, 2016); "Operation Alba may be considered one of the most important instances in which Italy has acted as a regional power, taking the lead in executing a technically and politically coherent and determined strategy." See Federiga Bindi, Italy and the European Union (Washington, D.C.: Brookings Institution Press, 2011), p. 171. while its great power status{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=nTKBdY5HBeUC&q=Canada%2520Among%2520Nations%252C%25202004%253A%2520Setting%2520Priorities+Straight |title=Canada Among Nations, 2004: Setting Priorities Straight |date=17 January 2005 |publisher=McGill-Queen's Press – MQUP |isbn=978-0-7735-2836-9 |page=85 |quote=The United States is the sole world's superpower. France, Italy, Germany and the United Kingdom are great powers |access-date=13 June 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230116145100/https://books.google.com/books?id=nTKBdY5HBeUC&q=Canada%2520Among%2520Nations%252C%25202004%253A%2520Setting%2520Priorities+Straight |archive-date=16 January 2023 |url-status=live}}; {{Cite book |last=Sterio |first=Milena |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-QuI6n_OVMYC&q=The%20Right%20to%20Self-determination%20Under%20International%20Law%3A%20%22selfistans%22%2C%20Secession%20and%20the%20Rule%20of%20the%20Great%20Powers |title=The right to self-determination under international law: "selfistans", secession and the rule of the great powers |date=2013 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-0-4156-6818-7 |location=Milton Park, Abingdon, Oxon |page=xii (preface) |quote=The great powers are super-sovereign states: an exclusive club of the most powerful states economically, militarily, politically and strategically. These states include veto-wielding members of the United Nations Security Council (United States, United Kingdom, France, China, and Russia), as well as economic powerhouses such as Germany, Italy and Japan. |access-date=13 June 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240116110143/https://books.google.com/books?id=-QuI6n_OVMYC&q=The%20Right%20to%20Self-determination%20Under%20International%20Law%3A%20%22selfistans%22%2C%20Secession%20and%20the%20Rule%20of%20the%20Great%20Powers#v=snippet&q=The%20Right%20to%20Self-determination%20Under%20International%20Law%3A%20%22selfistans%22%2C%20Secession%20and%20the%20Rule%20of%20the%20Great%20Powers&f=false |archive-date=16 January 2024 |url-status=live}} is a subject of debate among scholars and political analysts.

{{Main|Government of Italy}}

{{Multiple image

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| caption1 = Sergio Mattarella
{{Small|President of Italy
since 2015}}

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{{Small|Prime Minister of Italy
since 2022}}

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Italy has a parliamentary government based on a mixed proportional and majoritarian voting system. The parliament is perfectly bicameral; each house has the same powers. The two houses: the Chamber of Deputies meets in Palazzo Montecitorio, and the Senate of the Republic in Palazzo Madama. A peculiarity of the Italian Parliament is the representation given to Italian citizens permanently living abroad: 8 Deputies and 4 Senators are elected in four distinct overseas constituencies. There are senators for life, appointed by the president "for outstanding patriotic merits in the social, scientific, artistic or literary field". Former presidents are ex officio life senators.

File:Palazzo Madama (Roma).jpg in Rome, seat of the Senate of the Republic, the upper house of the Italian Parliament]]

The prime minister of Italy is head of government and has executive authority, but must receive a vote of approval from the Council of Ministers to execute most policies. The prime minister and cabinet are appointed by the president, and confirmed by a vote of confidence in parliament. To remain as prime minister, one has to pass votes of confidence. The role of prime minister is similar to most other parliamentary systems, but they are not authorised to dissolve parliament. Another difference is that the political responsibility for intelligence is with the prime minister, who has exclusive power to coordinate intelligence policies, determine financial resources, strengthen cybersecurity, apply and protect State secrets, and authorise agents to carry out operations, in Italy or abroad.{{Cite web|title=About us – Sistema di informazione per la sicurezza della Repubblica|url=http://www.sicurezzanazionale.gov.it/sisr.nsf/english/about-us.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150329090926/http://www.sicurezzanazionale.gov.it/sisr.nsf/english/about-us.html|archive-date=29 March 2015|access-date=19 November 2015|website=sicurezzanazionale.gov.it}}

The major political parties are the Brothers of Italy, Democratic Party, and Five Star Movement. During the 2022 general election, these three and their coalitions won 357 of the 400 seats in the Chamber of Deputies, and 187 of 200 in the Senate. The centre-right coalition, which included Giorgia Meloni's Brothers of Italy, Matteo Salvini's League, Silvio Berlusconi's {{Lang|it|Forza Italia|italic=no}}, and Maurizio Lupi's Us Moderates, won most seats in parliament. The rest were taken by the centre-left coalition, which included the Democratic Party, the Greens and Left Alliance, Aosta Valley, More Europe, Civic Commitment, the Five Star Movement, Action – Italia Viva, South Tyrolean People's Party, South calls North, and the Associative Movement of Italians Abroad.

{{Main|Law of Italy|Judiciary of Italy|Law enforcement in Italy}}

File:Roma 2011 08 07 Palazzo di Giustizia.jpg, Rome]]

The law of Italy has several sources. These are hierarchical: the law or regulation from a lower source cannot conflict with the rule of an upper source (hierarchy of sources).{{Cite web|title=GERARCHIA DELLE FONTI|url=https://www.dirittoeconomia.net/diritto/fonti_diritto/gerarchia_fonti.htm|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220117194800/https://www.dirittoeconomia.net/diritto/fonti_diritto/gerarchia_fonti.htm|archive-date=17 January 2022|access-date=26 March 2022|language=it}} The Constitution of 1948 is the highest source.{{Cite web|title=Guide to Law Online: Italy |url=https://www.loc.gov/law/help/guide/nations/italy.php|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210508132418/https://www.loc.gov/law/help/guide/nations/italy.php|archive-date=8 May 2021|access-date=26 March 2022|website=loc.gov}} The Constitutional Court of Italy rules on the conformity of laws with the constitution. The judiciary bases their decisions on Roman law modified by the Napoleonic Code and later statutes. The Supreme Court of Cassation is the highest court for both criminal and civil appeals.

Italy lags behind other Western European nations in LGBT rights.{{Cite web|title=Country Ranking – Rainbow Europe|url=https://rainbow-europe.org/country-ranking|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190521004552/https://rainbow-europe.org/country-ranking|archive-date=21 May 2019|access-date=28 October 2021|website=rainbow-europe.org}} Italy's law prohibiting torture is considered behind international standards.{{Cite web|title=The Struggle against Torture in Italy – The Failure of the Italian Law – English|url=https://www.menschenrechte.org/en/2018/03/06/the-struggle-against-torture-in-italy-the-failure-of-the-italian-law|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190608005803/https://www.menschenrechte.org/en/2018/03/06/the-struggle-against-torture-in-italy-the-failure-of-the-italian-law|archive-date=8 June 2019|access-date=2019-06-08|website=menschenrechte.org}}

Law enforcement is complex with multiple police forces.{{Cite journal|last=Reece Walters|year=2013|editor2-last=Matthew Ball|editor3-last=Erin O'Brien|editor4-last=Juan Tauri|title=Eco Mafia and Environmental Crime|journal=Crime, Justice and Social Democracy: International Perspectives|publisher=Palgrave Macmillan|page=286|doi=10.1057/9781137008695_19|isbn=978-1-3494-3575-3|editor1=Kerry Carrington}} The national policing agencies are the Polizia di Stato ('State Police'), the Carabinieri, the Guardia di Finanza ('Financial Police'), and the Polizia Penitenziaria ('Prison Police'),{{Cite book|last1=Paulo Buonanno|title=Lessons from the Economics of Crime: What Reduces Offending?|last2=Giovanni Mastrobuoni|publisher=MIT Press|year=2013|isbn=978-0-2620-1961-3|editor-last=Philip J. Cook|page=193|chapter=Centralized versus Decentralized Police Hiring in Italy and the United States|doi=10.7551/mitpress/9780262019613.001.0001|editor-last2=Stephen Machin|editor-last3=Olivier Marie|editor-last4=Giovanni Mastrobuoni}} as well as the Guardia Costiera ('Coast Guard Police'). Although policing is primarily provided on a national basis, there are also the provincial and municipal police.

Since their appearance in the middle of the 19th century, Italian organised crime and criminal organisations have infiltrated the social and economic life of many regions in southern Italy; the most notorious is the Sicilian Mafia, which expanded into foreign countries, including the US. Mafia receipts may reach 9%{{Cite web|last=Claudio Tucci|date=11 November 2008|title=Confesercenti, la crisi economica rende ancor più pericolosa la mafia|url=http://www.ilsole24ore.com/art/SoleOnLine4/Economia%20e%20Lavoro/2008/11/confesercenti-mafia-racket-pizzo.shtml?uuid=20ff3b9c-afe7-11dd-8057-9c09c8bfa449|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110427081220/http://www.ilsole24ore.com/art/SoleOnLine4/Economia%20e%20Lavoro/2008/11/confesercenti-mafia-racket-pizzo.shtml?uuid=20ff3b9c-afe7-11dd-8057-9c09c8bfa449|archive-date=27 April 2011|access-date=21 April 2011|website=Confesercenti|publisher=Ilsole24ore.com|language=it}}; {{Cite news|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/italy/6957240/Italy-claims-finally-defeating-the-mafia.html|title=Italy claims finally defeating the mafia|author=Nick Squires|date=9 January 2010|work=The Daily Telegraph|location=London|access-date=21 April 2011|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110429173631/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/italy/6957240/Italy-claims-finally-defeating-the-mafia.html|archive-date=29 April 2011}} of GDP.{{Cite news|last=Kiefer|first=Peter|date=22 October 2007|title=Mafia crime is 7% of GDP in Italy, group reports|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/22/world/europe/22iht-italy.4.8001812.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110501085052/http://www.nytimes.com/2007/10/22/world/europe/22iht-italy.4.8001812.html|archive-date=1 May 2011|access-date=19 April 2011|work=The New York Times}} A 2009 report identified 610 Comune which have a strong Mafia presence, where 13 million Italians live and 15% of GDP is produced.{{Cite web|last=Maria Loi|date=1 October 2009|title=Rapporto Censis: 13 milioni di italiani convivono con la mafia|url=http://www.antimafiaduemila.com/content/view/20052/78|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110429082416/http://www.antimafiaduemila.com/content/view/20052/78|archive-date=29 April 2011|access-date=21 April 2011|website=Censis|publisher=Antimafia Duemila|language=it}}; {{Cite news|url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/oct/01/mafia-influence-hovers-over-italians|work=The Guardian|location=London|title=Mafia's influence hovers over 13{{spaces}}m Italians, says report|first=Tom|last=Kington|date=1 October 2009|access-date=5 May 2010| url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130908050448/http://www.theguardian.com/world/2009/oct/01/mafia-influence-hovers-over-italians|archive-date=8 September 2013}} The Calabrian 'Ndrangheta, probably the most powerful crime syndicate of Italy, accounts alone for 3% of GDP.{{Cite web|last=ANSA|date=14 March 2011|title=Italy: Anti-mafia police arrest 35 suspects in northern Lombardy region|url=http://mafiatoday.com/sicilian-mafia-ndrangheta/italy-anti-mafia-police-arrest-35-suspects-in-northern-lombardy-region|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110429100220/http://mafiatoday.com/sicilian-mafia-ndrangheta/italy-anti-mafia-police-arrest-35-suspects-in-northern-lombardy-region|archive-date=29 April 2011|access-date=21 April 2011|website=adnkronos.com|publisher=Mafia Today}}

At 0.013 per 1,000 people, Italy has the 47th highest murder rate,{{Cite web|title=Crime Statistics – Murders (per capita) (more recent) by country|url=http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/cri_mur_percap-crime-murders-per-capita|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080929181837/http://www.nationmaster.com/graph/cri_mur_percap-crime-murders-per-capita|archive-date=29 September 2008|access-date=4 April 2010|publisher=NationMaster.com}} compared to 61 countries, and the 43rd highest number of rapes per 1,000 people, compared to 64 countries in the world. These are relatively low figures among developed countries.

{{Main|Foreign relations of Italy}}

File:G7 Taormina family photo 2017-05-26.jpg leaders at the 43rd G7 summit in Taormina, Sicily]]

Italy is a founding member of the European Economic Community (EEC), now the European Union (EU), and of NATO. Italy was admitted to the United Nations in 1955, and is a member and strong supporter of international organisations, such as the OECD, the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade/World Trade Organization (GATT/WTO), the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), the Council of Europe, and the Central European Initiative. Its turns in the rotating presidencies of international organisations include the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe in 2018, G7 in 2017, and the EU Council in 2014. Italy is a recurrent non-permanent member of the UN Security Council.

Italy strongly supports multilateral international politics, endorsing the UN and its international security activities. In 2013, Italy had 5,296 troops deployed abroad, engaged in 33 UN and NATO missions in 25 countries.{{Cite web|title=Missioni/Attivita' Internazionali DAL 1 October 2013 AL 31 December 2013 – Situazione AL 11 December 2013 |url=http://www.difesa.it/OperazioniMilitari/Documents/SIT%20ANNO%202013%20al%2011%20dicembre%202013.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140201175427/http://www.difesa.it/OperazioniMilitari/Documents/SIT%20ANNO%202013%20al%2011%20dicembre%202013.pdf|archive-date=1 February 2014|access-date=27 January 2014|publisher=Italian Ministry of Defence}} Italy deployed troops in support of UN peacekeeping missions in Somalia, Mozambique, and East Timor. Italy provides support for NATO and UN operations in Bosnia, Kosovo, and Albania, and deployed over 2,000 troops to Afghanistan in support of Operation Enduring Freedom (OEF) from 2003.

Italy supported international efforts to reconstruct and stabilise Iraq, but it had withdrawn its military contingent of 3,200 troops by 2006. In August 2006, Italy deployed about 2,450 troops for the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon.[http://www.corriere.it/Primo_Piano/Cronache/2006/08_Agosto/29/libano.shtml "Italian soldiers leave for Lebanon"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060902001118/http://www.corriere.it/Primo_Piano/Cronache/2006/08_Agosto/29/libano.shtml|date=2 September 2006}} Corriere della Sera, 30 August 2006 Italy is one of the largest financiers of the Palestinian Authority, contributing €60 million in 2013 alone.{{Cite news|date=4 September 2013|title=Italy donates 60 million euros to PA|url=http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=626926|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141018104825/http://www.maannews.net/eng/ViewDetails.aspx?ID=626926|archive-date=18 October 2014|access-date=27 January 2014|agency=Ma'an News Agency}}

{{Main|Italian Armed Forces|Military history of Italy}}

{{See also|List of wars involving Italy}}

File:Cavour (550).jpg, the flagship of the Italian Navy]]

File:Centauro01.JPEG tank destroyer during a patrol in Bosnia-Herzegovina as part of IFOR]]

The military history of Italy chronicles a vast time period, lasting from the military conflicts fought by the ancient peoples of Italy, most notably the conquest of the Mediterranean world by the ancient Romans, through the expansion of the Italian city-states and maritime republics during the medieval period and the involvement of the historical Italian states in the Italian Wars and the wars of succession, to the Napoleonic period, the Italian unification, the campaigns of the colonial empire, the two world wars, and into the modern day, with world peacekeeping operations under the aegis of NATO, the EU or the UN.

The Italian Army, Navy, Air Force, and Carabinieri collectively form the Italian Armed Forces, under the command of the High Council of Defence, presided over by the president, per the Constitution of Italy. According to Article 78, the Parliament has the authority to declare a state of war and vest the necessary war-making powers in the government.

Despite not being a branch of the armed forces, the Guardia di Finanza has military status and is organised along military lines.{{Efn|The Guardia di Finanza operates a large fleet of ships, aircraft and helicopters, enabling it to patrol Italy's waters and to participate in warfare scenarios.}} Since 2005, military service has been voluntary.{{Cite web|title=Law n°226 of August 23, 2004 |url=http://www.camera.it/parlam/leggi/04226l.htm|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130117013103/http://www.camera.it/parlam/leggi/04226l.htm|archive-date=17 January 2013|access-date=13 July 2012|publisher=Camera.it}} In 2010, the Italian military had 293,202 personnel on active duty,"The Military Balance 2010", pp. 141–145. International Institute for Strategic Studies, 3 February 2010. of which 114,778 are Carabinieri.{{Cite web|last=Italian Ministry of Defence|author-link=Ministry of Defence (Italy)|title=Nota aggiuntiva allo stato di previsione per la Difesa per l'anno 2009 |url=http://www.difesa.it/NR/rdonlyres/5EF11493-59DD-4FB7-8485-F4258D9F5891/0/Nota_Aggiuntiva_2009.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110504073613/http://www.difesa.it/NR/rdonlyres/5EF11493-59DD-4FB7-8485-F4258D9F5891/0/Nota_Aggiuntiva_2009.pdf|archive-date=4 May 2011|access-date=11 July 2014|language=it}} As part of NATO's nuclear sharing strategy, Italy hosts 90 US B61 nuclear bombs located at the Ghedi and Aviano air bases.{{Cite web|last=Hans M. Kristensen / Natural Resources Defense Council|year=2005|title=NRDC: U.S. Nuclear Weapons in Europe – part 1|url=http://www.nrdc.org/nuclear/euro/euro_pt1.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110101060355/http://www.nrdc.org/nuclear/euro/euro_pt1.pdf|archive-date=1 January 2011|access-date=30 May 2011}}

The Army is the national ground defence force. It was formed in 1946, when Italy became a republic, from what remained of the "Royal Italian Army". Its best-known combat vehicles are the Dardo infantry fighting vehicle, the B1 Centauro tank destroyer, and the Ariete tank, and among its aircraft are the Mangusta attack helicopter, deployed on EU, NATO, and UN missions. It has at its disposal Leopard 1 and M113 armoured vehicles.

The Italian Navy is a blue-water navy. It was also formed in 1946 from what remained of the Regia Marina (the 'Royal Navy'). The Navy, being a member of the EU and NATO, has taken part in coalition peacekeeping operations around the world. In 2014, the Navy operated 154 vessels in service, including minor auxiliary vessels.{{Cite web|title=La Marina Militare OGGI|url=http://flpdifesa.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/Linee-intervento-del-Capo-di-SMM.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220525043355/http://flpdifesa.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/06/Linee-intervento-del-Capo-di-SMM.pdf|archive-date=25 May 2022|access-date=28 April 2022|language=it}}

The Italian Air Force was founded as an independent service arm in 1923 by King Victor Emmanuel III as the Regia Aeronautica ('Royal Air Force'). After World War II, it was renamed as the Regia Aeronautica. In 2021, the Italian Air Force operated 219 combat jets. A transport capability is guaranteed by a fleet of 27 C-130Js and C-27J Spartan. The acrobatic display team is the Frecce Tricolori ('Tricolour Arrows').

