Latium
Encyclopedia
Lazio (ˈlattsjo) is one of the 20 administrative regions
of Italy, situated in the central
peninsular section of the country. With about 5.7 million residents and a GDP of more than 170 billion euros, Lazio is the third most populated and the second richest region of Italy. It includes Rome
, capital
and largest city of Italy.
, Umbria
, and Marche
to the north, Abruzzo
and Molise
to the east, Campania
to the south, and the Tyrrhenian Sea
to the west. The regions is mainly flat and hilly, with small mountainous areas in the most eastern and southern districts.
The coast of Lazio is mainly composed by sandy beaches, punctuated by the headlands of Circeo (541 m) and Gaeta
(171 m). The Pontine Islands
, which are part of Lazio, lie opposite the southern coast. Behind the coastal strip, to the north, lies the Maremma
Laziale (the continuation of Tuscan Maremma), a costal plain interrupted at Civitavecchia
by the Tolfa Mountains (616 m). The central section of the region is occupied by the Roman Campagna, a vast alluvial plain surrounding the city of Rome, with an area of approximately 2100 km² (811 sq mi). The southern districts are characterized by the flatlands of Agro Pontino, a once swampy and malaria
l area, that was reclaimed
over the centuries.
The Preapennines of Latium, marked by the Tiber
valley and the Liri
with the Sacco
tributary, include on the right of the Tiber, three groups of mountains of volcanic origin: the Volsini, Cimini and Sabatini, whose largest former craters are occupied by the Bolsena
, Vico
and Bracciano
lakes. To the south of the Tiber other mountain groups form part of the Preapennines: the Alban Hills
, also of volcanic origin, and the calcareous Lepini
, Ausoni and Aurunci Mountains
. The Apennines of Latium are a continuation of the Apennines of Abruzzo: the Reatini Mountains with Terminillo (2,213 m), Mounts Sabini, Prenestini
, Simbruini
and Ernici
which continue east of the Liri into the Mainarde Mountains. The highest peak is Mount Gorzano (2,458 m) on the border with Abruzzo.
The Italian word Lazio descends from the Latin word Latium
. The name of the region also survives in the tribal designation of the ancient population of Latins
, Latini in the Latin language spoken by them and passed on to the city-state of Ancient Rome
. Although the demography of ancient Rome was multi-ethnic, including, for example, Etruscans and other Italics besides the Latini, the latter were the dominant constituent. In Roman mythology
, the tribe of the Latini took their name from king Latinus
. Apart from the mythical derivation of Lazio given by the ancients as the place where Jupiter "lay hid" from his father seeking to kill him, a major modern etymology is that Lazio comes from the Latin word "latus", meaning "wide", expressing the idea of "flat land" meaning the Roman Campagna. Much of Lazio is in fact flat or rolling. The lands originally inhabited by the Latini were extended into the territories of the Samnites, the Marsi
, the Hernici
, the Aequi
, the Aurunci
and the Volsci
, all surrounding Italic tribes. This larger territory was still called Latium, but it was divided into Latium adiectum
or Latium Novum, the added lands or New Latium, and Latium Vetus, or Old Latium, the older, smaller region.
The northern border of Lazio was the Tiber
river, which divided it from Etruria
.
The emperor Augustus
officially united almost all of present-day Italy into a single geo-political entity, Italia, dividing it into eleven regions. Lazio – together with the present region of Campania
immediately to the southeast of Lazio and the seat of Neapolis
– became Region I.
After the Gothic War (535-554) and the Byzantine conquest, this region regained its freedom, because the "Roman Duchy" became the property of the Eastern Emperor. However the long wars against the barbarian Longobards weakened the region, which was seized by the Roman Bishop who already had several properties in those territories.
The strengthening of the religious and ecclesiastical aristocracy led to continuous power struggles between lords and the Roman bishop until the middle of the 16th century. Innocent III tried to strengthen his own territorial power, wishing to assert his authority in the provincial administrations of Tuscia, Campagna and Marittima through the Church's representatives, in order to reduce the power of the Colonna family
. Other popes tried to do the same.
