See also: San Marino and Vatican City (Holy See)

Italy is a country in Southern Europe and is representative of a peninsula that juts into the Mediterranean Sea. The landmass equates to 294,020 sq km with a further 7,210 sq km of inland water. Italy borders France in the northwest, Switzerland and Austria to the north, the state of San Marino in the east and Slovenia in the northeast. The west coast faces the Adriatic Sea and the west spills into the Tyrrhenian Sea. The south coast embraces the Ionian Sea. The terrain of Italy is rugged and mountainous, especially in the far north where the Italian Alps meet Switzerland and Austria. The centre of Italy is dominated by the Appennino range. The highest point of elevation is Monte Bianco de Courmayeur at a height of 4748m. The central north is home to Italy's low-lying inland fertile plain. The thin coastal strips on Italy's two sides are also low-lying. The active volcano Mount Etna in the south of Italy on Sicily continues to threaten even today. Famous sites include the ghost city of Pompeii, Rome and its Coliseum, the leaning tower of Pisa and the world famous canals of Venice and their equally famous Gondolas.

In 1946, Italy became a democratic republic. Italy is a member of the European Union and opted for the single Euro currency in 2001. The capital city is Rome, which also houses the independent state of the Vatican City. The official language is Italian although many people also speak Latin. The dominant religion of Italy is Roman Catholicism.

Italy has a prosperous industrial economy that rivals the United Kingdom and France. The southern Mezzorgiano region is considerably poorer than the northern cousins. The main industries are car manufacture, tourism, food processing, iron and steel, textiles and footwear. Agriculture accounts for just 5% of the national workforce. The agricultural products of Italy include fruits, olives, vegetables and fish. The transport network consists of 19,786 km of railways and 668,669 km of highways.

Italy enjoys a warm temperate Mediterranean climate on the whole although the far north is subject to a colder, Alpine climate. The far south of Italy is the hottest, driest region. The warmest months are between May and October. The hottest recorded temperature in Rome was 40°C.