An autonomous corps of the military, the Carabinieri are the gendarmerie and military police of Italy, policing the military and civilian population alongside Italy's other police forces. While different branches of the Carabinieri report to separate ministries, the corps reports to the Ministry of Internal Affairs when maintaining public order and security.{{Cite web|title=The Carabinieri Force is linked to the Ministry of Defence|url=http://www.carabinieri.it/Internet/Multilingua/EN/GoverningBodies|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110430214042/http://www.carabinieri.it/Internet/Multilingua/EN/GoverningBodies|archive-date=30 April 2011|access-date=14 May 2010|publisher=Carabinieri}}

{{Main|Regions of Italy|Provinces of Italy|Metropolitan cities of Italy|Comune}}

{{Italy Labelled Map Scalable|image-width=400}}

Italy is constituted of 20 regions (regioni), five of which have special autonomous status which enables them to enact legislation on additional matters.{{Cite news|title=Regioni italiane|url=http://www.tuttitalia.it/regioni|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220509133929/https://www.tuttitalia.it/regioni|archive-date=9 May 2022|access-date=30 April 2022|language=it}}

{{Div col}}

• Abruzzo
• Aosta Valley
• Apulia
• Basilicata
• Calabria
• Campania
• Emilia-Romagna
• Friuli-Venezia Giulia
• Lazio
• Liguria
• Lombardy
• Marche
• Molise
• Piedmont
• Sardinia
• Sicily
• Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol
• Tuscany
• Umbria
• Veneto

{{Div col end}}

The regioni contain 107 provinces (province) or metropolitan cities (città metropolitane), and 7,896 municipalities (comuni).

{{Main|Economy of Italy}}

{{See also|List of largest Italian companies}}

Italy has an advanced{{Cite web|title=Select Country or Country Groups|url=https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2017/02/weodata/weoselgr.aspx|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171022143402/https://www.imf.org/external/pubs/ft/weo/2017/02/weodata/weoselgr.aspx|archive-date=22 October 2017|access-date=22 October 2017}} mixed economy that is the third-largest in the eurozone and 13th-largest in the world by purchasing power parity-adjusted GDP.{{Cite web|date=28 April 2017|title=Gross domestic product (2015) |url=http://databank.worldbank.org/data/download/GDP.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170201165545/http://databank.worldbank.org/data/download/GDP.pdf|archive-date=1 February 2017|access-date=17 May 2017|website=The World Bank: World Development Indicators database|publisher=World Bank}} It has the ninth-largest national wealth and the third-largest central bank gold reserve. As a founding member of the G7, the eurozone, and the OECD, it is one of the most industrialised nations and a leading country in international trade.{{Cite news|last1=Sensenbrenner|first1=Frank|last2=Arcelli|first2=Angelo Federico|title=Italy's Economy Is Much Stronger Than It Seems|url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/frank-sensenbrenner/italy-economy_b_3401988.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141206190937/http://www.huffingtonpost.com/frank-sensenbrenner/italy-economy_b_3401988.html|archive-date=6 December 2014|access-date=25 November 2014|work=HuffPost}}; {{Cite news|last1=Dadush|first1=Uri|title=Is the Italian Economy on the Mend?|url=http://carnegieeurope.eu/publications/?fa=50565&reloadFlag=1|access-date=25 November 2014|publisher=Carnegie Europe|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150713124951/http://carnegieeurope.eu/publications/?fa=50565&reloadFlag=1|archive-date=13 July 2015}}; {{Cite web|title=Doing Business in Italy: 2014 Country Commercial Guide for U.S. Companies |url=http://www.export.gov/italy/static/2014%20CCG%20Italy_Latest_eg_it_076513.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140715152504/http://www.export.gov/italy/static/2014%20CCG%20Italy_Latest_eg_it_076513.pdf|archive-date=15 July 2014|access-date=25 November 2014|publisher=United States Commercial Service}} It is a developed country ranked 30th on the Human Development Index. It performs well in life expectancy, healthcare,{{Cite web|title=The World Health Organization's ranking of the world's health systems|url=http://www.photius.com/rankings/healthranks.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100105190014/http://www.photius.com/rankings/healthranks.html|archive-date=5 January 2010|access-date=7 September 2015|publisher=Photius.com}} and education. The country is well known for its creative and innovative businesses,{{Cite web|title=The Global Creativity Index 2011 |url=http://martinprosperity.org/media/GCI%20Report%20Sep%202011.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140930054555/http://martinprosperity.org/media/GCI%20Report%20Sep%202011.pdf|archive-date=30 September 2014|access-date=26 November 2014|publisher=Martin Prosperity Institute}} a competitive agricultural sector{{Cite web|last1=Aksoy|first1=M. Ataman|last2=Ng|first2=Francis|title=The Evolution of Agricultural Trade Flows|url=https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/bitstream/handle/10986/3793/WPS5308.pdf?sequence=1|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141129120448/https://openknowledge.worldbank.org/bitstream/handle/10986/3793/WPS5308.pdf?sequence=1|archive-date=29 November 2014|access-date=25 November 2014|publisher=The World Bank}} (with the world's largest wine production),{{Cite news|last=Pisa|first=Nick|date=12 June 2011|title=Italy overtakes France to become world's largest wine producer|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/foodanddrink/wine/8571222/Italy-overtakes-France-to-become-worlds-largest-wine-producer.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110903021833/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/foodanddrink/wine/8571222/Italy-overtakes-France-to-become-worlds-largest-wine-producer.html|archive-date=3 September 2011|access-date=17 August 2011|work=The Telegraph}} and for its influential and high-quality automobile, machinery, food, design, and fashion industries.{{Cite web|title=Automotive Market Sector Profile – Italy|url=http://www.enterprisecanadanetwork.ca/_uploads/resources/Automotive-Market-Sector-Profile-Italy.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141205163959/http://www.enterprisecanadanetwork.ca/_uploads/resources/Automotive-Market-Sector-Profile-Italy.pdf|archive-date=5 December 2014|access-date=26 November 2014|publisher=The Canadian Trade Commissioner Service}}; {{Cite web|title=Data & Trends of the European Food and Drink Industry 2013–2014 |url=http://www.fooddrinkeurope.eu/uploads/publications_documents/Data__Trends_of_the_European_Food_and_Drink_Industry_2013-2014.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141206010318/http://www.fooddrinkeurope.eu/uploads/publications_documents/Data__Trends_of_the_European_Food_and_Drink_Industry_2013-2014.pdf|archive-date=6 December 2014|access-date=26 November 2014|publisher=FoodDrinkEurope}}; {{Cite news|date=10 January 2014|title=Italy fashion industry back to growth in 2014 |url=http://uk.reuters.com/article/uk-italy-fashion-growth-idUKBREA0912220140110|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141205114140/http://uk.reuters.com/article/2014/01/10/uk-italy-fashion-growth-idUKBREA0912220140110|archive-date=5 December 2014|access-date=26 November 2014|work=Reuters}}

File:Milan skyline skyscrapers of Porta Nuova business district.jpg is the economic capital of Italy{{Cite web|date=18 May 2018|title=Milan, Italy's Industrial and Financial Capital|url=https://www.prologis.it/en/industrial-logistics-warehouse-space/europe/italy/milan-italys-industrial-and-financial-capital|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220707141649/https://www.prologis.it/en/industrial-logistics-warehouse-space/europe/italy/milan-italys-industrial-and-financial-capital|archive-date=7 July 2022|access-date=27 May 2022}} and a global financial centre and fashion capital.]]

File:Siena, Piazza Salimbeni (Bank Monte dei Paschi di Siena) (38588876202).jpg, founded in 1472, is the world's oldest or second oldest bank in continuous operation.]]

File:The Eni building, Quartiere XXXII Europa, Roma, Lazio, Italy - panoramio.jpg is considered one of the world's oil and gas supermajors.{{Cite web|url=https://www.globalwitness.org/en/campaigns/oil-gas-and-mining/spotlight-sharpens/|title=The spotlight sharpens: Eni and corruption in Republic of Congo's oil sector|website=Global Witness|access-date=27 April 2020|archive-date=25 July 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230725204616/https://www.globalwitness.org/en/campaigns/oil-gas-and-mining/spotlight-sharpens/|url-status=dead}}]]

Italy is the world's eight-largest manufacturing country and the second-largest in Europe,"[http://databank.worldbank.org/data/reports.aspx?source=2&series=NV.IND.MANF.KD&country= Manufacturing, value added (current US$)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171010152014/http://databank.worldbank.org/data/reports.aspx?source=2&series=NV.IND.MANF.KD&country=|date=10 October 2017}}". Retrieved 17 May 2017. characterised by fewer multinational corporations than other economies of comparable size and many dynamic small and medium-sized enterprises, clustered in industrial districts, which are the backbone of Italian industry. This has produced a niche-markets manufacturing sector often focused on the export of luxury products. While less capable of competing on quantity, it can compete with Asian economies that have lower labor costs through higher-quality products.{{Cite news|date=19 May 2005|title=Knowledge Economy Forum 2008: Innovative Small And Medium Enterprises Are Key To Europe & Central Asian Growth |url=http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/COUNTRIES/ECAEXT/0,,contentMDK:21808326~menuPK:258604~pagePK:2865106~piPK:2865128~theSitePK:258599,00.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080623065619/http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/COUNTRIES/ECAEXT/0,,contentMDK:21808326~menuPK:258604~pagePK:2865106~piPK:2865128~theSitePK:258599,00.html|archive-date=23 June 2008|access-date=17 June 2008|publisher=The World Bank}} Italy was the world's 10th-largest exporter in 2019. Its closest trade ties are with other EU countries, and its largest export partners in 2019 were Germany (12%), France (11%), and the US (10%).{{Cite web|title=The World Factbook|url=https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/italy|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210701235642/https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/italy|archive-date=1 July 2021|access-date=28 May 2021|publisher=Central Intelligence Agency}}

The Italian automotive industry is a significant part of the country's manufacturing sector, with over 144,000 firms and almost 485,000 employees in 2015,{{Cite web|title=Auto: settore da 144mila imprese in Italia e 117 mld fatturato|url=http://www.adnkronos.com/soldi/economia/2015/09/23/auto-settore-mila-imprese-italia-mld-fatturato_WooBmrBqxgxO7mOvIRXUBI.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150925121926/http://www.adnkronos.com/soldi/economia/2015/09/23/auto-settore-mila-imprese-italia-mld-fatturato_WooBmrBqxgxO7mOvIRXUBI.html|archive-date=25 September 2015|access-date=23 September 2015|website=adnkronos.com}} contributing 9% to GDP.{{Cite web|title=Country Profiles – Italy|url=http://acea.thisconnect.com/index.php/country_profiles/detail/italy|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080211190839/http://acea.thisconnect.com/index.php/country_profiles/detail/italy|archive-date=11 February 2008|access-date=9 February 2008|website=acea.thisconnect.com}}{{Cite web|title=Global Auto Market 2021. General Motors Is The Only Group To Report Double-digit Losses |url=https://www.focus2move.com/world-car-group-ranking|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210701010705/https://www.focus2move.com/world-car-group-ranking|archive-date=1 July 2021|access-date=27 May 2022}} The country boasts a wide range of vehicles, from mass market-oriented brands such as Fiat and premium brands like Alfa Romeo and Maserati to luxury supercars such as Pagani, Lamborghini, and Ferrari.

The Banca Monte dei Paschi di Siena is the world's oldest or second oldest bank in continuous operation, depending on the definition, and the fourth-largest Italian commercial and retail bank.{{Cite news|date=26 October 2017|title=Italy's fourth-biggest bank returns to the stockmarket|url=https://www.economist.com/news/finance-and-economics/21730672-shares-bailed-out-bank-start-trading-again-italys-fourth-biggest-bank|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180215112321/https://www.economist.com/news/finance-and-economics/21730672-shares-bailed-out-bank-start-trading-again-italys-fourth-biggest-bank|archive-date=15 February 2018|access-date=26 October 2021|newspaper=The Economist}} Italy has a strong cooperative sector with the largest share in the EU of the population (4.5%) employed by a cooperative.{{Cite web|date=April 2016|title=The Power of Cooperation – Cooperatives Europe key statistics 2015 |url=https://coopseurope.coop/sites/default/files/The%20power%20of%20Cooperation%20-%20Cooperatives%20Europe%20key%20statistics%202015.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201112034412/https://coopseurope.coop/sites/default/files/The%20power%20of%20Cooperation%20-%20Cooperatives%20Europe%20key%20statistics%202015.pdf|archive-date=12 November 2020|access-date=28 May 2021|website=Cooperatives Europe}} The Val d'Agri area, Basilicata, hosts the largest onshore hydrocarbon field in Europe.{{Cite web|title=In Val d'Agri with Upstream activities|url=https://www.eni.com/en-IT/operations/italy-val-agri-upstream-activities.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220516034214/https://www.eni.com/en-IT/operations/italy-val-agri-upstream-activities.html|archive-date=16 May 2022|access-date=3 February 2021|publisher=Eni}} Moderate natural gas reserves, mainly in the Po Valley and offshore under the Adriatic, have been discovered and constitute the country's most important mineral resource. Italy is one of the world's leading producers of pumice, pozzolana, and feldspar.{{Cite encyclopedia|title=Italy, the economy: Resources and power|encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica|url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/297474/Italy/26994/Forestry#toc26986|access-date=9 February 2015|date=3 February 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150209194536/http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/297474/Italy/26994/Forestry#toc26986|archive-date=9 February 2015|url-status=live}} Another notable resource is marble, especially the famous white Carrara marble from Tuscany.

Italy is part of a monetary union, the eurozone, which represents around 330 million citizens, and of the European single market, which represents more than 500 million consumers. Several domestic commercial policies are determined by agreements among EU members and EU legislation. Italy joined the common European currency, the euro, in 2002.{{Cite news|last=Andrews|first=Edmund L.|date=1 January 2002|title=Germans Say Goodbye to the Mark, a Symbol of Strength and Unity|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2002/01/01/world/germans-say-goodbye-to-the-mark-a-symbol-of-strength-and-unity.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110501031330/http://www.nytimes.com/2002/01/01/world/germans-say-goodbye-to-the-mark-a-symbol-of-strength-and-unity.html|archive-date=1 May 2011|access-date=18 March 2011|work=The New York Times}}; {{Cite news|last=Taylor Martin|first=Susan|date=28 December 1998|title=On Jan.{{spaces}}1, out of many arises one Euro|work=St. Petersburg Times|page=National, 1.A}} Its monetary policy is set by the European Central Bank.

Italy was hit by the 2008 financial crisis, which exacerbated structural problems.{{Cite web|last=Orsi|first=Roberto|date=23 April 2013|title=The Quiet Collapse of the Italian Economy|work=Euro Crisis in the Press |url=http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/eurocrisispress/2013/04/23/the-quiet-collapse-of-the-italian-economy|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141119075748/http://blogs.lse.ac.uk/eurocrisispress/2013/04/23/the-quiet-collapse-of-the-italian-economy|archive-date=19 November 2014|access-date=24 November 2014|publisher=The London School of Economics}} After strong GDP growth of 5–6% per year from the 1950s to the early 1970s,{{Cite book|last=Nicholas Crafts, Gianni Toniolo|title=Economic growth in Europe since 1945 |publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=1996|isbn=978-0-5214-9627-8|page=428}} and a progressive slowdown in the 1980–90s, the country stagnated in the 2000s.{{Cite web|last=Balcerowicz|first=Leszek|title=Economic Growth in the European Union|url=http://www.lisboncouncil.net/growth/documents/LISBON_COUNCIL_Economic_Growth_in_the_EU%20(1).pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140714205108/http://www.lisboncouncil.net/growth/documents/LISBON_COUNCIL_Economic_Growth_in_the_EU%20(1).pdf|archive-date=14 July 2014|access-date=8 October 2014|publisher=The Lisbon Council}}; {{Cite news|title="Secular stagnation" in graphics|url=https://www.economist.com/blogs/graphicdetail/2014/11/secular-stagnation-graphics|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141123234145/http://www.economist.com/blogs/graphicdetail/2014/11/secular-stagnation-graphics|archive-date=23 November 2014|access-date=24 November 2014|newspaper=The Economist}} Political efforts to revive growth with massive government spending produced a severe rise in public debt, that stood at over 132% of GDP in 2017,{{Cite web|date=15 May 2018|title=Debito pubblico oltre 2.300 miliardi e all'estero non lo comprano|url=https://www.investireoggi.it/economia/debito-pubblico-oltre-2-300-miliardi-e-litalia-e-sulla-strada-dellautarchia-finanziaria|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200221072720/https://www.investireoggi.it/economia/debito-pubblico-oltre-2-300-miliardi-e-litalia-e-sulla-strada-dellautarchia-finanziaria|archive-date=21 February 2020|access-date=1 June 2018}} the second highest in the EU, after Greece.{{Cite web|title=Government debt increased to 93.9% of GDP in euro area and to 88.0% in EU28|url=http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/cache/ITY_PUBLIC/2-22072014-AP/EN/2-22072014-AP-EN.PDF|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141021162159/http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/cache/ITY_PUBLIC/2-22072014-AP/EN/2-22072014-AP-EN.PDF|archive-date=21 October 2014|access-date=24 November 2014|publisher=Eurostat}} The largest portion of Italian public debt is owned by national subjects, a major difference between Italy and Greece,{{Cite web|date=18 May 2010|title=Could Italy Be Better Off than its Peers?|url=https://www.cnbc.com/2010/05/18/could-italy-be-better-off-than-its-peers.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110430030613/http://www.cnbc.com/id/37207942/Could_Italy_Be_Better_Off_than_its_Peers|archive-date=30 April 2011|access-date=30 May 2011|publisher=CNBC}} and the level of household debt is much lower than the OECD average.{{Cite web|title=Household debt and the OECD's surveillance of member states|url=http://www.nationalbanken.dk/da/om_nationalbanken/oekonomisk_forskning/Documents/4_Household%20debt%20and%20the%20OECD's%20surveillance%20of%20member%20states%20by%20Christophe%20Andr%C3%A9.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150109041518/http://www.nationalbanken.dk/da/om_nationalbanken/oekonomisk_forskning/Documents/4_Household%20debt%20and%20the%20OECD%27s%20surveillance%20of%20member%20states%20by%20Christophe%20Andr%C3%A9.pdf|archive-date=9 January 2015|access-date=26 November 2014|publisher=OECD Economics Department}}

A gaping north–south divide is a major factor of socio-economic weakness;{{Cite news|title=Oh for a new risorgimento|url=https://www.economist.com/node/18780831|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141024163715/http://www.economist.com/node/18780831|archive-date=24 October 2014|access-date=24 November 2014|newspaper=The Economist}} there is a huge difference in official income between northern and southern regions and municipalities.{{Cite web|title=Comune per Comune, ecco la mappa navigabile dei redditi dichiarati in Italia|url=http://www.lastampa.it/economia/speciali/redditi-italia|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150405032750/http://www.lastampa.it/economia/speciali/redditi-italia|archive-date=5 April 2015|access-date=4 April 2015|website=lastampa.it}} The richest province, Alto Adige-South Tyrol, earns 152% of the national GDP per capita, while the poorest region, Calabria, earns 61%.{{Cite web|title=GDP per capita at regional level|url=https://www.istat.it/it/files/2016/12/Conti-regionali_2015.pdf?title=Conti+economici+territoriali+-+12%2Fdic%2F2016+-+Testo+integrale+e+nota+metodologica.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171026054135/https://www.istat.it/it/files/2016/12/Conti-regionali_2015.pdf?title=Conti+economici+territoriali+-+12%2Fdic%2F2016+-+Testo+integrale+e+nota+metodologica.pdf|archive-date=26 October 2017|access-date=25 October 2017|publisher=Istat}} The unemployment rate (11%) is above the eurozone average,{{Cite web|title=Euro area unemployment rate at 11%|url=http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/documents/2995521/8121455/3-31072017-AP-EN.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170731232352/http://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/documents/2995521/8121455/3-31072017-AP-EN.pdf|archive-date=31 July 2017|access-date=26 October 2017|publisher=Eurostat}} but the disaggregated figure is 7% in the north and 19% in the south.{{Cite web|last=Istat|author-link=National Institute of Statistics (Italy)|title=Employment and unemployment: second quarter 2017 |url=http://www.istat.it/it/files/2017/09/Mercato-del-lavoro-II-trim-2017.pdf?title=Il+mercato+del+lavoro+-+12%2Fset%2F2017+-+Testo+integrale+e+nota+metodologica.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171026054033/http://www.istat.it/it/files/2017/09/Mercato-del-lavoro-II-trim-2017.pdf?title=Il+mercato+del+lavoro+-+12%2Fset%2F2017+-+Testo+integrale+e+nota+metodologica.pdf|archive-date=26 October 2017|access-date=26 October 2017}} The youth unemployment rate (32% in 2018) is extremely high.