During the period when the papacy resided in Avignon, France
(1309–1377), the feudal lords' power increased due to the absence of the Pope from Rome. Small communes, and Rome above all, opposed the lords' increasing power, and with Cola di Rienzo
, they tried to present themselves as antagonists of the ecclesiastical power. However, between 1353 and 1367, the papacy regained control of Lazio and the rest of the Papal States
.
From the middle of the 16th century, the papacy politically unified Lazio with the Papal States
, so that these territories became provincial administrations of St. Peter's estate; governors in Viterbo
, in Marittima and Campagna
, and in Frosinone
administered them for the papacy.
After the short-lived Roman Republic (18th century)
, the region's annexation to France by Napoleon Bonaparte in February 1798, Lazio became again part of the Papal States
in October 1799.
On 20 September 1870 the capture of Rome
, during the reign of Pope Pius IX, and France's defeat at Sedan
, completed Italian unification
, and Lazio was incorporated into the Kingdom of Italy
.
Industrial development in Lazio is limited to the areas south of Rome. Communications and - above all - the setting of the border of the Cassa del Mezzogiorno some kilometers south of Rome, have influenced the position of industry, favouring the areas with the best links to Rome and those near the Autostrada del Sole (motorway), especially around Frosinone. Firms are often small to medium in size and operate in the building and building materials (Rome
, Civitavecchia
), paper (Sora
), petrochemical (Gaeta
, Rome
), textile (Frosinone
), engineering (Rieti
, Anagni
), automobile (Cassino
), electronic and electrotechnical (Viterbo
) sectors.
Approximately 73% of the working population are employed in the services sector; this is a considerable proportion, but is justified by the presence of Rome, which is the core of public administration, banking, tourism, insurance and other sectors. Many national and multinational corporations, public and private, have their headquarters in Rome (ENI
, Enel
, Finmeccanica
, Alitalia
, RAI
).
Lazio's limited industrial sector and highly developed service industries allowed the region to well outperform the Italian economy in 2009. The trend is set to continue over the next few years - the region's economy being among the most dynamic in Italy. This year the economy is predicted to grow by 1.3-1.5%, while in 2011 it is expected to expand by between 2-2.2%. These are the fastest rates in Italy and compare to national figures of between 0.8%-1.1% in 2010 and 1.1%-1.3% in 2011.
to less than 60 inhabitants per km2 in the mountainous and rural Province of Rieti
. As of January 2010, the Italian national institute of statistics ISTAT estimated that 497,940 foreign-born immigrants live in Lazio, equal to 8.8% of the total regional population.
, Lazio gave 44.2% of its vote to the centre-right coalition, while the centre-left block took 41.4% of vote.
Regions of Italy
The regions of Italy are the first-level administrative divisions of the state, constituting its first NUTS administrative level. There are twenty regions, of which five are constitutionally given a broader amount of autonomy granted by special statutes....
of Italy, situated in the central
Central Italy
Central Italy is one of the five official statistical regions of Italy used by the National Institute of Statistics , a first level NUTS region and a European Parliament constituency...
peninsular section of the country. With about 5.7 million residents and a GDP of more than 170 billion euros, Lazio is the third most populated and the second richest region of Italy. It includes Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, capital
Capital City
Capital City was a television show produced by Euston Films which focused on the lives of investment bankers in London living and working on the corporate trading floor for the fictional international bank Shane-Longman....
and largest city of Italy.
Geography
Lazio comprises a land area of 17236 km² (6,654.9 sq mi) and it has borders with TuscanyTuscany
Tuscany is a region in Italy. It has an area of about 23,000 square kilometres and a population of about 3.75 million inhabitants. The regional capital is Florence ....
, Umbria
Umbria
Umbria is a region of modern central Italy. It is one of the smallest Italian regions and the only peninsular region that is landlocked.Its capital is Perugia.Assisi and Norcia are historical towns associated with St. Francis of Assisi, and St...
