 |
Location: Southern Europe, a peninsula extending into the central Mediterranean Sea, northeast of Tunisia
Population: 56.3 million (1995 estimate)
Capital: Rome
Comparative area: Slightly larger than Arizona
Religions: Roman Catholic 98%, other 2%
Landscape: Italy is shaped like a boot, with the toe pointing toward the offshore Italian island of Sicily; country got its name from the ancient Romans; the Romans called the southern part of the peninsula "Italia," meaning "land of oxen" or "grazing land"; mostly rugged and mountainous; some plains, coastal lowlands
Recognized by International Olympic Committee: 1915 |
|
|