{{Main|Agriculture in Italy}}

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| footer = Vineyards in Langhe and Montferrat, Piedmont. Italy is the world's largest wine producer, and has the widest variety of indigenous grapevines.{{Cite web|date=25 November 2018|title=L'Italia è il maggiore produttore di vino|url=http://www.inumeridelvino.it/2018/11/la-produzione-di-vino-nel-mondo-2018-prima-stima-oiv.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211111224545/http://www.inumeridelvino.it/2018/11/la-produzione-di-vino-nel-mondo-2018-prima-stima-oiv.html|archive-date=11 November 2021|access-date=11 November 2021|language=it}}; {{Cite web|date=3 June 2017|title=L'Italia è il paese con più vitigni autoctoni al mondo|url=https://giornalevinocibo.com/2017/06/03/italia-prima-assoluta-per-vitgni-autoctoni-ecco-i-dati-dei-vari-stati|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211101044918/https://giornalevinocibo.com/2017/06/03/italia-prima-assoluta-per-vitgni-autoctoni-ecco-i-dati-dei-vari-stati|archive-date=1 November 2021|access-date=11 November 2021|language=it}}

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According to the last agricultural census, there were 1.6 million farms in 2010 (−32% since 2000) covering {{Convert|12700000|ha|0|abbr=on|disp=or}} (63% are in south Italy).{{Cite web|date=24 October 2010|title=Censimento Agricoltura 2010 |url=http://dati-censimentoagricoltura.istat.it|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150213021626/http://dati-censimentoagricoltura.istat.it|archive-date=13 February 2015|access-date=11 February 2015|publisher=ISTAT}} 99% are family-operated and small, averaging only {{Convert|8|ha|0|abbr=on}}. Of the area in agricultural use, grain fields take up 31%, olive orchards 8%, vineyards 5%, citrus orchards 4%, sugar beets 2%, and horticulture 2%. The remainder is primarily dedicated to pastures (26%) and feed grains (12%).

Italy is the world's largest wine producer,{{Cite web|year=2010|title=OIV report on the State of the vitiviniculture world market|url=http://news.reseau-concept.net/images/oiv_es/Client/DIAPORAMA_STATISTIQUES_Tbilissi_2010_EN.ppt|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110728145648/http://news.reseau-concept.net/images/oiv_es/Client/DIAPORAMA_STATISTIQUES_Tbilissi_2010_EN.ppt|archive-date=28 July 2011|website=news.reseau-concept.net|publisher=Réseau-CONCEPT|format=PowerPoint presentation}} and a leading producer of olive oil, fruits (apples, olives, grapes, oranges, lemons, pears, apricots, hazelnuts, peaches, cherries, plums, strawberries, and kiwifruits), and vegetables (especially artichokes and tomatoes). The most famous Italian wines are the Tuscan Chianti and the Piedmontese Barolo. Other famous wines are Barbaresco, Barbera d'Asti, Brunello di Montalcino, Frascati, Montepulciano d'Abruzzo, Morellino di Scansano, and the sparkling wines Franciacorta and Prosecco.

Quality goods in which Italy specialises, particularly wines and regional cheeses, are often protected under the quality assurance labels DOC/DOP. This geographical indication certificate, accredited by the EU, is considered important to avoid confusion with ersatz goods.

{{Main|Transport in Italy}}

{{See also|Railway stations in Italy}}

File:A8-A26 Besnate.jpg and A9), the first motorway built in the world]]

{{Anchor|Infrastructure}}Italy was the first country to build motorways, the autostrade, reserved for fast traffic and motor vehicles.{{Cite news|last=Lenarduzzi|first=Thea|date=30 January 2016|title=The motorway that built Italy: Piero Puricelli's masterpiece|url=http://www.independent.co.uk/travel/europe/the-worlds-first-motorway-piero-puricellis-masterpiece-is-the-focus-of-an-unlikely-pilgrimage-a6840816.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220526/http://www.independent.co.uk/travel/europe/the-worlds-first-motorway-piero-puricellis-masterpiece-is-the-focus-of-an-unlikely-pilgrimage-a6840816.html|archive-date=26 May 2022|access-date=12 May 2022|work=The Independent}} In 2002 there were {{Convert|668721|km|mi|abbr=on}} of serviceable roads in Italy, including {{Convert|6487|km|mi|abbr=on}} of motorways, state-owned but privately operated by Atlantia. In 2005, about 34,667,000 cars (590 per 1,000 people) and 4,015,000 goods vehicles circulated on the network.{{Cite web|last=European Commission|author-link=European Commission|title=Panorama of Transport|url=http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/cache/ITY_OFFPUB/KS-DA-07-001/EN/KS-DA-07-001-EN.PDF|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090407142402/http://epp.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/cache/ITY_OFFPUB/KS-DA-07-001/EN/KS-DA-07-001-EN.PDF|archive-date=7 April 2009|access-date=3 May 2009}}

File:Etr500.JPG train on the Florence–Rome high-speed line, the first high-speed railway built in Europe{{Cite web|title=Special report: A European high-speed rail network|url=https://op.europa.eu/webpub/eca/special-reports/high-speed-rail-19-2018/en/|access-date=2023-07-22|website=op.europa.eu|language=en-GB|archive-date=17 March 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240317233927/https://op.europa.eu/webpub/eca/special-reports/high-speed-rail-19-2018/en/|url-status=live}}]]

The railway network, state-owned and operated by Rete Ferroviaria Italiana (FSI), in 2008 totalled {{Convert|16529|km|mi|abbr=on}}, of which {{Convert|11727|km|0|abbr=on}} is electrified, and on which 4,802 locomotives and railcars run. The main public operator of high-speed trains is Trenitalia, part of FSI. High-speed trains are in three categories: Frecciarossa ('red arrow') trains operate at a maximum 300{{spaces}}km/h on dedicated high-speed tracks; Frecciargento ('silver arrow') operate at a maximum 250{{spaces}}km/h on high-speed and mainline tracks; and Frecciabianca ('white arrow') operate on high-speed regional lines at a maximum 200{{spaces}}km/h. Italy has 11 rail border crossings over the Alpine mountains with neighbouring countries.

Italy is fifth in Europe by number of passengers using air transport, with about 148 million passengers, or about 10% of the European total in 2011.{{Cite web|date=7 January 2013|title=Trasporto aereo in Italia (PDF)|url=http://www.istat.it/it/archivio/78802|access-date=5 August 2013|publisher=ISTAT|archive-date=13 January 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130113035254/http://www.istat.it/it/archivio/78802|url-status=live}} In 2022, there were 45 civil airports, including the hubs of Milan Malpensa Airport and Rome Fiumicino Airport.{{Cite web|title=Aeroporti in Italia: quanti sono? Elenco per regione|url=https://gliaeroporti.it|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221117184416/https://gliaeroporti.it|archive-date=17 November 2022|access-date=17 November 2022|language=it}} Since 2021, Italy's flag carrier has been ITA Airways, which took over from Alitalia.{{Cite news|last=Buckley|first=Julia|date=18 October 2021|title=Italy reveals its new national airline|url=https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/ita-airways-launch/index.html|access-date=18 October 2021|publisher=CNN|archive-date=18 October 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211018100255/https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/ita-airways-launch/index.html|url-status=live}}; {{Cite news|last=Villamizar|first=Helwing|date=15 October 2021|title=Italian Flag Carrier ITA Airways Is Born|url=https://airwaysmag.com/airlines/ita-airways-is-born|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211016100028/https://airwaysmag.com/airlines/ita-airways-is-born|archive-date=16 October 2021|access-date=18 October 2021|work=Airways Magazine}}

In 2004, there were 43 major seaports, including Genoa, the country's largest and second-largest in the Mediterranean. In 2005, Italy maintained a civilian air fleet of about 389,000 units and a merchant fleet of 581 ships. The national inland waterways network had a length of {{Convert|2400|km|0|abbr=on}} for commercial traffic in 2012. North Italian ports, such as the deep-water port of Trieste, with its extensive rail connections to Central and Eastern Europe, are the destination of subsidies and significant foreign investment.Marcus Hernig: Die Renaissance der Seidenstraße (2018) pp 112.; Bernhard Simon: Can The New Silk Road Compete with the Maritime Silk Road? in The Maritime Executive, 1 January 2020.; Chazizam, M. (2018). The Chinese Maritime Silk Road Initiative: The Role of the Mediterranean. Mediterranean Quarterly, 29(2), 54–69.; Guido Santevecchi: Di Maio e la Via della Seta: «Faremo i conti nel 2020», siglato accordo su Trieste in Corriere della Sera: 5. November 2019.; Linda Vierecke, Elisabetta Galla "Triest und die neue Seidenstraße" In: Deutsche Welle, 8 December 2020.; {{Cite web|title=HHLA PLT Italy starting on schedule |url=https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/hhla-plt-italy-starting-on-schedule|website=hellenicshippingnews.com|access-date=11 January 2021|archive-date=11 January 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210111105059/https://www.hellenicshippingnews.com/hhla-plt-italy-starting-on-schedule/|url-status=live}}

{{Main|Energy in Italy}}

{{Further|Renewable energy in Italy|Electricity sector in Italy}}

File:Pannelli solari Unicoop Tirreno.JPG, Tuscany. Italy is one of the world's largest producers of renewable energy.{{Cite web|date=18 May 2015|title=Il rapporto Comuni Rinnovabili 2015|url=http://www.comunirinnovabili.it/il-rapporto-comuni-rinnovabili-2015|access-date=13 March 2016|website=Comuni Rinnovabili|publisher=Legambiente|language=it|archive-date=14 March 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160314011841/http://www.comunirinnovabili.it/il-rapporto-comuni-rinnovabili-2015/|url-status=live}}]]

Italy has become one of the world's largest producers of renewable energy, ranking as the second largest producer in the EU and the ninth in the world. Wind power, hydroelectricity, and geothermal power are significant sources of electricity in the country. Renewable sources account for 28% of all electricity produced, with hydro alone reaching 13%, followed by solar at 6%, wind at 4%, bioenergy at 3.5%, and geothermal at 1.6%.{{Cite web|date=19 December 2013|title=Rapporto Statistico sugli Impianti a fonti rinnovabili|url=http://www.gse.it/it/Statistiche/RapportiStatistici/Pagine/default.aspx|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171018022905/http://www.gse.it/it/Statistiche/RapportiStatistici/Pagine/default.aspx|archive-date=18 October 2017|access-date=11 February 2015|publisher=Gestore dei Servizi Energetici}} The rest of the national demand is supplied by fossil fuels (natural gas 38%, coal 13%, oil 8%) and imports. Eni, operating in 79 countries, is one of the seven "Big Oil" companies, and one of the world's largest industrial companies.{{Cite web|title=Summary for Eni SpA|url=https://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=E|access-date=1 July 2020|archive-date=4 June 2016|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160604184217/http://finance.yahoo.com/q?s=e|url-status=live}}

Solar energy production alone accounted for 9% of electricity in 2014, making Italy the country with the highest contribution from solar energy in the world. The Montalto di Castro Photovoltaic Power Station, completed in 2010, is the largest photovoltaic (PV) power station in Italy.{{Cite web|title=The Italian Montalto di Castro and Rovigo PV plants|url=https://www.solarserver.com/solar-magazine/solar-energy-system-of-the-month/the-italian-montalto-di-castro-and-rovigo-pv-plants.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180509012719/https://www.solarserver.com/solar-magazine/solar-energy-system-of-the-month/the-italian-montalto-di-castro-and-rovigo-pv-plants.html|archive-date=9 May 2018|access-date=8 May 2018|website=solarserver.com}} Italy was the first country to exploit geothermal energy to produce electricity.{{Cite web|year=2011|title=Inventario delle risorse geotermiche nazionali|url=http://unmig.sviluppoeconomico.gov.it/unmig/geotermia/inventario/inventario.asp|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110722034736/http://unmig.sviluppoeconomico.gov.it/unmig/geotermia/inventario/inventario.asp|archive-date=22 July 2011|access-date=14 September 2011|publisher=UNMIG}} Nuclear power in Italy was abandoned after 1987 referendums (in the wake of the 1986 Chernobyl disaster), although Italy still imports nuclear energy from Italy-owned reactors in foreign territories.

{{Main|Science and technology in Italy}}

{{See also|List of Italian inventions and discoveries}}

File:Justus Sustermans - Portrait of Galileo Galilei, 1636.jpg, widely considered the father of modern science, physics and astronomy]]

Through the centuries, Italy has fostered a scientific community that produced major discoveries the sciences. Galileo Galilei played a major role in the Scientific Revolution and is considered the "father" of observational astronomy,{{Cite book|last=Singer|first=C.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mPIgAAAAMAAJ|title=A Short History of Science to the Nineteenth Century|date=1941|publisher=Clarendon Press|page=217|access-date=22 March 2023|archive-date=2 October 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241002213513/https://books.google.com/books?id=mPIgAAAAMAAJ|url-status=live}} modern physics,{{Cite book|last=Whitehouse|first=D.|url=https://archive.org/details/renaissancegeniu0000whit|title=Renaissance Genius: Galileo Galilei & His Legacy to Modern Science|date=2009|publisher=Sterling Publishing|isbn=978-1-4027-6977-1|page=[https://archive.org/details/renaissancegeniu0000whit/page/219 219]}}{{Cite book|last=Weidhorn|first=Manfred|url=https://archive.org/details/personofmillenni0000weid|title=The Person of the Millennium: The Unique Impact of Galileo on World History|date=2005|publisher=iUniverse|isbn=978-0-5953-6877-8|page=[https://archive.org/details/personofmillenni0000weid/page/155 155]}} and the scientific method.Thomas Hobbes: Critical Assessments, Volume 1. Preston King. 1993. p. 59{{Cite book|last=Disraeli|first=I.|title=Curiosities of Literature|date=1835|publisher=W. Pearson & Company|page=371}}

The Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso (LNGS) is the largest underground research centre in the world.{{Cite web|title=I Laboratori Nazionali del Gran Sasso|url=https://www.lngs.infn.it/it/descrizione-generale|access-date=15 January 2018|language=it}} ELETTRA, Eurac Research, ESA Centre for Earth Observation, Institute for Scientific Interchange, International Centre for Genetic Engineering and Biotechnology, Centre for Maritime Research and Experimentation, and the International Centre for Theoretical Physics conduct basic research. Trieste has the highest percentage of researchers in Europe, in relation to the population.G. Bar "Trieste, è record europeo di ricercatori: 37 ogni mille abitanti. Più della Finlandia", In: il Fatto Quotidiano, 26 April 2018. Italy was ranked 26th in the Global Innovation Index in 2024.{{Cite web |title=Global Innovation Index 2024 : Unlocking the Promise of Social Entrepreneurship |url=https://www.wipo.int/web-publications/global-innovation-index-2024/en/ |access-date=2024-11-29 |website=www.wipo.int |language=en}} There are technology parks in Italy such as the Science and Technology Parks Kilometro Rosso (Bergamo), the AREA Science Park (Trieste), The VEGA-Venice Gateway for Science and Technology (Venezia), the Toscana Life Sciences (Siena), the Technology Park of Lodi Cluster (Lodi), and the Technology Park of Navacchio (Pisa),{{Cite web|title=Science and Technology Parks in Italy|url=https://www.easst.net/science-and-technology-parks-in-italy|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230719154033/https://www.easst.net/science-and-technology-parks-in-italy|archive-date=19 July 2023|access-date=28 August 2023}} as well as science museums such as the Museo Nazionale Scienza e Tecnologia Leonardo da Vinci in Milan.

The north–south large difference in income leads to a "digital divide".{{Cite journal|last=Alampi|first=Matteo|date=December 2007|title=Underdevelopment in Southern Italy: Traditional Setbacks and Modern Solutions|url=https://fisherpub.sjf.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1047&context=intlstudies_masters|journal=Fisher Digital Publications|via=International Studies Masters}}{{Cite journal|last=Di Pietro|first=Giorgio|date=June 2021|title=Changes in Italy's education-related digital divide|url=https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/ecaf.12471|journal=Economic Affairs|volume=41|issue=2|pages=252–270|doi=10.1111/ecaf.12471|issn=0265-0665|s2cid=237848271}}

{{Main|Tourism in Italy}}

File:Positano - Fornillo Beach.jpg is one of Italy's major tourist destinations.[http://www.italy24.ilsole24ore.com/art/business-and-economy/2017-05-04/turismo-stranieri-124013.php?uuid=AEVg9GGB "Foreign tourist numbers in Italy head towards new record"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170601184213/http://www.italy24.ilsole24ore.com/art/business-and-economy/2017-05-04/turismo-stranieri-124013.php?uuid=AEVg9GGB|date=1 June 2017}}. Retrieved 21 May 2017.]]