, and Marche
Marche
The population density in the region is below the national average. In 2008, it was 161.5 inhabitants per km2, compared to the national figure of 198.8. It is highest in the province of Ancona , and lowest in the province of Macerata...
to the north, Abruzzo
Abruzzo
Abruzzo is a region in Italy, its western border lying less than due east of Rome. Abruzzo borders the region of Marche to the north, Lazio to the west and south-west, Molise to the south-east, and the Adriatic Sea to the east...
and Molise
Molise
Molise is a region of Southern Italy, the second smallest of the regions. It was formerly part of the region of Abruzzi e Molise and now a separate entity...
to the east, Campania
Campania
Campania is a region in southern Italy. The region has a population of around 5.8 million people, making it the second-most-populous region of Italy; its total area of 13,590 km² makes it the most densely populated region in the country...
to the south, and the Tyrrhenian Sea
Tyrrhenian Sea
The Tyrrhenian Sea is part of the Mediterranean Sea off the western coast of Italy.-Geography:The sea is bounded by Corsica and Sardinia , Tuscany, Lazio, Campania, Basilicata and Calabria and Sicily ....
to the west. The regions is mainly flat and hilly, with small mountainous areas in the most eastern and southern districts.
The coast of Lazio is mainly composed by sandy beaches, punctuated by the headlands of Circeo (541 m) and Gaeta
Gaeta
Gaeta is a city and comune in the province of Latina, in Lazio, central Italy. Set on a promontory stretching towards the Gulf of Gaeta, it is 120 km from Rome and 80 km from Naples....
(171 m). The Pontine Islands
Pontine Islands
The Pontine Islands are an archipelago in the Tyrrhenian Sea off the west coast of Italy. The islands were collectively named after the largest island in the group, Ponza. The other islands in the archipelago are Palmarola, Zannone,...
, which are part of Lazio, lie opposite the southern coast. Behind the coastal strip, to the north, lies the Maremma
Maremma
The Maremma is a vast area in Italy bordering the Tyrrhenian Sea, consisting of part of south-western Tuscany - Maremma Livornese and Maremma Grossetana , and part of northern Lazio - Maremma Laziale .The poet Dante Alighieri in his Divina Commedia places the...
Laziale (the continuation of Tuscan Maremma), a costal plain interrupted at Civitavecchia
Civitavecchia
Civitavecchia is a town and comune of the province of Rome in the central Italian region of Lazio. A sea port on the Tyrrhenian Sea, it is located 80 kilometers west-north-west of Rome, across the Mignone river. The harbor is formed by two piers and a breakwater, on which is a lighthouse...
by the Tolfa Mountains (616 m). The central section of the region is occupied by the Roman Campagna, a vast alluvial plain surrounding the city of Rome, with an area of approximately 2100 km² (811 sq mi). The southern districts are characterized by the flatlands of Agro Pontino, a once swampy and malaria
Malaria
Malaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease of humans and other animals caused by eukaryotic protists of the genus Plasmodium. The disease results from the multiplication of Plasmodium parasites within red blood cells, causing symptoms that typically include fever and headache, in severe cases...
l area, that was reclaimed
Land reclamation
Land reclamation, usually known as reclamation, is the process to create new land from sea or riverbeds. The land reclaimed is known as reclamation ground or landfill.- Habitation :...
over the centuries.
The Preapennines of Latium, marked by the Tiber
Tiber
The Tiber is the third-longest river in Italy, rising in the Apennine Mountains in Emilia-Romagna and flowing through Umbria and Lazio to the Tyrrhenian Sea. It drains a basin estimated at...
valley and the Liri
Liri
The Liri is one of the principal rivers of central Italy, flowing into the Tyrrhenian Sea a little below Minturno under the name Garigliano....
with the Sacco
Sacco River
The Sacco is a river of central Italy, a right tributary of the Liri.The river is formed by the confluence of two streams of the Monti Simbruini in the Apennines of Abruzzo. It flows towards south-east for a total of 87 km, crossing Ciociaria between the mountain ranges of the Ernici to the...
tributary, include on the right of the Tiber, three groups of mountains of volcanic origin: the Volsini, Cimini and Sabatini, whose largest former craters are occupied by the Bolsena
Lake Bolsena
Lake Bolsena is a crater lake of central Italy, of volcanic origin, which was formed starting 370,000 years ago following the collapse of a caldera of the Vulsini volcanic complex into a deep aquifer. Roman historic records indicate activity of the Vulsini volcano occurred as recently as 104 BC,...
