Republic of Italy: Map & History

History

Lower Paleolithic artefacts, dating back 850,000 years, have been recovered from Monte Poggiolo. Excavations throughout Italy revealed a Neanderthal presence in the Middle Palaeolithic period 200,000 years ago, while modern humans appeared about 40,000 years ago at Riparo Mochi.

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. A natural mummy, Ötzi, dated 3400–3100 BC, was discovered in the Similaun glacier in 1991.

Economy

Italy has an advanced mixed economy that is the third-largest in the eurozone and 11th-largest in the world by purchasing power parity-adjusted GDP. It possesses the ninth-largest national wealth and ranks third in central bank gold reserves. As a founding member of the G7, the eurozone, and the OECD, it is one of the most industrialised countries and a major trading nation in Europe; as of 2024, it exported €612 billion in goods and had a trade surplus of €46 billion. A developed country ranked 30th on the Human Development Index, Italy performs well in life expectancy, healthcare, and education. It is well known for its creative and innovative businesses, a competitive agricultural sector, and its influential and high-quality automobile, machinery, food, design, and fashion industries.

Culture

Italy is one of the primary birthplaces of Western civilisation and a cultural superpower. Its culture has been shaped by a multitude of regional customs and local centres of power and patronage. The country has made substantial contributions to the cultural and historical heritage of Europe.

Italy is known for its architectural achievements, 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.

Geography

Italy, whose territory largely coincides with the eponymous geographical region, is located in Southern Europe (and is also considered part of Western Europe) 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.