People have visited Italy for centuries, yet the first to visit the peninsula for tourism were aristocrats during the Grand Tour, which began in the 17th century, and flourished in the 18th and the 19th centuries.{{Cite web|title=Grand Tour|url=https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/grand-tour|access-date=6 May 2022|language=it}} This was a period in which European aristocrats, many of whom were British, visited parts of Europe, with Italy as a key destination. For Italy, this was in order to study ancient architecture, local culture, and admire its natural beauty.{{Cite web|title=Italy on the Grand Tour (Getty Exhibitions)|url=http://www.getty.edu/art/exhibitions/grand_tour/what.html|access-date=9 June 2015}}

Italy is the fourth most visited country, with a total of 57 million arrivals in 2023.{{cite web |title=World Tourism Barometer |url=https://pre-webunwto.s3.eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/s3fs-public/2024-06/Barom_PPT_May_2024.pdf?VersionId=U7O62HatlG4eNAj.wcmuQG1PMCjK.Yss |publisher=World Tourism Organization |access-date=24 June 2024 |date=May 2024 |page=19}} In 2014, the income from travel and tourism was EUR163{{spaces}}billion (10% of GDP) and 1,082,000 jobs were directly related to it (5% of employment).{{Cite web|title=Travel & Tourism Economic Impact 2015 Italy |url=https://www.wttc.org/-/media/files/reports/economic%20impact%20research/countries%202015/italy2015.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171010152616/https://www.wttc.org/-/media/files/reports/economic%20impact%20research/countries%202015/italy2015.pdf|archive-date=10 October 2017|access-date=20 May 2017|publisher=World Travel and Tourism Council}}

Tourist interest is mainly in culture, cuisine, history, architecture, art, religious sites and routes, wedding tourism, naturalistic beauties, nightlife, underwater sites, and spas.{{Cite web|date=February 2023|title=In Italia 11mila matrimoni stranieri, un turismo da 599 milioni|url=https://www.ansa.it/canale_viaggiart/it/notizie/speciali/2023/02/01/turismo-wedding-2-milioni-presenze-e-fatturato-599-mln_dcec4ad9-3ab8-4677-a303-6378020ac3a7.html|access-date=2 February 2023|language=it}}; {{Cite web|title=10 Migliori destinazioni italiane per vita notturna|url=https://www.travel365.it/migliori-destinazioni-italiane-per-vita-notturna.htm|access-date=28 December 2021|language=it}} Winter and summer tourism are present in locations in the Alps and the Apennines,{{Cite web|date=30 July 2017|title=VACANZE IN MONTAGNA IN ITALIA: IN INVERNO E IN ESTATE|url=https://www.alloggitaly.it/vacanze-in-montagna-in-italia|access-date=1 January 2022|language=it}} while seaside tourism is widespread among locations along the Mediterranean.{{Cite web|date=14 February 2018|title=Il turismo balneare|url=https://www.turismo-oggi.com/il-turismo-balneare.html|access-date=1 January 2022|language=it}} Italy is the leading cruise tourism destination in the Mediterranean.{{Cite web|date=27 April 2022|title=Crociere, Cemar: 8,8 milioni di passeggeri nei porti italiani|url=https://www.lagenziadiviaggi.it/crociere-cemar-88-milioni-di-passeggeri-nei-porti-italiani|access-date=13 May 2022|language=it}} Small, historical, and artistic villages are promoted through the association I Borghi più belli d'Italia ({{Literally|The most beautiful villages of Italy}}).

The most visited regions are Veneto, Tuscany, Lombardy, Emilia-Romagna, and Lazio.{{Cite web|title=Number of nights spent in tourist accommodation establishments in the top 20 EU-28 tourist regions, by NUTS 2 regions, 2015 (million nights spent) RYB17 – Statistics Explained |url=https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/statistics-explained/index.php?title=File:Number_of_nights_spent_in_tourist_accommodation_establishments_in_the_top_20_EU-28_tourist_regions,_by_NUTS_2_regions,_2015_(million_nights_spent)_RYB17.png|access-date=17 April 2022|publisher=European Commission}} Rome is the third most visited city in Europe, and 12th in the world, with 9.4 million arrivals in 2017.{{Cite web|title=Ranking the 30 Most-Visited Cities in the World|url=https://www.travelpulse.com/news/destinations/ranking-the-30-most-visited-cities-in-the-world.html|website=TravelPulse}} Venice and Florence are among the world's top 100 destinations.

Italy has the most World Heritage Sites of any country: 59,{{Cite web|title=The World Heritage Convention|url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/convention|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160827065310/https://whc.unesco.org/en/convention|archive-date=27 August 2016|access-date=1 August 2021|publisher=UNESCO}} of which 53 are cultural and 6 natural.{{Cite web|title=Italy|url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/statesparties/it|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211201134320/http://whc.unesco.org/en/statesparties/it|archive-date=1 December 2021|access-date=9 April 2019|publisher=UNESCO World Heritage Centre}}

{{Main|Demographics of Italy}}

{{See also|Italians|Internal migration in Italy|Italian diaspora|Genetic history of Italy|List of cities in Italy}}

File:Map of population density in Italy (2011 census) alt colours.jpg

File:Map of the Italian Diaspora in the World.svg in the world]]

In 2020, Italy had 60,317,116 inhabitants.{{Cite web|date=8 April 2022|title=Indicatori demografici|url=https://www.istat.it/it/archivio/269158|access-date=27 July 2022|website=istat.it|language=it|archive-date=13 July 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220713112932/https://www.istat.it/it/archivio/269158|url-status=live}} Its population density of {{Convert|202|PD/km2}} is higher than most West European countries. However, distribution is uneven: the most densely populated areas are the Po Valley (almost half the population) and the metropolitan areas of Rome and Naples, while vast regions such as the Alps and Apennine highlands, the plateaus of Basilicata, and the island of Sardinia, as well as much of Sicily, are sparsely populated.

Italy's population almost doubled during the 20th century, but the pattern of growth was uneven because of large-scale internal migration from the rural south to the industrial north, a consequence of the Italian economic miracle of the 1950–1960s. High fertility rates persisted until the 1970s, after which they started to decline; the total fertility rate (TFR) reached an all-time low of 1.2 children per woman in 1995, well below the replacement rate of 2.1 and considerably below the high of 5 in 1883.{{Citation|last=Max Roser|title=Total Fertility Rate around the world over the last centuries|work=Our World In Data, Gapminder Foundation|year=2014|url=https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/children-born-per-woman?year=1800&country=ITA|access-date=7 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180807185906/https://ourworldindata.org/grapher/children-born-per-woman?year=1800&country=ITA|archive-date=7 August 2018|url-status=dead}} Since 2008, when the rate climbed slightly to 1.4,{{Cite web|last=ISTAT|author-link=Istituto Nazionale di Statistica|title=Average number of children born per woman 2005–2008 |url=http://demo.istat.it/altridati/indicatori/2008/Tab_4.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110810171708/http://demo.istat.it/altridati/indicatori/2008/Tab_4.pdf|archive-date=10 August 2011|access-date=3 May 2009|language=it}}{{Cite web|last=ISTAT|author-link=Istituto Nazionale di Statistica|title=Crude birth rates, mortality rates and marriage rates 2005–2008 |url=http://demo.istat.it/altridati/indicatori/2008/Tab_1.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110810171721/http://demo.istat.it/altridati/indicatori/2008/Tab_1.pdf|archive-date=10 August 2011|access-date=10 May 2009|language=it}} the number of births has consistently declined every year, reaching a record low of 379,000 in 2023—the fewest since 1861.[https://www.reuters.com/world/europe/births-fall-italy-15th-year-running-record-low-2024-03-29/ Births fall in Italy for 15th year running to record low]| Reuters Although as of 2013 the TFR is expected to reach 1.6–1.8 in 2030,{{Cite web|title=Previsioni della popolazione, 2011–2065, dati al 1° gennaio |url=http://demo.istat.it/uniprev2011/index.html?lingua=ita|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130306125456/http://demo.istat.it/uniprev2011/index.html?lingua=ita|archive-date=6 March 2013|access-date=12 March 2013|publisher=Demo.istat.it}} in 2024, it stood at 1.2.{{Cite news|last=Jones|first=Tobias|date=2024-01-03|title=Boosting Italy's birthrate has become a patriotic cause for the far right. But it's an idea that's doomed|url=https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2024/jan/03/italy-birthrate-far-right-population-immigration-giorgia-meloni|access-date=2024-05-29|work=The Guardian|language=en-GB|issn=0261-3077}}

As a result of these trends, Italy's population is rapidly aging and gradually shrinking. Nearly one in four Italians is over 65, and the country has the fourth oldest population in the world, with a median age of 48 and an average age of 46.6.{{Cite web|title=Aging population of Italy|url=https://www.statista.com/topics/8379/aging-population-of-italy/|access-date=2024-05-29|website=Statista|language=en|archive-date=29 May 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240529041428/https://www.statista.com/topics/8379/aging-population-of-italy/|url-status=live}} The overall population has been falling steadily since 2014 and is estimated to have fallen just below 59 million in 2024, representing a cumulative loss of more than 1.36 million people over the span of a decade.{{Cite web|last1=Nadeau |first1=Barbie Latza |last2=Di Donato |first2=Valentina |last3=Mortensen |first3=Antonia|date=2023-05-17|title='Low fertility trap': Why Italy's falling birth rate is causing alarm|url=https://www.cnn.com/2023/05/17/europe/italy-record-low-birth-rate-intl-cmd/index.html|access-date=2024-05-29|website=CNN|language=en|archive-date=29 May 2024|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240529041430/https://www.cnn.com/2023/05/17/europe/italy-record-low-birth-rate-intl-cmd/index.html|url-status=live}}

From the late 19th century to the 1960s, Italy was a country of mass emigration. Between 1898 and 1914, the peak years of Italian diaspora, approximately 750,000 Italians emigrated annually.{{Cite web|date=15 August 1999|title=Causes of the Italian mass emigration|url=http://library.thinkquest.org/26786/en/articles/view.php3?arKey=4&paKey=7&loKey=0&evKey=&toKey=&torKey=&tolKey=|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090701010600/http://library.thinkquest.org/26786/en/articles/view.php3?arKey=4&paKey=7&loKey=0&evKey=&toKey=&torKey=&tolKey=|archive-date=1 July 2009|access-date=11 August 2014|publisher=ThinkQuest Library}} The diaspora included more than 25 million Italians and is considered the greatest mass migration of recent times.Favero, Luigi e Tassello, Graziano. Cent'anni di emigrazione italiana (1861–1961) Introduction

{{Largest cities of Italy}}

{{Main|Immigration to Italy}}

File:Italy, foreign residents as a percentage of the total population, 2011.svg

In the 1980s, until then a linguistically and culturally homogeneous society, Italy began to attract substantial flows of immigrants.{{Cite book|last=Allen|first=Beverly|url=https://archive.org/details/revisioningitaly00beve|title=Revisioning Italy national identity and global culture|date=1997|publisher=University of Minnesota Press|isbn=978-0-8166-2727-1|location=Minneapolis|page=[https://archive.org/details/revisioningitaly00beve/page/169 169]|url-access=registration}} After the fall of the Berlin Wall, and enlargements of the EU, waves of migration originated from the former socialist countries of East Europe. Another source of immigration is neighbouring North Africa, with arrivals soaring as a consequence of the Arab Spring. Growing migration fluxes from Asia-Pacific (notably China"[http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/6550725.stm Milan police in Chinatown clash] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171010205822/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/6550725.stm|date=10 October 2017}}". BBC News. 13 April 2007. and the Philippines) and Latin America have been recorded.

In 2010, the foreign-born population was from the following regions: Europe (54%), Africa (22%), Asia (16%), the Americas (8%), and Oceania (0.06%). The distribution of the foreign population is geographically varied: in 2020, 61% of foreign citizens lived in the north, 24% in the centre, 11% in the south, and 4% on the islands.{{Cite web|title=XXIX Rapporto Immigrazione 2020|url=https://www.migrantes.it/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2020/10/RICM_2020_DEF.pdf|access-date=31 December 2021|language=it|archive-date=31 December 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211231222417/https://www.migrantes.it/wp-content/uploads/sites/50/2020/10/RICM_2020_DEF.pdf|url-status=live}}

In 2021, Italy had about 5.2 million foreign residents,{{Cite web|title=Population on 1 January by sex, country of birth and broad group of citizenship|url=https://appsso.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/nui/submitViewTableAction.do|access-date=28 August 2023|archive-date=21 January 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230121154457/https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/web/main/eurostat/web/main/help/faq/data-services|url-status=live}} making up 9% of the population. The figures include more than half a million children born in Italy to foreign nationals, but exclude foreign nationals who have subsequently acquired Italian citizenship;{{Cite web|title=Immigrants.Stat|url=http://stra-dati.istat.it/Index.aspx|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170709143540/http://stra-dati.istat.it/Index.aspx|archive-date=9 July 2017|access-date=15 June 2017|publisher=Istat}} in 2016, about 201,000 people became Italian citizens.{{Cite web|title=National demographic balance 2016|url=https://www.istat.it/en/archive/201143|access-date=15 June 2017|publisher=Istat|archive-date=10 October 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171010180410/https://www.istat.it/en/archive/201143|url-status=live}} The official figures also exclude illegal immigrants, which was estimated to be 670,000 in 2008.Elisabeth Rosenthal, "[https://www.boston.com/news/world/europe/articles/2008/05/16/italy_cracks_down_on_illegal_immigration/ Italy cracks down on illegal immigration] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130821061114/http://www.boston.com/news/world/europe/articles/2008/05/16/italy_cracks_down_on_illegal_immigration|date=21 August 2013}}". The Boston Globe. 16 May 2008. About one million Romanian citizens are registered as living in Italy, representing the largest migrant population.

{{Main|Languages of Italy|Italian language|Regional Italian|Geographical distribution of Italian speakers}}

File:Linguistic map of Italy.png]]

Italy's official language is Italian.{{Cite web|title=Legge 15 Dicembre 1999, n. 482 "Norme in materia di tutela delle minoranze linguistiche storiche" pubblicata nella Gazzetta Ufficiale n. 297 del 20 dicembre 1999 |url=http://www.camera.it/parlam/leggi/99482l.htm|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150512051856/http://www.camera.it/parlam/leggi/99482l.htm|archive-date=12 May 2015|access-date=2 December 2014|publisher=Italian Parliament}}Statuto Speciale per il Trentino-Alto Adige, Art. 99 There are an estimated 64 million native Italian speakers around the world,[https://www.ethnologue.com/language/ita Italian language] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150730230004/http://www.ethnologue.com/language/ita|date=30 July 2015}} Ethnologue.com; {{Cite web|date=February 2006|title=Eurobarometer – Europeans and their languages|url=http://ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/archives/ebs/ebs_243_sum_en.pdf|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110430202903/http://ec.europa.eu/public_opinion/archives/ebs/ebs_243_sum_en.pdf|archive-date=30 April 2011|format=485{{spaces}}KB}}; Nationalencyklopedin "Världens 100 största språk 2007" The World's 100 Largest Languages in 2007 and another 21 million use it as a second language.[http://www2.le.ac.uk/departments/modern-languages/lal/languages%20at%20lal/italian Italian language] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140502004444/http://www2.le.ac.uk/departments/modern-languages/lal/languages%20at%20lal/italian|date=2 May 2014}} University of Leicester Italian is often natively spoken as a regional dialect, not to be confused with Italy's regional and minority languages;{{Cite web|title=UNESCO Atlas of the World's Languages in danger|url=http://www.unesco.org/languages-atlas/index.php|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161218184822/http://www.unesco.org/languages-atlas/index.php|archive-date=18 December 2016|access-date=2 January 2018|publisher=UNESCO}}; {{Cite encyclopedia|url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/297241/Italian-language|title=Italian language|encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica|date=3 November 2008|access-date=19 November 2009|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091129081859/https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/297241/Italian-language|archive-date=29 November 2009}} however, during the 20th century, the establishment of a national education system led to a decrease in regional dialects. Standardisation was further expanded in the 1950s and 1960s, due to economic growth and the rise of mass media and television.

Twelve "historical minority languages" are formally recognised: Albanian, Catalan, German, Greek, Slovene, Croatian, French, Franco-Provençal, Friulian, Ladin, Occitan, and Sardinian. Four of these enjoy co-official status in their respective regions: French in the Aosta Valley;L.cost. 26 febbraio 1948, n. 4, Statuto speciale per la Valle d'Aosta German in South Tyrol, and Ladin as well in some parts of the same province and in parts of the neighbouring Trentino;L.cost. 26 febbraio 1948, n. 5, Statuto speciale per il Trentino-Alto Adige and Slovene in the provinces of Trieste, Gorizia, and Udine.L. cost. 31 gennaio 1963, n. 1, Statuto speciale della Regione Friuli-Venezia Giulia Other Ethnologue, ISO, and UNESCO languages are not recognised under Italian law. Like France, Italy has signed the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages, but has not ratified it.{{Cite web|title=Ready for Ratification|url=https://rm.coe.int/European-centre-for-minority-issues-vol-1-/1680737191|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180103133317/https://rm.coe.int/European-centre-for-minority-issues-vol-1-/1680737191|archive-date=3 January 2018|publisher=European Centre for Minority Issues}}

Due to recent immigration, Italy has sizeable populations whose native language is not Italian, nor a regional language. According to the Italian National Institute of Statistics, Romanian is the most common mother tongue among foreign residents: almost 800,000 people speak Romanian as their first language (22% of foreign residents aged 6 and over). Other prevalent mother tongues are Arabic (spoken by over 475,000; 13% of foreign residents), Albanian (380,000), and Spanish (255,000).{{Cite web|date=24 July 2014|title=Linguistic diversity among foreign citizens in Italy|url=http://www.istat.it/en/archive/129304|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140730134706/http://www.istat.it/en/archive/129304|archive-date=30 July 2014|access-date=27 July 2014|publisher=Italian National Institute of Statistics}}

{{Main|Religion in Italy}}

{{See also|List of cathedrals in Italy}}

File:PonteSantAngeloRom.jpg viewed from the Tiber; the Vatican Hill in the back and Castel Sant'Angelo in Rome to the right. Both the basilica and the hill are part of the sovereign state of Vatican City, the Holy See of the Catholic Church.]]