, Vico
Lake Vico
Lake Vico is a caldera lake in the northern Lazio region, central Italy. It is one of the highest major Italian lakes, with an altitude of 510 m. Administratively, it is part of the municipalities of Caprarola and Ronciglione....
and Bracciano
Lake Bracciano
Lake Bracciano is a lake of volcanic origin in the Italian region of Lazio, northwest of Rome. It is the second largest lake in the region and one of the major lakes of Italy...
lakes. To the south of the Tiber other mountain groups form part of the Preapennines: the Alban Hills
Alban Hills
The Alban Hills are the site of a quiescent volcanic complex in Italy, located southeast of Rome and about north of Anzio.The dominant peak is Monte Cavo. There are two small calderas which contain lakes, Lago Albano and Lake Nemi...
, also of volcanic origin, and the calcareous Lepini
Monti Lepini
The Monti Lepini are a mountain range which belongs to the Anti-Apennines of the Lazio region of central Italy, between the two provinces of Latina and Rome....
, Ausoni and Aurunci Mountains
Aurunci Mountains
The Aurunci Mountains is mountain range of southern Lazio, in central Italy. They are part of the Antiappennini, a group running from the Apennines chain to the Tyrrhenian Sea, where they form the promontory of Gaeta...
. The Apennines of Latium are a continuation of the Apennines of Abruzzo: the Reatini Mountains with Terminillo (2,213 m), Mounts Sabini, Prenestini
Monti Prenestini
The Monti Prenestini is a mountain range in the Lazio sub-Apennines, in central Italy to the east of Rome. It is of limestone formation. It is bounded by the Monti Tiburtini to the north, by the Monti Ruffi to the east, and by the valley of the river Sacco to the south. The highest peak is Monte...
, Simbruini
Monti Simbruini
The Monti Simbruini are a mountain range in central Italy, part of Apennines, on the border between the Lazio and Abruzzo regions. They border with the Monti Cantari and the Ciociaria....
and Ernici
Monti Ernici
The Monti Ernici are a mountain range in central Italy, part of the sub-Apennines of Lazio. They are bounded by the valley of the river Aniene to the north-east, that of the Liri to the east, and, from south to west, by the valleys of the Cosa and Sacco...
which continue east of the Liri into the Mainarde Mountains. The highest peak is Mount Gorzano (2,458 m) on the border with Abruzzo.
History
See also: History of ItalyHistory of Italy
Italy, united in 1861, has significantly contributed to the political, cultural and social development of the entire Mediterranean region. Many cultures and civilizations have existed there since prehistoric times....
Latium
Lazio is one of the 20 administrative regions of Italy, situated in the central peninsular section of the country. With about 5.7 million residents and a GDP of more than 170 billion euros, Lazio is the third most populated and the second richest region of Italy...
. The name of the region also survives in the tribal designation of the ancient population of Latins
Latins (Italic tribe)
The Latins were a people of ancient Italy who included the inhabitants of the early City of Rome. From ca. 1000 BC, the Latins inhabited the small part of the peninsula known to the Romans as Old Latium , that is, the region between the river Tiber and the promontory of Monte Circeo The Latins (or...
, Latini in the Latin language spoken by them and passed on to the city-state of Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
. Although the demography of ancient Rome was multi-ethnic, including, for example, Etruscans and other Italics besides the Latini, the latter were the dominant constituent. In Roman mythology
Roman mythology
Roman mythology is the body of traditional stories pertaining to ancient Rome's legendary origins and religious system, as represented in the literature and visual arts of the Romans...
, the tribe of the Latini took their name from king Latinus
Latinus
Latinus was a figure in both Greek and Roman mythology.-Greek mythology:In Hesiod's Theogony, Latinus was the son of Odysseus and Circe who ruled the Tyrsenoi, presumably the Etruscans, with his brothers Ardeas and Telegonus...
