Italy became a nation-state in 1861 when the
regional states of the peninsula, along with Sardinia and
Sicily, were united under King Victor EMMANUEL II. An era of
parliamentary government came to a close in the early 1920s when
Benito MUSSOLINI established a Fascist dictatorship. His
disastrous alliance with Nazi Germany led to Italy's defeat in
World War II. A democratic republic replaced the monarchy in
1946 and economic revival followed. Italy was a charter member
of NATO and the European Economic Community (EEC). It has been
at the forefront of European economic and political unification,
joining the Economic and Monetary Union in 1999. Persistent
problems include illegal immigration, organized crime,
corruption, high unemployment, sluggish economic growth, and the
low incomes and technical standards of southern Italy compared
with the prosperous north.
Location:
Southern Europe, a peninsula extending into
the central Mediterranean Sea, northeast of Tunisia
Area:
301,230 sq km
Border countries:
Austria 430 km, France 488 km, Holy See
(Vatican City) 3.2 km, San Marino 39 km, Slovenia 232 km,
Switzerland 740 km
Climate:
predominantly Mediterranean; Alpine in far
north; hot, dry in south
Geography:
strategic location dominating central
Mediterranean as well as southern sea and air approaches to
Western Europe
Population:
58,133,509
Nationality:
Italian(s)
Ethnic groups:
Italian (includes small clusters of German-,
French-, and Slovene-Italians in the north and Albanian-Italians
and Greek-Italians in the south
Religions:
approximately 90% Roman Catholic (about
one-third regularly attend services); mature Protestant and
Jewish communities and a growing Muslim immigrant community
Languages:
Italian (official), German (parts of Trentino-Alto
Adige region are predominantly German speaking), French (small
French-speaking minority in Valle d'Aosta region), Slovene
(Slovene-speaking minority in the Trieste-Gorizia area)
Government type:
republic
Capital:
Rome
Time zone:
GMT/UTC +01:00
National holiday:
Republic Day, 2 June (1946)
Currency:
euro (EUR)
Communications:
Telephones - main lines in use: 25.049
million, Telephone system: modern, well developed, fast; fully
automated telephone, telex, and data services
Transportation:
Airports: 133, Railways: 19,459 km, Roadways:
484,688 km, Waterways: 2,400 km