The Holy See, the episcopal jurisdiction of Rome, contains the government of Vatican City and the worldwide Catholic Church. It is recognised as a sovereign entity, headed by the pope, who is also the Bishop of Rome, with which diplomatic relations can be maintained.Text taken directly from {{Cite web|title=Country Profile: Vatican City State|url=http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/travel-and-living-abroad/travel-advice-by-country/country-profile/europe/holy-see|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101231084624/http://www.fco.gov.uk/en/travel-and-living-abroad/travel-advice-by-country/country-profile/europe/holy-see|archive-date=31 December 2010|access-date=5 February 2016}} (viewed on 14 December 2011), on the website of the British Foreign & Commonwealth Office.{{Efn|The Holy See's sovereignty has been recognised explicitly in many international agreements and is particularly emphasised in article 2 of the Lateran Treaty of 11 February 1929, in which "Italy recognises the sovereignty of the Holy See in international matters as an inherent attribute in conformity with its traditions and the requirements of its mission to the world" ([http://www.aloha.net/~mikesch/treaty.htm Lateran Treaty, English translation]).}}

Although historically dominated by Catholicism, religiosity in Italy is declining.{{Cite web|last=Dell'orto|first=Giovanna|date=5 October 2023|title=The Nones: Italy|url=https://projects.apnews.com/features/2023/the-nones/the-nones-italy.html|access-date=6 October 2023|work=Associated Press News|archive-date=5 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231005133701/https://projects.apnews.com/features/2023/the-nones/the-nones-italy.html|url-status=live}}; {{Cite web|last=Dell'orto|first=Giovanna|date=2023-10-05|title=From cradle to casket, life for Italians changes as Catholic faith loses relevance|url=https://apnews.com/article/italy-nonreligious-catholic-life-changes-fb808ce37daba3ce222e57a51c7d9187|access-date=2023-10-06|work=Associated Press News|archive-date=7 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231007220721/https://apnews.com/article/italy-nonreligious-catholic-life-changes-fb808ce37daba3ce222e57a51c7d9187|url-status=live}} Most Catholics are nominal; the Associated Press describes Italian Catholicism as "nominally embraced but rarely lived". Italy has the world's fifth-largest Catholic population and the largest in Europe.{{Cite web|date=13 February 2013|title=The Global Catholic Population|url=https://www.pewforum.org/2013/02/13/the-global-catholic-population|website=Pew Research Center's Religion & Public Life Project|access-date=21 November 2020|archive-date=25 November 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201125003604/https://www.pewforum.org/2013/02/13/the-global-catholic-population/|url-status=live}} Since 1985, Catholicism is no longer the official religion.{{Cite news|date=4 June 1985|title=Catholicism No Longer Italy's State Religion|url=http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1985-06-04/news/8501220260_1_italian-state-new-agreement-church|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131020143004/http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1985-06-04/news/8501220260_1_italian-state-new-agreement-church|archive-date=20 October 2013|access-date=7 September 2013|work=Sun Sentinel}}

In 2011, minority Christian faiths included an estimated 1.5 million Orthodox Christians, while Protestantism has been growing.{{Cite book|last=Leustean|first=Lucian N.|title=Eastern Christianity and Politics in the Twenty-First Century|date=2014|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-0-4156-8490-3|page=723}} Italy has for centuries welcomed Jews expelled from other countries, notably Spain. However, about 20% of Italian Jews were killed during the Holocaust.{{Cite book |last=Dawidowicz, Lucy S. |title=The war against the Jews, 1933–1945 |publisher=Bantam Books |year=1986 |isbn=978-0-5533-4302-1 |location=New York}} p. 403. This, together with emigration before and after World War II, has left around 28,000 Jews.{{Cite web|title=The Jewish Community of Italy (Unione delle Comunita Ebraiche Italiane)|url=http://www.eurojewcong.org/communities/italy.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130313095857/http://www.eurojewcong.org/communities/italy.html|archive-date=13 March 2013|access-date=25 August 2014|publisher=The European Jewish Congress}} There are 120,000 Hindus{{Cite web|date=4 November 2019|title=Eurispes, risultati del primo Rapporto di ricerca su "L'Induismo in Italia"|url=https://eurispes.eu/news/eurispes-risultati-del-primo-rapporto-di-ricerca-su-linduismo-in-italia|access-date=31 December 2021|language=it|archive-date=31 December 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211231223926/https://eurispes.eu/news/eurispes-risultati-del-primo-rapporto-di-ricerca-su-linduismo-in-italia/|url-status=live}} and 70,000 Sikhs.{{Cite web|date=15 November 2004|title=NRI Sikhs in Italy|url=http://www.nriinternet.com/EUROPE/ITALY/2004/111604Gurdwara.htm|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110207031755/http://nriinternet.com/EUROPE/ITALY/2004/111604Gurdwara.htm|archive-date=7 February 2011|access-date=30 October 2010|publisher=Nriinternet.com}}

The state devolves shares of income tax to recognised religious communities, under a regime known as eight per thousand. Donations are allowed to Christian, Jewish, Buddhist, and Hindu communities; however, Islam remains excluded, as no Muslim communities have signed a concordat.{{Cite web|date=7 April 2003|title=Italy: Islam denied income tax revenue – Adnkronos Religion|url=http://www.adnkronos.com/AKI/English/Religion/?id=3.1.880028077|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130620070907/http://www.adnkronos.com/AKI/English/Religion/?id=3.1.880028077|archive-date=20 June 2013|access-date=2 June 2013|publisher=Adnkronos.com}} Taxpayers who do not wish to fund a religion contribute their share to the welfare system.[http://documenti.camera.it/Leg16/dossier/Testi/BI0350.htm#_Toc278992388 Camera dei deputati Dossier BI0350] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130927211619/http://documenti.camera.it/Leg16/dossier/Testi/BI0350.htm|date=27 September 2013}}. Documenti.camera.it (10 March 1998). Retrieved 12 July 2013.

{{Main|Education in Italy}}

File:Archiginnasio ora blu Bologna.jpg, established in 1088 AD, is the world's oldest university in continuous operation.]]

Education is mandatory and free from ages six to sixteen,{{Cite web|title=Law 27 December 2007, n.296 |url=http://www.camera.it/parlam/leggi/06296l.htm|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121206012402/http://www.camera.it/parlam/leggi/06296l.htm|archive-date=6 December 2012|access-date=30 September 2012|publisher=Italian Parliament}} and consists of five stages: kindergarten, primary school, lower secondary school, upper secondary school, and university.{{Cite web|title=Human Development Reports|url=http://hdr.undp.org/en/media/HDR_20072008_EN_Complete.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110429033726/http://hdr.undp.org/en/media/HDR_20072008_EN_Complete.pdf|archive-date=29 April 2011|access-date=18 January 2014|publisher=Hdr.undp.org}}

Primary school lasts eight years. Students are given a basic education in Italian, English, mathematics, natural sciences, history, geography, social studies, physical education, and visual and musical arts. Secondary school lasts for five years and includes three traditional types of schools focused on different academic levels: the liceo prepares students for university studies with a classical or scientific curriculum, while the istituto tecnico and the istituto professionale prepare pupils for vocations.

In 2018, secondary education was evaluated as being below the average among OECD countries.{{Cite web|title=PISA 2018 results|url=https://www.oecd.org/pisa/publications/pisa-2018-results.htm|access-date=6 April 2021|website=oecd.org|archive-date=3 December 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191203141933/https://www.oecd.org/pisa/publications/pisa-2018-results.htm|url-status=live}} Italy scored below the OECD average in reading and science, and near the OECD average in mathematics. A wide gap exists between northern schools, which perform near average, and the south, which had much poorer results.{{Cite web|title=The literacy divide: territorial differences in the Italian education system|url=http://new.sis-statistica.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/CO09-The-literacy-divide-territorial-differences-in-the-Italian.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151117015624/http://new.sis-statistica.org/wp-content/uploads/2013/10/CO09-The-literacy-divide-territorial-differences-in-the-Italian.pdf|archive-date=17 November 2015|access-date=16 November 2015|publisher=Parthenope University of Naples}}

Tertiary education is divided between public universities, private universities, and the prestigious and selective superior graduate schools, such as the Scuola Normale Superiore di Pisa. 33 Italian universities were ranked among the world's top 500 in 2019.{{Cite web|year=2019|title=Number of top-ranked universities by country in Europe|url=https://jakubmarian.com/number-of-top-ranked-universities-by-country-in-europe|publisher=jakubmarian.com|access-date=18 May 2019|archive-date=18 May 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190518113438/https://jakubmarian.com/number-of-top-ranked-universities-by-country-in-europe/|url-status=live}} Bologna University, founded in 1088, is the oldest university still in operation,Nuria Sanz, Sjur Bergan: "The heritage of European universities", 2nd edition, Higher Education Series No. 7, Council of Europe, 2006. ISBN 978-92-871-6121-5. p. 136. and one of the leading academic institutions in Europe.{{Cite news|date=3 July 2017|title=Censis, la classifica delle università: Bologna ancora prima|url=http://bologna.repubblica.it/cronaca/2017/07/03/news/censis_la_classifica_delle_universita_bologna_ancora_prima-169846308|work=La Repubblica|access-date=10 September 2018|archive-date=10 September 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180910204704/https://bologna.repubblica.it/cronaca/2017/07/03/news/censis_la_classifica_delle_universita_bologna_ancora_prima-169846308/|url-status=live}} Bocconi University, the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore, LUISS, the Polytechnic University of Turin, the Polytechnic University of Milan, the Sapienza University of Rome, and the University of Milan are also ranked among the best.{{Cite web|year=2015|title=Academic Ranking of World Universities 2015 |url=http://www.shanghairanking.com/ARWU2015.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151030134046/http://www.shanghairanking.com/ARWU2015.html|archive-date=30 October 2015|access-date=29 October 2015|publisher=Shanghai Ranking Consultancy}}

{{Main|Health in Italy|Healthcare in Italy}}

File:Oil-1383546 1920.jpg and vegetables are central to the Mediterranean diet.{{Cite journal|last1=Duarte, A.|last2=Fernandes, J.|last3=Bernardes, J.|last4=Miguel, G.|year=2016|title=Citrus as a Component of the Mediterranean Diet|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/311911612|journal=Journal of Spatial and Organizational Dynamics|volume=4|pages=289–304|access-date=26 January 2021|archive-date=1 October 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181001220519/https://www.researchgate.net/publication/311911612|url-status=live}}]]

Italy's life expectancy in 2015 was 80.5 years for men and 84.8 for women, placing the country 5th in the world.{{Cite web|year=2016|title=World Health Statistics 2016: Monitoring health for the SDGs Annex B: tables of health statistics by country, WHO region and globally |url=https://www.who.int/gho/publications/world_health_statistics/2016/Annex_B/en|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160623023234/http://www.who.int/gho/publications/world_health_statistics/2016/Annex_B/en|archive-date=23 June 2016|access-date=27 June 2016|publisher=World Health Organization}} Compared to other Western countries, Italy has a low rate of adult obesity (below 10%{{Cite web|title=Global Prevalence of Adult Obesity|url=http://www.iotf.org/database/documents/GlobalPrevalenceofAdultObesity16thDecember08.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090327044232/http://www.iotf.org/database/documents/GlobalPrevalenceofAdultObesity16thDecember08.pdf|archive-date=27 March 2009|access-date=29 January 2008|publisher=International Obesity Taskforce}}), as the health benefits of the Mediterranean diet are very significant.{{Cite journal|last1=Dinu|first1=M|last2=Pagliai|first2=G|last3=Casini|first3=A|author-link3=Angela Casini|last4=Sofi|first4=F|date=10 May 2017|title=Mediterranean diet and multiple health outcomes: an umbrella review of meta-analyses of observational studies and randomised trials.|journal=European Journal of Clinical Nutrition|volume=72|issue=1|pages=30–43|doi=10.1038/ejcn.2017.58|pmid=28488692|s2cid=7702206|hdl-access=free|hdl=2158/1081996}} In 2013, UNESCO, prompted by Italy, added the Mediterranean diet to the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity of Italy, Morocco, Spain, Portugal, Greece, Cyprus, and Croatia.{{Cite web|title=UNESCO Culture Sector, Eighth Session of the Intergovernmental Committee (8.COM) – from 2 to 7 December 2013 |url=http://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/index.php?lg=en&pg=00473|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131220125948/http://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/index.php?lg=en&pg=00473|archive-date=20 December 2013|access-date=3 April 2014}}; {{Cite web|url=http://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/index.php?lg=en&pg=00011&RL=00884|access-date=3 April 2014|title=UNESCO – Culture – Intangible Heritage – Lists & Register – Inscribed Elements – Mediterranean Diet| url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140415064011/http://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/index.php?lg=en&pg=00011&RL=00884|archive-date=15 April 2014}}

The proportion of daily smokers was 22% in 2012, down from 24% in 2000 but above the OECD average.{{Cite web|year=2014|title=OECD Health Statistics 2014 How Does Italy Compare? |url=http://www.oecd.org/els/health-systems/Briefing-Note-ITALY-2014.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924133234/http://www.oecd.org/els/health-systems/Briefing-Note-ITALY-2014.pdf|archive-date=24 September 2015|publisher=OECD}} Since 2005, smoking in public places has been restricted to "specially ventilated rooms".{{Cite news|title=Smoking Ban Begins in Italy {{!}} Europe {{!}} DW.COM {{!}} 10 January 2005|url=http://www.dw.com/en/smoking-ban-begins-in-italy/a-1453590|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150621143640/http://www.dw.com/en/smoking-ban-begins-in-italy/a-1453590|archive-date=21 June 2015|access-date=1 August 2010|publisher=Deutsche Welle}}

Since 1978, the state has run a universal public healthcare system.{{Cite web|title=Italy – Health|url=http://dev.prenhall.com/divisions/hss/worldreference/IT/health.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090701064229/http://dev.prenhall.com/divisions/hss/worldreference/IT/health.html|archive-date=1 July 2009|access-date=2 August 2010|publisher=Dev.prenhall.com}} However, healthcare is provided to all citizens and residents by a mixed public-private system. The public part is the Servizio Sanitario Nazionale, which is organised under the Ministry of Health and administered on a devolved regional basis. Healthcare spending accounted for 10% of GDP in 2020. Italy's healthcare system has been consistently ranked among the best in the world;{{Cite web|title=The World Health Organization's ranking of the world's health systems|url=http://www.photius.com/rankings/healthranks.html|access-date=7 September 2015|publisher=Photius.com|archive-date=5 January 2010|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100105190014/http://www.photius.com/rankings/healthranks.html|url-status=live}}; {{Cite news|date=20 March 2017|title=Italy's Struggling Economy Has World's Healthiest People|publisher=Bloomberg News|url=https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-03-20/italy-s-struggling-economy-has-world-s-healthiest-people|access-date=9 December 2020|archive-date=6 October 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221006112037/https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-03-20/italy-s-struggling-economy-has-world-s-healthiest-people|url-status=live}} according to research by the World Health Organization (WHO) dating back to 2000, Italy had the second best healthcare system in the world in terms of spending efficiency and access to public care for citizens, after France.{{Cite journal |last1=Maio |first1=Vittorio |last2=Manzoli |first2=L |date=2002 |title=The Italian health care system: W.H.O. Ranking versus public perception. |url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/285698246 |journal=P and T |volume=27 |pages=301–308}}

{{Main|Culture of Italy}}

Italy is one of the primary birthplaces of Western civilisation and a cultural superpower.Among others, Italy has been described as a "cultural superpower" by [https://www.washingtonpost.com/entertainment/coming-to-the-us-the-year-of-italian-culture-2013/2012/10/15/29f404a8-1703-11e2-9855-71f2b202721b_story.html The Washington Post], the U.S. president Barack Obama, and the former Foreign Affairs Minister Giulio Terzi di Sant'Agata. {{Cite web |url=http://www.arabnews.com/italy-cultural-superpower |title=Italy, a cultural superpower |date=2 June 2012 |access-date=25 January 2021 |archive-date=26 December 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141226231012/http://www.arabnews.com/italy-cultural-superpower |url-status=bot: unknown }}. Italy's culture has been shaped by a multitude of regional customs and local centres of power and patronage.{{Cite book|last=Killinger|first=Charles|url=https://archive.org/details/culturecustomsof00char/page/3|title=Culture and customs of Italy|publisher=Greenwood Press|year=2005|isbn=978-0-3133-2489-5|edition=1. publ.|location=Westport, Conn.|page=[https://archive.org/details/culturecustomsof00char/page/3 3]}} Italy has made substantial contributions to the cultural and historical heritage of Europe.{{Cite book|last=Cole|first=Alison|title=Virtue and magnificence: art of the Italian Renaissance courts|publisher=H.N. Abrams|year=1995|isbn=978-0-8109-2733-9|location=New York}}

{{Main|Italian architecture}}

File:Reggia di Caserta - panoramio - Carlo Pelagalli (2).jpg is the largest former royal residence in the world.{{Cite web |last=Chronopoulou |first=Angeliki |date=23 January 2024 |title=Reggia Di Caserta Historical Overview |url=https://www.academia.edu/44592878 |access-date=January 23, 2024 |website=Academia |language=English}}{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=qTdlAQAAQBAJ|title=Dictionnaire amoureux de Versailles|first=Franck|last=FERRAND|date=October 24, 2013|publisher=Place des éditeurs|isbn=9782259222679 |via=Google Books}}]]

Italy is known for its architectural achievements,[http://www.justitaly.org/italy/italy-architecture.asp Architecture in Italy] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120115053940/http://www.justitaly.org/italy/italy-architecture.asp|date=15 January 2012}}, ItalyTravel.com such as the construction of arches, domes, and similar structures by ancient Rome, the founding of the Renaissance architectural movement in the late 14th to 16th centuries, and as the home of Palladianism, a style that inspired movements such as Neoclassical architecture and influenced designs of country houses all over the world, notably in the UK and US during the late 17th to early 20th centuries.

The first to begin a recognised sequence of designs were the Greeks and the Etruscans, progressing to classical Roman,Sear, Frank. [https://books.google.com/books?id=Rkdt_p6uvw0C&pg=PA10 Roman architecture.] Cornell University Press, 1983. p. 10. Web. 23 September 2011. then the revival of the classical Roman era during the Renaissance, and evolving into the Baroque era. The Christian concept of the basilica, a style that came to dominate in the Middle Ages, was invented in Rome.[http://www.justitaly.org/italy/architecture/christian-byzanthine.asp Italy Architecture: Early Christian and Byzanthine] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130328131150/http://www.justitaly.org/italy/architecture/christian-byzanthine.asp|date=28 March 2013}}, ItalyTravel.com Romanesque architecture, which flourished from approximately 800 to 1100 AD, was one of the most fruitful and creative periods in Italian architecture, when masterpieces, such as the Leaning Tower of Pisa and the Basilica of Sant'Ambrogio in Milan, were built. It was known for its usage of Roman arches, stained glass windows, and curved columns. The main innovation of Italian Romanesque architecture was the vault, which had never been seen in Western architecture.[http://www.justitaly.org/italy/architecture/romanesque.asp Italy Architecture: Romanesque] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130328120342/http://www.justitaly.org/italy/architecture/romanesque.asp|date=28 March 2013}}, ItalyTravel.com

Italian architecture significantly evolved during the Renaissance. Filippo Brunelleschi contributed to architectural design with his dome for the Cathedral of Florence, a feat of engineering not seen since antiquity.{{Cite book|last1=Campbell|first1=Stephen J|title=Italian Renaissance Art|last2=Cole|first2=Michael Wayne|publisher=Thames & Hudson Inc|year=2012|location=New York|pages=95–97}} A popular achievement of Italian Renaissance architecture was St. Peter's Basilica, designed by Donato Bramante in the early 16th century. Andrea Palladio influenced architects throughout Western Europe with the villas and palaces he designed.{{Cite web|title=City of Vicenza and the Palladian Villas of the Veneto|url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/712|website=UNESCO World Heritage Centre}}

The Baroque period produced outstanding Italian architects. The most original work of late Baroque and Rococo architecture is the Palazzina di caccia of Stupinigi.R. De Fusco, A thousand years of architecture in Europe, pg. 443. In 1752, Luigi Vanvitelli began the construction of the Royal Palace of Caserta.{{Cite book|last=Hersey|first=George|title=Architecture and Geometry in the Age of the Baroque|publisher=University of Chicago Press|year=2001|isbn=0-2263-2784-1|location=Chicago|page=119}} In the late 18th and early 19th centuries, Italy was influenced by the Neoclassical architectural movement. Villas, palaces, gardens, interiors, and art began again to be based on ancient Roman and Greek themes.[http://www.justitaly.org/italy/architecture/neoclassicism.asp Italy Architecture: Neoclassicism] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130328084932/http://www.justitaly.org/italy/architecture/neoclassicism.asp|date=28 March 2013}}, ItalyTravel.com

During the Fascist period, the supposedly "Novecento movement" flourished, based on the rediscovery of imperial Rome. Marcello Piacentini, responsible for the urban transformations of cities, devised a form of simplified Neoclassicism.{{Cite news|title=Renzo Piano|url=https://www.nytimes.com/topic/person/renzo-piano|access-date=20 August 2017|work=The New York Times}}

{{Main|Italian art}}

File:Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519) - The Last Supper (1495-1498).jpg (1494–1499), Leonardo da Vinci, Church of Santa Maria delle Grazie, Milan]]

The history of Italian visual arts is significant to Western painting. Roman art was influenced by Greece and can be taken as a descendant of ancient Greek painting. The only surviving Roman paintings are wall paintings.{{Cite web|title=Roman Painting|url=http://www.art-and-archaeology.com/roman/painting.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130726163006/http://art-and-archaeology.com/roman/painting.html|archive-date=26 July 2013|publisher=art-and-archaeology.com}} These may contain the first examples of trompe-l'œil, pseudo-perspective, and pure landscape.{{Cite web|title=Roman Wall Painting|url=http://www.accd.edu/sac/vat/arthistory/arts1303/Rome4.htm|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070319123717/http://www.accd.edu/sac/vat/arthistory/arts1303/Rome4.htm|archive-date=19 March 2007|publisher=accd.edu}}

The Italian Renaissance is considered to be the golden age of painting, spanning from the 14th through the mid-17th centuries and having significant influence outside Italy. Artists such as Masaccio, Filippo Lippi, Tintoretto, Sandro Botticelli, Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael, and Titian took painting to a higher level through the use of perspective. Michelangelo was also active as a sculptor; his works include masterpieces such as David, Pietà, and Moses.