. Apart from the mythical derivation of Lazio given by the ancients as the place where Jupiter "lay hid" from his father seeking to kill him, a major modern etymology is that Lazio comes from the Latin word "latus", meaning "wide", expressing the idea of "flat land" meaning the Roman Campagna. Much of Lazio is in fact flat or rolling. The lands originally inhabited by the Latini were extended into the territories of the Samnites, the Marsi
Marsi
Marsi is the Latin exonym for a people of ancient Italy, whose chief centre was Marruvium, on the eastern shore of Lake Fucinus, drained for agricultural land in the late 19th century. The area in which they lived is now called Marsica. During the Roman Republic the people of the region spoke a...
, the Hernici
Hernici
The Hernici were an ancient people of Italy, whose territory was in Latium between the Lago di Fucino and the Sacco River , bounded by the Volsci on the south, and by the Aequi and the Marsi on the north....
, the Aequi
Aequi
thumb|300px|Location of the Aequi in central Italy.The Aequi were an ancient people of northeast Latium and the central Appennines of Italy who appear in the early history of ancient Rome. After a long struggle for independence from Rome they were defeated and substantial Roman colonies were...
, the Aurunci
Aurunci
The Aurunci were an Italic population which lived in southern Italy from around the 1st millennium BC. Of Indo-European origin, their language belonged to the Oscan group...
and the Volsci
Volsci
The Volsci were an ancient Italic people, well known in the history of the first century of the Roman Republic. They then inhabited the partly hilly, partly marshy district of the south of Latium, bounded by the Aurunci and Samnites on the south, the Hernici on the east, and stretching roughly from...
, all surrounding Italic tribes. This larger territory was still called Latium, but it was divided into Latium adiectum
Latium adiectum
Latium adiectum or Latium Novum is an ancient Roman geographical term used at least as early as the 1st century BC, when mention of it occurs in Pliny in conjunction with Latium antiquum, the original territory of the Latini tribe...
or Latium Novum, the added lands or New Latium, and Latium Vetus, or Old Latium, the older, smaller region.
The northern border of Lazio was the Tiber
Tiber
The Tiber is the third-longest river in Italy, rising in the Apennine Mountains in Emilia-Romagna and flowing through Umbria and Lazio to the Tyrrhenian Sea. It drains a basin estimated at...
river, which divided it from Etruria
Etruria
Etruria—usually referred to in Greek and Latin source texts as Tyrrhenia—was a region of Central Italy, an area that covered part of what now are Tuscany, Latium, Emilia-Romagna, and Umbria. A particularly noteworthy work dealing with Etruscan locations is D. H...
.
The emperor Augustus
Augustus
Augustus ;23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14) is considered the first emperor of the Roman Empire, which he ruled alone from 27 BC until his death in 14 AD.The dates of his rule are contemporary dates; Augustus lived under two calendars, the Roman Republican until 45 BC, and the Julian...
officially united almost all of present-day Italy into a single geo-political entity, Italia, dividing it into eleven regions. Lazio – together with the present region of Campania
Campania
Campania is a region in southern Italy. The region has a population of around 5.8 million people, making it the second-most-populous region of Italy; its total area of 13,590 km² makes it the most densely populated region in the country...
immediately to the southeast of Lazio and the seat of Neapolis
Naples
Naples is a city in Southern Italy, situated on the country's west coast by the Gulf of Naples. Lying between two notable volcanic regions, Mount Vesuvius and the Phlegraean Fields, it is the capital of the region of Campania and of the province of Naples...
– became Region I.
After the Gothic War (535-554) and the Byzantine conquest, this region regained its freedom, because the "Roman Duchy" became the property of the Eastern Emperor. However the long wars against the barbarian Longobards weakened the region, which was seized by the Roman Bishop who already had several properties in those territories.
The strengthening of the religious and ecclesiastical aristocracy led to continuous power struggles between lords and the Roman bishop until the middle of the 16th century. Innocent III tried to strengthen his own territorial power, wishing to assert his authority in the provincial administrations of Tuscia, Campagna and Marittima through the Church's representatives, in order to reduce the power of the Colonna family
Colonna family
The Colonna family is an Italian noble family; it was powerful in medieval and Renaissance Rome, supplying one Pope and many other Church and political leaders...
. Other popes tried to do the same.
During the period when the papacy resided in Avignon, France
Avignon Papacy
The Avignon Papacy was the period from 1309 to 1376 during which seven Popes resided in Avignon, in modern-day France. This arose from the conflict between the Papacy and the French crown....
