The following outline is provided as an overview of and topical guide to Italy: Italy is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe, located primarily upon the Italian Peninsula.
It is where Ancient Rome originated as a small agricultural community about the 8th century BC, which spread over the course of centuries into the colossal Roman Empire, encompassing the whole Mediterranean Basin and spreading Roman culture and civilization across the empire.
This civilization was so influential that parts of it survive in modern law, administration, philosophy and arts, providing the groundwork that the Western world is based upon.
Regions of Italy NUTS of Italy
Demographics of Italy Italy shares its north border with: Independent states surrounded by Italy (otherwise within Italy's borders) include: Politics of Italy Government of Italy Foreign relations of Italy The Italian Republic is a member of:[3]
Portrait of
Christopher Columbus
(
Italian
:
Cristoforo Colombo
) leads an expedition to the New World, 1492.
His voyages
are celebrated as the discovery of the Americas from a European perspective, and they opened a
new era
in the history of humankind and sustained contact between the two worlds.