In the 15th and 16th centuries, the High Renaissance gave rise to a stylised art known as Mannerism. In place of the balanced compositions and rational approach to perspective that characterised art at the dawn of the 16th century, the Mannerists sought instability, artifice, and doubt. The unperturbed faces and gestures of Piero della Francesca and the calm Virgins of Raphael were replaced by the troubled expressions of Pontormo and emotional intensity of El Greco.

File:Sandro Botticelli - La nascita di Venere - Google Art Project - edited.jpg (1484–1486), Sandro Botticelli, Uffizi Gallery, Florence]]

In the 17th century, among the greatest painters of Italian Baroque are Caravaggio, Artemisia Gentileschi, Carlo Saraceni, and Bartolomeo Manfredi. In the 18th century, Italian Rococo was mainly inspired by French Rococo. Italian Neoclassical sculpture focused, with Antonio Canova's nudes, on the idealist aspect of the movement.

In the 19th century, Romantic painters included Francesco Hayez and Francesco Podesti. Impressionism was brought from France to Italy by the Macchiaioli, and realism by Gioacchino Toma and Giuseppe Pellizza da Volpedo. In the 20th century, with futurism, Italy rose again as a seminal country for evolution in painting and sculpture. Futurism was succeeded by the metaphysical paintings of Giorgio de Chirico, who exerted an influence on the surrealists.Gale, Matthew. "Pittura Metafisica". Grove Art Online. Oxford Art Online. Oxford University Press. Web.

{{Main|Italian literature}}

Formal Latin literature began in 240 BC, when the first stage play was performed in Rome.Duckworth, George Eckel. [https://books.google.com/books?id=BuLEo5U9sb0C&pg=PA3 The nature of Roman comedy: a study in popular entertainment.] University of Oklahoma Press, 1994. p. 3. Web. 15 October 2011. Latin literature was, and is, highly influential, with numerous writers, poets, philosophers, and historians, such as Pliny the Elder, Pliny the Younger, Virgil, Horace, Propertius, Ovid, and Livy. The Romans were famous for their oral tradition, poetry, drama, and epigrams.{{Cite book|url={{Google books|LHA_SydyKOYC|page=PA39|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}}|title=Poetry and Drama: Literary Terms and Concepts.|date=2011|publisher=The Rosen Publishing Group|isbn=978-1-6153-0490-5|access-date=18 October 2011}} In the early 13th century, Francis of Assisi was the first Italian poet, with his religious song Canticle of the Sun.{{Cite book|url={{Google books|3uq0bObScHMC|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}}|title=The Cambridge History of Italian Literature|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=1999|isbn=978-0-5216-6622-0|editor-last=Brand|editor-first=Peter|chapter=2 – Poetry. Francis of Assisi (pp. 5ff.)|access-date=31 December 2015|editor-last2=Pertile|editor-first2=Lino|editor-link2=Lino Pertile|chapter-url={{Google books|3uq0bObScHMC|page=PA5|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}}|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160610172548/https://books.google.com/books?id=3uq0bObScHMC&printsec=frontcover|archive-date=10 June 2016|url-status=live}}

File:Dante03.jpg, whose works helped establish modern Italian language, is considered one of the greatest poets of the Middle Ages. His epic poem Divine Comedy ranks among the finest works of world literature.]]

At the court of Emperor Frederick II in Sicily, in the 13th century, lyrics modelled on Provençal forms and themes were written in a refined version of the local vernacular. One of these poets was Giacomo da Lentini, inventor of the sonnet form; the most famous early sonneteer was Petrarch.Ernest Hatch Wilkins, The invention of the sonnet, and other studies in Italian literature (Rome: Edizioni di Storia e letteratura, 1959), 11–39

Guido Guinizelli is the founder of the Dolce Stil Novo, a school that added a philosophical dimension to love poetry. This new understanding of love, expressed in a smooth style, influenced the Florentine poet Dante Alighieri, who established the basis of modern Italian. Dante's work, Divine Comedy, is among the finest in literature.{{Cite book|last=Bloom|first=Harold|author-link=Harold Bloom|url=https://archive.org/details/westerncanonbook00bloorich|title=The Western Canon|publisher=Harcourt Brace|year=1994|isbn=978-0-1519-5747-7|url-access=registration}} See also Western canon for other "canons" that include the Divine Comedy. Petrarch and Giovanni Boccaccio sought and imitated the works of antiquity and cultivated their own artistic personalities. Petrarch achieved fame through his collection of poems, Il Canzoniere. Equally influential was Boccaccio's The Decameron, a very popular collection of short stories.{{Cite encyclopedia|title=Giovanni Boccaccio: The Decameron.|encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica|url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/70836/Giovanni-Boccaccio/755/The-Decameron|access-date=18 December 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131219020413/https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/70836/Giovanni-Boccaccio/755/The-Decameron|archive-date=19 December 2013|url-status=live}}

Renaissance authors' works include Niccolò Machiavelli's The Prince, an essay on political science in which the "effectual truth" is taken to be more important than any abstract ideal. Giovanni Francesco Straparola and Giambattista Basile, who wrote The Facetious Nights of Straparola (1550–55) and the Pentamerone (1634), respectively, printed some of the first known versions of fairy tales in Europe.Steven Swann Jones, The Fairy Tale: The Magic Mirror of Imagination, Twayne Publishers, New York, 1995, {{ISBN|0-8057-0950-9}}, p. 38; Bottigheimer 2012a, 7; Waters 1894, xii; Zipes 2015, 599.; {{Citation|last1=Opie|first1=Iona|title=The Classic Fairy Tales|year=1974|url=https://archive.org/details/classicfairytale00opie_0|place=Oxford and New York|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-1921-1559-1|last2=Opie|first2=Peter|author-link=Iona Opie|author-link2=Peter Opie}} See p. 20. The claim for earliest fairy-tale is still debated, see for example Jan M. Ziolkowski, Fairy tales from before fairy tales: the medieval Latin past of wonderful lies, University of Michigan Press, 2007. Ziolkowski examines Egbert of Liège's Latin beast poem Fecunda natis (The Richly Laden Ship, c. 1022/24), the earliest known version of "Little Red Riding Hood". Further info: [https://web.archive.org/web/20071023044216/http://www.leithart.com/archives/003139.php Little Red Pentecostal], Peter J. Leithart, 9 July 2007. The Baroque period produced the clear scientific prose of Galileo. In the 17th century, the Arcadians began a movement to restore simplicity and classical restraint to poetry.[https://www.britannica.com/topic/Academy-of-Arcadia Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. "Academy of Arcadia". Encyclopedia Britannica]

Italian writers embraced Romanticism in the 19th century; it coincided with ideas of the Risorgimento, the movement that brought Italian unification. Unification was heralded by the poets Vittorio Alfieri, Ugo Foscolo, and Giacomo Leopardi. Works by Alessandro Manzoni, the leading Italian Romantic, are a symbol of Italian unification for their patriotic message and because of his efforts in the development of modern, unified Italian.{{Cite web|date=18 May 2023|title=Alessandro Manzoni {{!}} Italian author|url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Alessandro-Manzoni|website=Encyclopædia Britannica}}

File:Portrait of Niccolò Machiavelli.jpg, the founder of modern political science]]

In the late 19th century, a literary movement called verismo, which extolled realism, played a major role in Italian literature. Emilio Salgari, a writer of action-adventure swashbucklers and a pioneer of science fiction, published his Sandokan series.{{Cite book|last1=Gaetana Marrone|url={{Google books|d9NcAgAAQBAJ|page=PA1654|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}}|title=Encyclopedia of Italian Literary Studies|last2=Paolo Puppa|publisher=Routledge|year=2006|isbn=978-1-1354-5530-9|page=1654}} In 1883, Carlo Collodi published The Adventures of Pinocchio, which became the most celebrated children's classic by an Italian author and one of the world's most translated non-religious books.Giovanni Gasparini. La corsa di Pinocchio. Milano, Vita e Pensiero, 1997. p. 117. {{ISBN|8-8343-4889-3}} A movement called futurism influenced literature in the early 20th century. Filippo Tommaso Marinetti wrote Manifesto of Futurism and called for the use of language and metaphors that glorified the speed, dynamism, and violence of the machine age.{{Cite book|title=The 20th-Century art book.|publisher=Phaidon Press|year=2001|isbn=978-0-7148-3542-6|edition=Reprinted.|location=dsdLondon}}

Modern literary figures and Nobel laureates are Gabriele D'Annunzio, nationalist poet Giosuè Carducci 1906 Nobel laureate, realist writer Grazia Deledda 1926 laureate, modern theatre author Luigi Pirandello in 1936, short story writer Italo Calvino in 1960, poets Salvatore Quasimodo in 1959 and Eugenio Montale in 1975, Umberto Eco in 1980, and satirist and theatre author Dario Fo in 1997.{{Cite web|title=All Nobel Prizes in Literature|url=http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/literature/laureates|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110529091551/http://nobelprize.org/nobel_prizes/literature/laureates|archive-date=29 May 2011|access-date=30 May 2011|publisher=Nobel Foundation}}

{{Main|Italian philosophy}}

Italian philosophy had an influence on Western philosophy, beginning with the Greeks and Romans, and Renaissance humanism, the Age of Enlightenment, and modern philosophy.{{Cite book|last=Garin|first=Eugenio|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=sVP3vBmDktQC|title=History of Italian Philosophy|publisher=VIBS|year=2008|isbn=978-9-0420-2321-5}} Formal philosophy was introduced to Italy by Pythagoras, founder of the Italian school of philosophy in Crotone.{{Cite book|last=Herodotus|title=The Histories|publisher=Penguin Classics|page=226}} Italian philosophers of the Greek period include Xenophanes, Parmenides, and Zeno. Roman philosophers include Cicero, Lucretius, Seneca the Younger, Plutarch, Epictetus, Marcus Aurelius, and Augustine of Hippo.

File:Famous Italian philosophers.jpg, theologian;{{Cite web|title=St. Thomas Aquinas {{!}} Biography, Philosophy, & Facts|url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Saint-Thomas-Aquinas|access-date=20 January 2020|website=Encyclopædia Britannica}} Bruno, cosmologist;Gatti, Hilary. Giordano Bruno and Renaissance Science: Broken Lives and Organizational Power. Cornell University Press, 2002, 1. {{ISBN|0-8014-8785-4}}. Beccaria, criminologist;{{Cite book|last=Hostettler|first=John|title=Cesare Beccaria: The Genius of 'On Crimes and Punishments'|date=2011|publisher=Waterside Press|isbn=978-1-9043-8063-4|location=Hampshire|page=160}} and Montessori, of Montessori education{{Cite web|title=Introduction to Montessori Method|url=https://amshq.org/Montessori-Education/Introduction-to-Montessori|publisher=American Montessori Society}}]]

Italian medieval philosophy was mainly Christian, and included theologians such as Thomas Aquinas, a classical proponent of natural theology, who reintroduced Aristotelian philosophy to Christianity.{{Cite web|last=Blair|first=Peter|title=Reason and Faith: The Thought of Thomas Aquinas|url=http://www.dartmouthapologia.org/articles/show/125|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130913011656/http://www.dartmouthapologia.org/articles/show/125|archive-date=13 September 2013|access-date=18 December 2013|website=The Dartmouth Apologia}} Renaissance philosophers include: Giordano Bruno, a major scientific figure of the West; Marsilio Ficino, a humanist philosopher; and Niccolò Machiavelli, a founder of modern political science. Machiavelli's most famous work is The Prince, whose contribution to political thought is the fundamental break between political idealism and realism.Moschovitis Group Inc, Christian D. Von Dehsen and Scott L. Harris, Philosophers and religious leaders, (The Oryx Press, 1999), 117.{{Cite web|title=The Enlightenment throughout Europe|url=http://history-world.org/enlightenment_throughout_europe.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130123082708/http://history-world.org/enlightenment_throughout_europe.htm|archive-date=23 January 2013|access-date=12 December 2017|website=International World History Project}} University cities such as Padua, Bologna, and Naples remained centres of scholarship, with philosophers such as Giambattista Vico.{{Cite web|title=History of Philosophy 70|url=http://maritain.nd.edu/jmc/etext/hop70.htm|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170525033238/http://maritain.nd.edu/jmc/etext/hop70.htm|archive-date=25 May 2017|access-date=12 December 2017|website=maritain.nd.edu}} Cesare Beccaria was a significant Enlightenment figure and a father of classical criminal theory and penology.

Italy had a renowned philosophical movement in the 1800s, with idealism, sensism, and empiricism. During the late 19th and 20th centuries, there were other movements that gained popularity, such as Ontologism,{{Cite journal|last=Scarangello|first=Anthony|year=1964|title=Major Catholic-Liberal Educational Philosophers of the Italian Risorgimento|journal=History of Education Quarterly|volume=4|issue=4|pages=232–250|doi=10.2307/367499|jstor=367499|s2cid=147563567}} anarchism, communism, socialism, futurism, fascism, and Christian democracy.{{Cite book|last=Pernicone|first=Nunzio|title=Italian Anarchism 1864–1892 |publisher=AK Press|year=2009|pages=111–113}} Antonio Gramsci remains a relevant philosopher within communist theory, credited with creating the theory of cultural hegemony. Italian philosophers were influential in development of the non-Marxist liberal socialism philosophy. In the 1960s, left-wing activists adopted the anti-authoritarian pro-working class theories that became known as autonomism and workerism.{{Cite book|last1=Balestrini|first1=Nanni|title=L'orda d'oro 1968–1977. La grande ondata rivoluzionaria e creativa, politica ed esistenziale |last2=Moroni|first2=Primo|publisher=SugarCo|year=1997|isbn=8-8078-1462-5}}

Italian feminists include Sibilla Aleramo, Alaide Gualberta Beccari, and Anna Maria Mozzoni, and proto-feminist philosophies had previously been touched upon by Italian writers. Italian educator Maria Montessori created the philosophy of education that bears her name. Giuseppe Peano was a founder of analytic philosophy and the contemporary philosophy of mathematics. Analytic philosophers include Carlo Penco, Gloria Origgi, Pieranna Garavaso, and Luciano Floridi.

{{Main|Theatre of Italy}}

File:Gemälde des Hieronymus Francken - Die Compagnia dei Comici Gelosi bei einer Aufführung in Paris.jpg troupe I Gelosi performing, by Hieronymus Francken I, {{circa|1590}}]]

Italian theatre came about in the Middle Ages, with its antecedents dating back to ancient Greek colonies in southern Italy (Magna Graecia),{{Cite web|title=Storia del Teatro nelle città d'Italia|url=https://www.melogranoarte.it/storia-del-teatro-nelle-citta-ditalia|access-date=27 July 2022|language=it}} as well as the theatre of the Italic peoples{{Cite web|title=Storia del teatro: lo spazio scenico in Toscana|url=https://brunelleschi.imss.fi.it/itinerari/itinerario/storiateatrospazioscenicotoscana.html|access-date=28 July 2022|language=it}} and the theatre of ancient Rome. There were two main lines along which theatre developed. The first, dramatization of Catholic liturgies, and the second, formed by pagan forms of spectacle, such as staging for city festivals, court preparations of jesters, and songs of the troubadours.Of this second line, Dario Fo speaks of a true alternative culture to the official one: although widespread as an idea, some scholars such as {{Ill|Giovanni Antonucci|it}} do not agree in considering it as such. In this regard, see {{Cite book|last=Antonucci|first=Giovanni|title=Storia del teatro italiano|publisher=Newton Compton Editori|year=1995|isbn=978-8-8798-3974-7|pages=10–14|language=it}} Renaissance theatre marked the beginning of modern theatre. Ancient theatrical texts were translated and staged at courts, and moved to public theatres. In the late 15th century, the cities of Ferrara and Rome were important for the rediscovery and renewal of theatre.{{Cite book|last=Antonucci|first=Giovanni|title=Storia del teatro italiano|publisher=Newton Compton Editori|year=1995|isbn=978-8-8798-3974-7|page=18|language=it}}

During the 16th into the 18th century, commedia dell'arte was a form of improvisational theatre, and is still performed. Travelling troupes of players set up an outdoor stage and provided amusement in the form of juggling, acrobatics, and humorous plays. Plays did not originate from written drama, but scenarios called lazzi, loose frameworks around which actors would improvise. The characters of the commedia usually represent fixed social types and stock characters, each of which has a distinct costume.{{Cite book|last1=Chaffee, Judith|title=The Routledge Companion to Commedia Dell'Arte|last2=Crick, Olly|publisher=Rutledge Taylor and Francis Group|year=2015|isbn=978-0-4157-4506-2|location=London and New York|page=1}} The first recorded commedia dell'arte performances came from Rome as early as 1551.{{Cite book|last=Katritzky|first=M. A.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9fV4gz5FmiAC&q=the+art+of+commedia|title=The Art of Commedia: A Study in the Commedia dell'arte 1560–1620 with Special Reference to the Visual Records |publisher=Editions Rodopi|year=2006|isbn=978-9-0420-1798-6|location=New York|page=82}} Female roles were played by women, documented as early as the 1560s, making them the first known professional actresses in Europe since antiquity. Lucrezia Di Siena, named on a 1564 contract, has been referred to as the first Italian actress known by name, with Vincenza Armani and Barbara Flaminia as the first prima donnas.Giacomo Oreglia (2002). Commedia dell'arte. Ordfront. {{ISBN|9-1732-4602-6}}.