(1309–1377), the feudal lords' power increased due to the absence of the Pope from Rome. Small communes, and Rome above all, opposed the lords' increasing power, and with Cola di Rienzo
Cola di Rienzo
Cola di Rienzo was an Italian medieval politician and popular leader, tribune of the Roman people in the mid-14th century.-Early career:Cola was born in Rome of humble origins...
, they tried to present themselves as antagonists of the ecclesiastical power. However, between 1353 and 1367, the papacy regained control of Lazio and the rest of the Papal States
Papal States
The Papal State, State of the Church, or Pontifical States were among the major historical states of Italy from roughly the 6th century until the Italian peninsula was unified in 1861 by the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia .The Papal States comprised territories under...
.
From the middle of the 16th century, the papacy politically unified Lazio with the Papal States
Papal States
The Papal State, State of the Church, or Pontifical States were among the major historical states of Italy from roughly the 6th century until the Italian peninsula was unified in 1861 by the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia .The Papal States comprised territories under...
, so that these territories became provincial administrations of St. Peter's estate; governors in Viterbo
Viterbo
See also Viterbo, Texas and Viterbo UniversityViterbo is an ancient city and comune in the Lazio region of central Italy, the capital of the province of Viterbo. It is approximately 80 driving / 80 walking kilometers north of GRA on the Via Cassia, and it is surrounded by the Monti Cimini and...
, in Marittima and Campagna
Campagna
Campagna is a small town and comune of the province of Salerno, in the Campania region of Southern Italy.-History:The town, located in a mountainous district, gradually lost importance in the 20th century...
, and in Frosinone
Frosinone
Frosinone is a town and comune in Lazio, central Italy, the administrative seat of the Province of Frosinone. It is located about 75 km south-east of Rome close to the Rome-Naples Autostrada A1...
administered them for the papacy.
After the short-lived Roman Republic (18th century)
Roman Republic (18th century)
The Roman Republic was proclaimed on February 15, 1798 after Louis Alexandre Berthier, a general of Napoleon, had invaded the city of Rome on February 10....
, the region's annexation to France by Napoleon Bonaparte in February 1798, Lazio became again part of the Papal States
Papal States
The Papal State, State of the Church, or Pontifical States were among the major historical states of Italy from roughly the 6th century until the Italian peninsula was unified in 1861 by the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia .The Papal States comprised territories under...
in October 1799.
On 20 September 1870 the capture of Rome
Capture of Rome
The Capture of Rome was the final event of the long process of Italian unification known as the Risorgimento, which finally unified the Italian peninsula under King Victor Emmanuel II of the House of Savoy...
, during the reign of Pope Pius IX, and France's defeat at Sedan
Battle of Sedan
The Battle of Sedan was fought during the Franco-Prussian War on 1 September 1870. It resulted in the capture of Emperor Napoleon III and large numbers of his troops and for all intents and purposes decided the war in favour of Prussia and its allies, though fighting continued under a new French...
, completed Italian unification
Italian unification
Italian unification was the political and social movement that agglomerated different states of the Italian peninsula into the single state of Italy in the 19th century...
, and Lazio was incorporated into the Kingdom of Italy
Kingdom of Italy (1861–1946)
The Kingdom of Italy was a state forged in 1861 by the unification of Italy under the influence of the Kingdom of Sardinia, which was its legal predecessor state...
.
Economy
Agriculture, crafts, animal husbandry and fishery are the main traditional sources of income. Agriculture is characterized by the cultivation of wine grapes, fruit, vegetables and olives.Industrial development in Lazio is limited to the areas south of Rome. Communications and - above all - the setting of the border of the Cassa del Mezzogiorno some kilometers south of Rome, have influenced the position of industry, favouring the areas with the best links to Rome and those near the Autostrada del Sole (motorway), especially around Frosinone. Firms are often small to medium in size and operate in the building and building materials (Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
, Civitavecchia
Civitavecchia
Civitavecchia is a town and comune of the province of Rome in the central Italian region of Lazio. A sea port on the Tyrrhenian Sea, it is located 80 kilometers west-north-west of Rome, across the Mignone river. The harbor is formed by two piers and a breakwater, on which is a lighthouse...
