Italian Peninsula
Italian Peninsula Apennine Peninsula Penisola italiana, Penisola appenninica, Terraferma, Continente, lo Stivale (Italian) | |
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Satellite view of the peninsula in March 2003. | |
Italian Peninsula in dark green | |
Geography | |
Location | Southern Europe |
Coordinates | 42°N 14°E / 42°N 14°E / 42; 14 37°N 15°E / 37°N 15°E / 37; 15 |
Area | 150,000 km2 (58,000 sq mi) (44% of Italy's area) |
Highest point | Corno Grande |
Administration | |
Italy | |
Largest settlement | Rome |
San Marino | |
Largest settlement | Dogana |
Vatican City | |
Largest settlement | Itself (City-state) |
Demographics | |
Demonym | Apenninen |
Pop. density | 199.27 /km2 (516.11 /sq mi) |
Ethnic groups | Italian |
The Italian Peninsula or Apennine Peninsula (Italian: Penisola italiana, Penisola appenninica) extends 1,000 km (620 mi) from the Po Valley in the north to the central Mediterranean Sea in the south (about 44% of total Italy's area). The peninsula's shape gives it the nickname lo Stivale (the Boot). Three smaller peninsulas contribute to this characteristic shape, namely Calabria (the "toe"), Salento (the "heel") and Gargano (the "spur").
Geographically, the Italian peninsula consists of the land south of a line extending from the Magra to the Rubicon rivers, north of the Tuscan–Emilian Apennines. It excludes the Po Valley and the southern slopes of the Alps.[1][2]
All of the peninsula lies within the territory of the Italian Republic except for the microstates of San Marino and Vatican City. Additionally, Sicily, Elba and other smaller islands, such as Palagruža (Italian: Pelagosa), (which belongs to Croatia) are usually considered as islands off the peninsula and in this sense geographically grouped along with it.
The peninsula lies between the Tyrrhenian Sea on the west, the Ionian Sea on the south, and the Adriatic Sea on the east. The backbone of the Italian peninsula consists of the Apennine Mountains, from which it takes one of its names. Most of its coast is lined with cliffs.
The peninsula has mainly a Mediterranean climate, though in the mountainous parts the climate is much cooler. Its natural vegetation includes macchia along the coasts and deciduous and mixed deciduous coniferous forests in the interior.
Contents
1 Modern countries/territories
2 See also
3 References
4 External links
Modern countries/territories
Political divisions of the peninsula sorted by area:
Country/ Territory | Peninsular area | Description | |||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Population[3] | km2 | sq mi | Share | ||
Italy | 60,589,445 | 131,275 | 50,686 | 99.9531% | Effectively the entire peninsula |
San Marino | 31,887 | 61.2 | 23.6 | 0.0466% | A central-eastern enclave of peninsular Italy |
Vatican City | 829 | 0.44 | 0.17 | 0.0003% | An enclave of Rome, Italy |
See also
- Apennine Mountains
- History of Italy
- Roman Republic
- Roman Italy
- Insular Italy
References
^ De Agostini Ed., L'Enciclopedia Geografica - Vol. I - Italia, 2004, p.78
^
Touring Club Italiano, Conosci l'Italia - Vol. I: L'Italia fisica, 1957
^ Population includes only the inhabitants of the Italian peninsula (excluding Northern Italy, Sicily, and Sardinia).
External links
Media related to Italian Peninsula at Wikimedia Commons
Coordinates: 42°00′N 14°00′E / 42.000°N 14.000°E / 42.000; 14.000