Ballet originated in Italy during the Renaissance, as an outgrowth of court pageantry.{{Cite web|title=The Ballet|url=http://www.metmuseum.org/toah/hd/balt/hd_balt.htm|website=metmuseum.org|date=October 2004 }}{{Cite web|title=Andros on Ballet – Catherine Medici De|url=http://www.michaelminn.net/andros/index.php?de_medici_catherine|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080209205503/http://www.michaelminn.net/andros/index.php?de_medici_catherine|archive-date=9 February 2008|website=michaelminn.net}}

{{Main|Music of Italy}}

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From folk to classical, music is an intrinsic part of Italian culture. Instruments associated with classical music, including the piano and violin, were invented in Italy,{{Cite book|last=Erlich|first=Cyril|title=The Piano: A History|publisher=Oxford University Press, US; Revised edition|year=1990|isbn=978-0-1981-6171-4}}; {{Cite book|last=Allen|first=Edward Heron|title=Violin-making, as it was and is: Being a Historical, Theoretical, and Practical Treatise on the Science and Art of Violin-making, for the Use of Violin Makers and Players, Amateur and Professional. Preceded by An Essay on the Violin and Its Position as a Musical Instrument|date=1914|publisher=E. Howe}} Accessed 5 September 2015. and many prevailing forms, such as the symphony, concerto, and sonata, trace their roots back to innovations in 16th- and 17th-century Italian music.

Italy's most famous composers include the Renaissance Palestrina, Monteverdi, and Gesualdo; the Baroque Scarlatti, and Vivaldi; the classical Paganini, and Rossini; and the Romantic Verdi and Puccini. Classical music has a strong hold in Italy, as evidenced by the fame of its opera houses, such as La Scala, and performers such as the pianist Maurizio Pollini and tenor Luciano Pavarotti. Italy is known as the birthplace of opera.{{Cite book|last=Kimbell, David R.B.|url={{Google books|C37Gq2GagZIC|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}}|title=Italian Opera|publisher=Cambridge University Press|year=1994|isbn=978-0-5214-6643-1|access-date=20 December 2009}} Italian opera is believed to have been founded in the 17th century.

Introduced in the early 1920s, jazz gained a strong foothold in Italy, and remained popular despite xenophobic policies of the fascists. Italy was represented in the progressive rock and pop movements of the 1970s, with bands such as PFM, Banco del Mutuo Soccorso, Le Orme, Goblin, and Pooh.{{Cite book|last=Keller, Catalano and Colicci|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Gh03DwAAQBAJ&q=keller%20catalano%20and%20colicci&pg=PT1022|title=Garland Encyclopedia of World Music|date=25 September 2017|publisher=Routledge|isbn=978-1-3515-4426-9|pages=604–625}} The same period saw diversification in the cinema of Italy, and Cinecittà films included complex scores by composers including Ennio Morricone. In the 1980s, the first star to emerge from Italian hip hop was singer Jovanotti.{{Cite news|last=Sisario|first=Ben|date=3 October 2012|title=A Roman Rapper Comes to New York, Where He Can Get Real|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/04/arts/music/jovanotti-italian-rapper-brings-his-act-to-new-york.html|url-access=subscription|url-status=live|archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220103/https://www.nytimes.com/2012/10/04/arts/music/jovanotti-italian-rapper-brings-his-act-to-new-york.html|archive-date=3 January 2022|access-date=24 February 2014|work=The New York Times}}{{Cbignore}} Italian metal bands include Rhapsody of Fire, Lacuna Coil, Elvenking, Forgotten Tomb, and Fleshgod Apocalypse.{{Cite book|last1=Sharpe-Young|first1= Garry|author-link1= MusicMight|title= A–Z of Power Metal|series= Rockdetector Series|year= 2003|publisher= Cherry Red Books|isbn= 978-1-901447-13-2}}

Italy contributed to the development of disco and electronic music, with Italo disco, known for its futuristic sound and prominent use of synthesisers and drum machines, one of the earliest electronic dance genres.{{Cite news|last=McDonnell|first=John|date=1 September 2008|title=Scene and heard: Italo-disco|url=https://www.theguardian.com/music/musicblog/2008/sep/01/sceneandhearditalodisco|access-date=14 July 2012|work=The Guardian|location=London}} Producers such as Giorgio Moroder, who won three Academy Awards and four Golden Globes, were influential in the development of electronic dance music."This record was a collaboration between Philip Oakey, the big-voiced lead singer of the techno-pop band the Human League, and Giorgio Moroder, the Italian-born father of disco who spent the '80s writing synth-based pop and film music." {{Cite web|last=Evan Cater|title=Philip Oakey & Giorgio Moroder: Overview|url={{AllMusic|class=album|id=r59464|pure_url=yes}}|access-date=21 December 2009|publisher=AllMusic}} Italian pop is represented annually with the Sanremo Music Festival, which served as inspiration for the Eurovision Song Contest.{{Cite web|last=Yiorgos Kasapoglou|date=27 February 2007|title=Sanremo Music Festival kicks off tonight|url=http://www.esctoday.com/news/read/7817|access-date=18 August 2011|publisher=esctoday.com}} Gigliola Cinquetti, Toto Cutugno, and Måneskin won Eurovision, in 1964, 1990, and 2021 respectively. Singers such as Domenico Modugno, Mina, Andrea Bocelli, Raffaella Carrà, Il Volo, Al Bano, Toto Cutugno, Nek, Umberto Tozzi, Giorgia, Grammy winner Laura Pausini, Eros Ramazzotti, Tiziano Ferro, Måneskin, and others have received international acclaim.{{Cite web|first=Federica|last=Cirone|date=29 August 2023|title=Cantanti italiani, quali sono quelli che hanno avuto più successo all'estero|url=https://www.socialboost.it/cantanti-italiani-quali-sono-quelli-che-hanno-avuto-piu-successo-allestero/|access-date=5 June 2024|publisher=socialboost.it|language=it}}

{{Main|Cinema of Italy}}

Italian cinema began just after the Lumière brothers introduced motion picture exhibitions.{{Cite web|title=L'œuvre cinématographique des frères Lumière – Pays: Italie|url=https://catalogue-lumiere.com/pays/italie|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180320195614/https://catalogue-lumiere.com/pays/italie|archive-date=20 March 2018|access-date=1 January 2022|language=fr}}; {{Cite web|title=Il Cinema Ritrovato – Italia 1896 – Grand Tour Italiano |url=https://festival.ilcinemaritrovato.it/proiezione/italy-1896-in-honor-of-aldo-bernardini|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180321124127/https://festival.ilcinemaritrovato.it/proiezione/italy-1896-in-honor-of-aldo-bernardini|archive-date=21 March 2018|access-date=1 January 2022|language=it}} The first Italian director is Vittorio Calcina, who filmed Pope Leo XIII in 1896.{{Cite web|title=26 febbraio 1896 – Papa Leone XIII filmato Fratelli Lumière |url=https://archivio.quirinale.it/aspr/gianni-bisiach/AV-002-000398/26-febbraio-1896-papa-leone-xiii-filmato-fratelli-lumiere|access-date=1 January 2022|language=it}} Cabiria, from 1914, is the most famous Italian silent film.{{Citation|title=Cinematografia|volume=III|page=226|year=1970|publisher=Treccani|language=it|encyclopedia=Dizionario enciclopedico italiano}}{{Cite book|last=Andrea Fioravanti|title=La "storia" senza storia. Racconti del passato tra letteratura, cinema e televisione|publisher=Morlacchi Editore|year=2006|isbn=978-8-8607-4066-3|page=121|language=it}} The oldest European avant-garde cinema movement, Italian futurism, took place in the late 1910s.{{Cite web|date=30 September 2017|title=Il cinema delle avanguardie|url=https://www.brevestoriadelcinema.org/04-4-il-cinema-delle-avanguardie|access-date=13 November 2022|language=it}}

File:Federico Fellini NYWTS 2.jpg, considered one of the most influential and widely revered filmmakers of the 20th century{{Cite web|date=20 January 2022|title=Federico Fellini, i 10 migliori film per conoscere il grande regista|url=https://libreriamo.it/intrattenimento/federico-fellini-i-10-film-regista|access-date=10 September 2022|language=it}}]]

After decline in the 1920s, the industry was revitalised in the 1930s with the arrival of sound. A popular Italian genre, the Telefoni Bianchi, consisted of comedies with glamorous backgrounds.{{Citation |last=Katz |first=Ephraim |title=Italy |pages=682–685 |year=2001 |publisher=HarperResource |isbn=978-0-0607-4214-0 |encyclopedia=The Film Encyclopedia}}. Calligrafismo was a sharp contrast to the Telefoni Bianchi-American style comedies and is rather artistic, highly formalistic, expressive in complexity, and deals mainly with contemporary literary material.{{Cite book|last=Brunetta|first=Gian Piero|title=Storia del cinema mondiale|publisher=Einaudi|year=2002|isbn=978-8-8061-4528-6|volume=III|pages=357–359|language=it}} Cinema was used by Mussolini, who founded Rome's renowned Cinecittà studio, for the production of Fascist propaganda.{{Cite web|title=The Cinema Under Mussolini|url=http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/italians/resources/Amiciprize/1996/mussolini.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100731200507/http://ccat.sas.upenn.edu/italians/resources/Amiciprize/1996/mussolini.html|archive-date=31 July 2010|access-date=30 October 2010|publisher=Ccat.sas.upenn.edu}}

After World War II, Italian film was widely recognised and exported until an artistic decline occurred in the 1980s.{{Cite web|title=STORIA 'POCONORMALE' DEL CINEMA: ITALIA ANNI '80, IL DECLINO|url=https://www.mymovies.it/cinemanews/2009/16629|access-date=1 January 2022|language=it}} Italian film directors include Federico Fellini, Sergio Leone, Pier Paolo Pasolini, Duccio Tessari, Luchino Visconti, Vittorio De Sica, Michelangelo Antonioni, and Roberto Rossellini, recognised among the greatest of all time.{{Cite news|last=Ebert|first=Roger|title=The Bicycle Thief / Bicycle Thieves (1949) |url=http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/19990319/REVIEWS08/903190306/1023|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090227023704/http://rogerebert.suntimes.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=%2F19990319%2FREVIEWS08%2F903190306%2F1023|archive-date=27 February 2009|access-date=8 September 2011|work=Chicago Sun-Times}}; {{Cite web|date=7 July 2002|title=The 25 Most Influential Directors of All Time|url=http://www.moviemaker.com/archives/moviemaking/directing/articles-directing/the-25-most-influential-directors-of-all-time-3358|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151211230213/http://www.moviemaker.com/archives/moviemaking/directing/articles-directing/the-25-most-influential-directors-of-all-time-3358|archive-date=11 December 2015|access-date=21 February 2017|website=MovieMaker Magazine}} The mid-1940s to the early 1950s was the heyday of Italian neorealism, reflecting the poor condition of post-war Italy.{{Cite web|title=Italian Neorealism – Explore – The Criterion Collection|url=https://www.criterion.com/explore/6-italian-neorealism|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110918102158/http://www.criterion.com/explore/6-italian-neorealism|archive-date=18 September 2011|access-date=7 September 2011|publisher=Criterion.com}}

As the country grew wealthier in the 1950s, a form of neorealism known as pink neorealism succeeded, and the commedia all'italiana genre and other film genres, such as sword-and-sandal and spaghetti Westerns, were popular in the 1960s and 70s.{{Cite web|title=Western all'italiana|url=https://www.treccani.it/enciclopedia/western-all-italiana_%28Enciclopedia-del-Cinema%29|access-date=1 January 2022|language=it}} Actresses such as Sophia Loren achieved international stardom. Erotic Italian thrillers, or gialli, produced by directors such as Dario Argento in the 1970s, influenced horror.{{Cite web|title=Tarantino e i film italiani degli anni settanta|url=http://www.corriere.it/solferino/severgnini/09-10-30/09.spm|access-date=1 January 2022|language=it}} Recently, the Italian scene has received only occasional attention, with movies such as Life Is Beautiful, Cinema Paradiso, and Il Postino: The Postman.{{Cite news|date=21 May 2013|title=Cannes 2013. La grande bellezza |url=https://stanzedicinema.com/2013/05/21/cannes-2013-la-grande-bellezza|access-date=1 January 2022|work=Stanze di Cinema|language=it}}

Cinecittà studio is the largest film and television production facility in Europe,{{Cite web|date=30 December 2021|title=Cinecittà, c'è l'accordo per espandere gli Studios italiani|url=https://www.ciakmagazine.it/news/cinecitta-ce-laccordo-per-espandere-gli-studios-italiani|access-date=10 September 2022|language=it}} where many international box office hits were filmed. In the 1950s, the number of international productions made there led to Rome's being dubbed "Hollywood on the Tiber". More than 3,000 productions have been made on its lot, of which 90 received an Academy Award nomination, with 47 wins.{{Cite book|last=Bondanella|first=Peter E.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=PiTBFMc7tp4C|title=Italian Cinema: From Neorealism to the Present|date=2001|publisher=Continuum|isbn=978-0-8264-1247-8|page=13}} Italy is the most awarded country at the Academy Awards for Best Foreign Language Film, with 14 wins, 3 Special Awards, and 31 nominations.{{Cite web|date=26 October 2021|title=Oscar 2022: Paolo Sorrentino e gli altri candidati come miglior film internazionale |url=https://www.sorrisi.com/cinema/migliori-film/oscar-2022-paolo-sorrentino-e-gli-altri-candidati-come-miglior-film-internazionale|access-date=1 January 2022|language=it}} {{As of|2016}}, Italian films have won 12 Palmes d'Or,{{Cite web|date=13 May 2014|title=10 film italiani che hanno fatto la storia del Festival di Cannes|url=https://www.nanopress.it/articolo/10-film-italiani-che-hanno-fatto-la-storia-del-festival-di-cannes/67505|access-date=1 January 2022|language=it}} 11 Golden Lions,{{Cite web|date=28 August 2018|title=I film italiani vincitori del Leone d'Oro al Festival di Venezia|url=https://www.supereva.it/i-film-italiani-vincitori-del-leone-doro-al-festival-di-venezia-51756|access-date=1 January 2022|language=it}} and 7 Golden Bears.{{Cite web|title=Film italiani vincitori Orso d'Oro di Berlino|url=https://popcorntv.it/guide/film-italiani-vincitori-orso-doro-di-berlino/32626|access-date=1 January 2022|language=it}}

{{Main|Sport in Italy}}

File:Italy national football team Euro 2012 final.jpg in 2012. Football is the most popular sport in Italy.]]

The most popular sport is football.{{Cite web|last=Wilson|first=Bill|date=10 March 2014|title=Italian football counts cost of stagnation|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-26351331|access-date=12 June 2015|publisher=BBC News}}; {{Cite book|last1=Hamil|first1=Sean|title=Managing football: an international perspective|last2=Chadwick|first2=Simon|publisher=Elsevier/Butterworth-Heinemann|year=2010|isbn=978-1-8561-7544-9|edition=1st ed., dodr.|location=Amsterdam|page=285}} Italy's team is one of the most successful, with four World Cup victories (1934, 1938, 1982, and 2006) and two UEFA Euro victories (1968 and 2020).{{Cite web|title=Previous FIFA World Cups|url=https://www.fifa.com/worldcup/archive/index.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110125063612/http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/archive/index.html|archive-date=25 January 2011|access-date=8 January 2011|publisher=FIFA}} Italian clubs have won 48 major European trophies, making Italy the second most successful country in Europe, after Spain. Italy's top league is Serie A and is followed by millions of fans around the world.{{Cite web|title=Le squadre più tifate al mondo: classifica e numero di fan|url=https://www.sisal.it/scommesse-matchpoint/blog/fuori-campo/squadre-piu-tifate-al-mondo-classifica|access-date=4 January 2022|language=it}}

Other popular team sports include basketball, volleyball, and rugby.{{Cite web|date=15 March 2021|title=Sport più seguiti: la (forse) sorprendente classifica mondiale|url=https://www.sportface.it/altro/sport-piu-seguiti-la-forse-sorprendente-classifica-mondiale/1318754|access-date=4 January 2022|language=it}} Italy's male and female national volleyball teams are often featured among the world's best. The men's team won three consecutive World Championships (in 1990, 1994, and 1998). Italy men's basketball team's best results were gold at EuroBasket 1983 and 1999, and silver at the 2004 Olympics. Lega Basket Serie A is one of the most competitive in Europe.{{Cite web|date=July 2019|title=Basket Eurolega, l'albo d'oro delle squadre più forti e titolate d'Europa|url=https://williamhillnews.it/basket/basket-eurolega|access-date=4 January 2022|language=it}} The Italy national rugby union team competes in the Six Nations Championship, and at the Rugby World Cup.

Among individual sports, bicycle racing is popular;{{Cite book|last=Foot|first=John|title=Pedalare! Pedalare!: a history of Italian cycling|publisher=Bloomsbury|year=2012|isbn=978-1-4088-2219-7|location=London|page=312}} Italians have won the UCI World Championships more than any other country, except Belgium. The Giro d'Italia is a cycling race held every May and one of the three Grand Tours. Alpine skiing is a widespread sport, and the country is a popular skiing destination.{{Cite news|last=Hall|first=James|date=23 November 2012|title=Italy is best value skiing country, report finds|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/travelnews/9697128/Italy-is-best-value-skiing-country-report-finds.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131003012827/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/travelnews/9697128/Italy-is-best-value-skiing-country-report-finds.html|archive-date=3 October 2013|access-date=29 August 2013|work=The Daily Telegraph|location=London}} Italian skiers achieve good results in Winter Olympic Games and the Alpine Ski World Cup. Tennis has a significant following: it is the fourth most practised sport.{{Cite web|title=Il tennis è il quarto sport in Italia per numero di praticanti|url=http://www.federtennis.it/DettaglioNews.asp?IDNews=55672|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130927033216/http://www.federtennis.it/DettaglioNews.asp?IDNews=55672|archive-date=27 September 2013|access-date=29 August 2013|publisher=Federazione Italiana Tennis}} The Rome Masters, founded in 1930, is one of the most prestigious tennis tournaments.{{Cite news|title=Internazionali d'Italia di Tennis – Roma 2021 |url=https://www.faretennis.com/tornei/internazionali-italia-tennis|access-date=4 January 2022|language=it}} Italian players won the Davis Cup in 1976, 2023, and 2024 and the Fed Cup in 2006, 2009, 2010, 2013, and 2024.

File:Michael Schumacher 2006 USA 2.jpg by Scuderia Ferrari, the oldest surviving team in Grand Prix racing, having competed since 1948, and statistically the most successful Formula One team in history]]

Motorsports are popular. Italy has won, by far, the most MotoGP World Championships. Italian Scuderia Ferrari is the oldest surviving team in Grand Prix racing,{{Cite web|title=Enzo Ferrari|url=https://www.targaflorio.info/enzoferrari.htm|access-date=4 January 2022|language=it}} competing since 1948, and the most successful Formula One team with 232 wins. The Italian Grand Prix of Formula One has been held since 1921{{Cite web|date=3 September 2020|title=GP d'Italia: albo d'oro|url=https://www.motori.it/curiosita/1757728/gp-ditalia-albo-doro.html|access-date=4 January 2022|language=it}} always at Autodromo Nazionale Monza (except 1980).{{Cite web|date=7 September 2021|title=GP Italia: a Monza tra storia e passione|url=https://www.f1world.it/amarcord/gp-ditalia-a-monza-tra-storia-e-passione|access-date=4 January 2022|language=it|archive-date=4 January 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220104135550/https://www.f1world.it/amarcord/gp-ditalia-a-monza-tra-storia-e-passione/|url-status=dead}} Other successful Italian car manufacturers in motorsports are Alfa Romeo, Lancia, Maserati, and Fiat.{{Cite web|date=5 October 2021|title=L'Italia che vince le corse|work=Mauto |url=https://www.museoauto.com/litalia-che-vince-le-corse-la-ferrari-500-f2-del-1952|access-date=4 January 2022|language=it}}

Italy has been successful in the Olympics, taking part from the first Olympiad and in 47 Games out of 48 (not 1904).{{Cite web|last=Elio Trifari|title=Che sorpresa: Italia presente a tutti i Giochi|url=http://archiviostorico.gazzetta.it/2008/novembre/28/Che_sorpresa_Italia_presente_tutti_ga_10_081128051.shtml|access-date=4 January 2022|language=it}} Italians have won 618 medals at the Summer Olympic Games, and 141 at the Winter Olympics, with 259 golds, the sixth most successful for total medals. The country hosted Winter Olympics in 1956 and 2006, and will host another in 2026; and a Summer games in 1960.

{{Main|Italian fashion|Italian design}}

File:Prada milano.JPG shop at Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II in Milan]]

Italian fashion has a long tradition. Top Global Fashion Capital Rankings (2013), by Global Language Monitor, ranked Rome sixth and Milan twelfth.{{Cite web|title=New York Takes Top Global Fashion Capital Title from London, edging past Paris|url=http://www.languagemonitor.com/fashion/sorry-kate-new-york-edges-paris-and-london-in-top-global-fashion-capital-10th-annual-survey|url-status=usurped|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140222011026/http://www.languagemonitor.com/fashion/sorry-kate-new-york-edges-paris-and-london-in-top-global-fashion-capital-10th-annual-survey|archive-date=22 February 2014|access-date=25 February 2014|publisher=Languagemonitor.com}} Major Italian fashion labels—such as Gucci, Armani, Prada, Versace, Valentino, Dolce & Gabbana—are among the finest fashion houses in the world. Jewellers such as Bulgari, Damiani, and Buccellati were founded in Italy. The fashion magazine Vogue Italia is one of the most prestigious fashion magazines in the world.{{Cite book|last=Press|first=Debbie|url={{Google books|pkeaOOxb_isC|page=PA16|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}}|title=Your Modeling Career: You Don't Have to Be a Superstar to Succeed|publisher=Allworth Press|year=2000|isbn=978-1-58115-045-2}}; {{Cite web|last=Cardini|first=Tiziana|date=28 October 2020|title=Get to Know the Young Winners of the 2020 International Talent Support Awards |url=https://www.vogue.com/article/internationa-talent-support-award-2020-winners|website=Vogue}}

Italy is prominent in the field of design, notably interior, architectural, industrial, and urban designs.Miller (2005) p. 486Insight Guides (2004) p. 220 Milan and Turin are the nation's leaders in architectural and industrial design. The city of Milan hosts Fiera Milano, Europe's largest design fair.{{Cite web|title=Design City Milan|url=http://www.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-0470026839.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101206052654/http://www.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-0470026839.html|archive-date=6 December 2010|access-date=3 January 2010|publisher=Wiley}} Milan hosts major design- and architecture-related events and venues, such as the Fuori Salone and the Milan Furniture Fair, and has been home to the designers Bruno Munari, Lucio Fontana, Enrico Castellani, and Piero Manzoni.{{Cite web|title=Frieze Magazine – Archive – Milan and Turin|url=http://www.frieze.com/issue/article/milan_turin|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100110123141/http://www.frieze.com/issue/article/milan_turin|archive-date=10 January 2010|access-date=3 January 2010|website=Frieze}}

{{Main|Italian cuisine|Italian meal structure|List of Italian foods and drinks}}

File:Salumi e vino lucchese.JPG and salumi]]

Italian cuisine is heavily influenced by Etruscan, ancient Greek, ancient Roman, Byzantine, Arabic, and Jewish cuisines.{{Cite web|date=2023-04-05|title=The History of Italian Cuisine: A Cultural Journey – Italian Cuisine|url=https://italian-cuisine.org/the-history-of-italian-cuisine-a-cultural-journey|access-date=2024-02-25|website=italian-cuisine.org}}; {{Cite web|title=Italian Cooking: History of Food and Cooking in Rome and Lazio Region, Papal Influence, Jewish Influence, The Essence of Roman Italian Cooking|url=http://www.inmamaskitchen.com/ITALIAN_COOKING/rome_Lazio/Rome_LAZIO.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100410100532/http://www.inmamaskitchen.com/ITALIAN_COOKING/rome_Lazio/Rome_LAZIO.html|archive-date=10 April 2010|access-date=24 April 2010|publisher=Inmamaskitchen.com}} Significant changes occurred with the discovery of the New World, with items such as potatoes, tomatoes, and maize becoming main ingredients from the 18th century.{{Cite web|title=The Making of Italian Food...From the Beginning|url=http://www.epicurean.com/articles/making-of-italian-food.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100327080045/http://www.epicurean.com/articles/making-of-italian-food.html|archive-date=27 March 2010|access-date=24 April 2010|publisher=Epicurean.com}}; Del Conte, 11–21. The Mediterranean diet forms the basis of Italian cuisine, which is rich in pasta, fish, fruits, and vegetables and characterised by its simplicity and variety, with many dishes having only four to eight ingredients.The Silver Spoon {{ISBN|8-8721-2223-6}}, 1997 ed. Italian cuisine is noted for its regional diversity,{{Cite encyclopedia|title=Italian cuisine – Britannica Online Encyclopedia|encyclopedia=Encyclopædia Britannica|url=https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/718430/Italian-cuisine|access-date=24 April 2010|date=2 January 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100716014306/https://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/718430/Italian-cuisine|archive-date=16 July 2010|author=Related Articles|url-status=live}}; {{Cite web|title=Italian Food – Italy's Regional Dishes & Cuisine|url=http://www.indigoguide.com/italy/food.htm|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110102020059/http://www.indigoguide.com/italy/food.htm|archive-date=2 January 2011|access-date=24 April 2010|publisher=Indigoguide.com}}; {{Cite web|title=Regional Italian Cuisine|url=http://www.rusticocooking.com/regions.htm|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100410072851/http://www.rusticocooking.com/regions.htm|archive-date=10 April 2010|access-date=24 April 2010|publisher=Rusticocooking.com}} abundance of difference in taste, and as one of the most popular in the world,{{Cite web|date=6 January 2013|title=Which country has the best food?|url=http://travel.cnn.com/explorations/eat/worlds-best-food-cultures-453528|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130629071154/http://travel.cnn.com/explorations/eat/worlds-best-food-cultures-453528|archive-date=29 June 2013|access-date=14 October 2013|publisher=CNN}} wielding strong influence abroad.{{Cite web|last=Freeman|first=Nancy|date=2 March 2007|title=American Food, Cuisine|url=http://www.sallybernstein.com/food/cuisines/us|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100418064119/http://sallybernstein.com/food/cuisines/us|archive-date=18 April 2010|access-date=24 April 2010|publisher=Sallybernstein.com}}{{Cite web|title=Most Americans Have Dined Out in the Past Month and, Among Type of Cuisine, American Food is Tops Followed by Italian|url=http://www.harrisinteractive.com/vault/HarrisPoll18-DiningOut_4-3-13.pdf|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130520205539/http://www.harrisinteractive.com/vault/HarrisPoll18-DiningOut_4-3-13.pdf|archive-date=20 May 2013|access-date=31 August 2013|publisher=Harris interactive}}{{Cite news|last=Kazmin|first=Amy|date=26 March 2013|title=A taste for Italian in New Delhi|url=http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/7ab87234-9214-11e2-851f-00144feabdc0.html|url-access=subscription|url-status=live|archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20221210/http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/7ab87234-9214-11e2-851f-00144feabdc0.html|archive-date=10 December 2022|access-date=31 August 2013|work=Financial Times|location=London}}

Italian cuisine relies heavily on traditional products; the country has a large number of traditional specialties protected under EU law.{{Cite web|last=Keane|first=John|title=Italy leads the way with protected products under EU schemes|url=http://www.bordbia.ie/industryservices/information/alerts/Pages/ItalyleadsthewaywithprotectedproductsunderEUschemes.aspx|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140329075250/http://www.bordbia.ie/industryservices/information/alerts/Pages/ItalyleadsthewaywithprotectedproductsunderEUschemes.aspx|archive-date=29 March 2014|access-date=5 September 2013|publisher=Bord Bia}} Italy is home to 395 Michelin star-rated restaurants.{{cite web|url= https://www.michelin.com/en/publications/products-and-services/michelin-guide-2024-italy-two-new-3-michelin-stars-restaurants|title=Michelin Guide 2024 - Italy - Two new 3 Michelin stars restaurants|access-date=20 November 2024}} Cheese, cold cuts, and wine are central to Italian cuisine, with regional declinations and protected designation of origin or protected geographical indication labels, along with pizza and coffee forming part of gastronomic culture.{{Cite news|last=Marshall|first=Lee|date=30 September 2009|title=Italian coffee culture: a guide|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/italy/6246202/Italian-coffee-culture-a-guide.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131010212148/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/travel/destinations/europe/italy/6246202/Italian-coffee-culture-a-guide.html|archive-date=10 October 2013|access-date=5 September 2013|work=The Daily Telegraph|location=London}} Desserts have a long tradition of merging local flavours, such as citrus fruits, pistachio, and almonds, with sweet cheeses such as mascarpone and ricotta or exotic tastes such as cocoa, vanilla, and cinnamon. Gelato,{{Cite news|last=Jewkes|first=Stephen|date=13 October 2012|title=World's first museum about gelato culture opens in Italy|url=http://www.timescolonist.com/life/travel/world-s-first-museum-about-gelato-culture-opens-in-italy-1.15866|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131016062518/http://www.timescolonist.com/life/travel/world-s-first-museum-about-gelato-culture-opens-in-italy-1.15866|archive-date=16 October 2013|access-date=5 September 2013|work=Times Colonist}} tiramisu,{{Cite news|last=Squires|first=Nick|date=23 August 2013|title=Tiramisu claimed by Treviso|url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/italy/10261930/Tiramisu-claimed-by-Treviso.html|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130829091009/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/europe/italy/10261930/Tiramisu-claimed-by-Treviso.html|archive-date=29 August 2013|access-date=5 September 2013|work=The Daily Telegraph|location=London}} and cassata are among the most famous examples of Italian desserts.

The Italian meal structure is typical of the Mediterranean region and differs from North, Central, and East European meal structures, although it still often consists of breakfast (colazione), lunch (pranzo), and dinner (cena).{{Cite web|title=Mangiare all'italiana|url=https://www.studiare-in-italia.it/php5/study-italy.php?idorizz=5&idvert=62|access-date=12 November 2021|language=it}} However, much less emphasis is placed on breakfast, which is often skipped or involves lighter portions than are seen in non-Mediterranean Western countries.{{Cite web|date=29 March 2016|title=Colazioni da incubo in giro per il mondo|url=https://www.lacucinaitaliana.it/news/in-primo-piano/colazioni-strane-nel-mondo|access-date=12 November 2021|language=it}} Late-morning and mid-afternoon snacks, called merenda ({{Plural form}}: merende), are often included.{{Cite web|date=12 August 2021|title=Merenda, una abitudine tutta italiana: cinque ricette salutari per tutta la famiglia|url=https://www.corriere.it/cook/news/cards/merenda-abitudine-tutta-italiana-cinque-ricette-salutari-tutta-famiglia/merenda-come-deve-essere_principale.shtml|access-date=12 November 2021|language=it}}

{{Main|Public holidays in Italy|Traditions of Italy|Folklore of Italy}}

File:Frecce Tricolori 2022.jpg, with the smoke trail representing the national colours of Italy, above the Victor Emmanuel II Monument in Rome during the celebrations of the Festa della Repubblica]]

Public holidays include religious, national, and regional observances. Italy's National Day, the Festa della Repubblica ('Republic Day'),{{Cite web|title=Le feste mobili. Feste religiose e feste civili in Italia|url=http://calendario.eugeniosongia.com/feste.htm|access-date=29 December 2022|language=it}} is celebrated on 2 June, with the main celebration taking place in Rome, and commemorates the birth of the Italian Republic in 1946.{{Cite web|title=Festività nazionali in Italia|url=http://www.amblondra.esteri.it/Ambasciata_Londra/Menu/In_linea_con_utente/Domande_frequenti/altro.htm|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120624220055/http://www.amblondra.esteri.it/Ambasciata_Londra/Menu/In_linea_con_utente/Domande_frequenti/altro.htm|archive-date=24 June 2012|access-date=15 April 2012|publisher=Italian Embassy in London|language=it}} The ceremony includes deposition of a wreath as a tribute to the Italian Unknown Soldier and a military parade along Via dei Fori Imperiali in Rome.

Saint Lucy's Day, on 13 December, is popular among children in some Italian regions, where she plays a role similar to Santa Claus.{{Cite web|title=Saint Lucy – Sicily's Most Famous Woman – Best of Sicily Magazine|url=http://www.bestofsicily.com/mag/art333.htm|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121015021932/http://bestofsicily.com/mag/art333.htm|archive-date=15 October 2012|website=bestofsicily.com}} The Epiphany is associated with the folklore figure of Befana, a broomstick-riding old woman who, on the night of 5 January, brings good children gifts, and bad ones charcoal or bags of ashes.{{Cite book|last=Roy|first=Christian|url={{Google books|IKqOUfqt4cIC|page=PA144|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}}|title=Traditional Festivals|date=2005|publisher=ABC-CLIO|isbn=978-1-5760-7089-5|page=144|access-date=13 January 2015}} The Assumption of Mary coincides with Ferragosto on 15 August, the summer vacation period.{{Cite book|last=Jonathan Boardman|url={{Google books|VHAUAQAAIAAJ|keywords=|text=|plainurl=yes}}|title=Rome: A Cultural and Literary Companion|publisher=Signal Books|year=2000|isbn=978-1-902669-15-1|location=University of California|page=219|format=Google Books}} The Italian national patronal day, on 4 October, celebrates Saints Francis and Catherine. Each city or town also celebrates a public holiday on the festival of the local patron saint. Natale di Roma ({{literally|Birthday of Rome}}) is an annual festival held in Rome on 21 April to celebrate the legendary founding of the city.Plutarch, Parallel Lives - Life of Romulus, [http://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/E/Roman/Texts/Plutarch/Lives/Romulus*.html#12 12.2] (from LacusCurtius) According to legend, Romulus is said to have founded the city of Rome on 21 April 753 BC. It was celebrated for the first time in 47 AD.{{Cite web|url=https://penelope.uchicago.edu/Thayer/L/Roman/Texts/Censorinus/text*.html#17.11|title=LacusCurtius • Censorinus — De Die Natali|website=penelope.uchicago.edu}}

Festivals and festivities include the Palio di Siena horse race, Holy Week rites, Saracen Joust of Arezzo, and the calcio storico fiorentino. In 2013, UNESCO included among the intangible cultural heritage Italian festivals and pasos, such as the Varia di Palmi, the Macchina di Santa Rosa in Viterbo, and faradda di li candareri in Sassari.{{Cite web|title=Celebrations of big shoulder-borne processional structures|url=http://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/index.php?lg=en&pg=00011&RL=00721|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141213122708/http://www.unesco.org/culture/ich/index.php?lg=EN|archive-date=13 December 2014|access-date=29 November 2014|publisher=UNESCO}} Other festivals include carnivals in Venice, Viareggio, Ivrea, Foiano della Chiana, and Satriano di Lucania. The Venice Film Festival, awarding the Golden Lion and held since 1932, is the oldest in the world and one of the "Big Three" European film festivals, alongside Cannes and Berlin.{{Cite web|last=Anderson|first=Ariston|date=24 July 2014|title=Venice: David Gordon Green's 'Manglehorn,' Abel Ferrara's 'Pasolini' in Competition Lineup|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/venice-film-festival-unveils-lineup-720770|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160218220740/http://www.hollywoodreporter.com/news/venice-film-festival-unveils-lineup-720770|archive-date=18 February 2016|website=The Hollywood Reporter}}; {{Cite magazine|title=Addio, Lido: Last Postcards from the Venice Film Festival|url=https://time.com/3291348/addio-lido-last-postcards-from-the-venice-film-festival/|url-status=live|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140920162423/http://time.com/3291348/addio-lido-last-postcards-from-the-venice-film-festival|archive-date=20 September 2014|magazine=Time}}

{{Portal|Italy|Europe}}

• Outline of Italy

{{Notelist|30em}}

{{Reflist}}

{{Refbegin|30em}}

• {{Cite book|last1=Cushman-Roisin|first1=Benoit|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=OFwkVgQNHlsC|title=Physical oceanography of the Adriatic Sea|last2=Gačić|first2=Miroslav|last3=Poulain|first3=Pierre-Marie|publisher=Springer|year=2001|isbn=978-1-4020-0225-0}}
• {{Cite web|date=2004–2007|title=FastiOnline: A database of archaeological excavations since the year 2000 |url=https://www.fastionline.org|access-date=6 March 2010|publisher=International Association of Classical Archaeology (AIAC)}}
• Hibberd, Matthew. The media in Italy (McGraw-Hill International, 2007).
• Sarti, Roland, ed. Italy: A reference guide from the Renaissance to the present (2004).
• Sassoon, Donald. Contemporary Italy: politics, economy and society since 1945 (Routledge, 2014).
• {{Cite web|date=1995–2010|title=Italy History – Italian History Index|url=http://vlib.iue.it/hist-italy/Index.html|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210815124837/http://vlib.iue.it/hist-italy/Index.html|archive-date=15 August 2021|access-date=6 March 2010|publisher=European University Institute, The World Wide Web Virtual Library|language=it, en}}

{{Refend}}

{{Wikibooks|Wikijunior:Countries A-Z|Italy}}

{{Sister project links|voy=Italy|d=Q38}}

• [https://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-17433142 Italy] from BBC News
• [https://www.cia.gov/the-world-factbook/countries/italy/ Italy]. The World Factbook. Central Intelligence Agency.
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20081216082829/http://ucblibraries.colorado.edu/govpubs/for/italy.htm Italy] from UCB Libraries GovPubs
• [https://www.oecd.org/italy/ Italy] from the OECD
• [https://european-union.europa.eu/principles-countries-history/eu-countries/italy_en Italy country profile] at the European Union website
• {{Wikiatlas|Italy}}
• {{Osmrelation-inline|365331}}
• [https://www.ifs.du.edu/IFs/frm_CountryProfile/IT Key Development Forecasts for Italy] from International Futures
• [https://www.governo.it/ Government website] {{In lang|it}}
• [https://www.italia.it/en/ Italian tourism official website]

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