), paper (Sora
Sora, Italy
Sora is a city and comune of Lazio, Italy, in the province of Frosinone. It is built in a plain on the banks of the Liri. This part of the valley is the seat of some important manufactures, especially of paper-mills....
), petrochemical (Gaeta
Gaeta
Gaeta is a city and comune in the province of Latina, in Lazio, central Italy. Set on a promontory stretching towards the Gulf of Gaeta, it is 120 km from Rome and 80 km from Naples....
, Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
), textile (Frosinone
Frosinone
Frosinone is a town and comune in Lazio, central Italy, the administrative seat of the Province of Frosinone. It is located about 75 km south-east of Rome close to the Rome-Naples Autostrada A1...
), engineering (Rieti
Rieti
Rieti is a city and comune in Lazio, central Italy, with a population of c. 47,700. It is the capital of province of Rieti.The town centre rests on a small hilltop, commanding a wide plain at the southern edge of an ancient lake. The area is now the fertile basin of the Velino River...
, Anagni
Anagni
Anagni is an ancient town and comune in Latium, central Italy, in the hills east-southeast of Rome. It is a historical center in Ciociaria.-Geography:...
), automobile (Cassino
Cassino
Cassino is a comune in the province of Frosinone, Italy, at the southern end of the region of Lazio.Cassino is located at the foot of Monte Cairo near the confluence of the Rapido and Liri rivers...
), electronic and electrotechnical (Viterbo
Viterbo
See also Viterbo, Texas and Viterbo UniversityViterbo is an ancient city and comune in the Lazio region of central Italy, the capital of the province of Viterbo. It is approximately 80 driving / 80 walking kilometers north of GRA on the Via Cassia, and it is surrounded by the Monti Cimini and...
) sectors.
Approximately 73% of the working population are employed in the services sector; this is a considerable proportion, but is justified by the presence of Rome, which is the core of public administration, banking, tourism, insurance and other sectors. Many national and multinational corporations, public and private, have their headquarters in Rome (ENI
Eni
Eni S.p.A. is an Italian multinational oil and gas company, present in 70 countries, and currently Italy's largest industrial company with a market capitalization of 87.7 billion euros , as of July 24, 2008...
, Enel
Enel
Enel may refer to:*Enel SpA, an Italian electricity company*Enel , a fictional villain in the One Piece manga and anime series*Enel, meaning third in the fiction of J. R. R. Tolkien, cf. Awakening of the Elves...
, Finmeccanica
Finmeccanica
Finmeccanica S.p.A. is an Italian conglomerate. Finmeccanica is the second largest industrial group and the largest of the hi-tech industrial groups based in Italy. It works in the fields of defence, aerospace, security, automation, transport and energy...
, Alitalia
Alitalia
Alitalia - Linee Aeree Italiane S.p.A. , in its later stages known as Alitalia - Linee Aeree Italiane S.p.A. in Extraordinary Administration, was the former Italian flag carrier...
, RAI
RAI
RAI — Radiotelevisione italiana S.p.A. known until 1954 as Radio Audizioni Italiane, is the Italian state owned public service broadcaster controlled by the Ministry of Economic Development. Rai is the biggest television company in Italy...
).
Lazio's limited industrial sector and highly developed service industries allowed the region to well outperform the Italian economy in 2009. The trend is set to continue over the next few years - the region's economy being among the most dynamic in Italy. This year the economy is predicted to grow by 1.3-1.5%, while in 2011 it is expected to expand by between 2-2.2%. These are the fastest rates in Italy and compare to national figures of between 0.8%-1.1% in 2010 and 1.1%-1.3% in 2011.
Demographics
With a population of about 5.7 million, Lazio is the third most populated region of Italy. The overall population density in the region is 332 inhabitants per km2. However, the population density widely ranges from almost 800 inhabitants per km2 in the highly urbanized Province of RomeProvince of Rome
The Province of Rome , is a province in the Lazio region of Italy. The province can be viewed as the extended metropolitan area of the city of Rome, although in its more peripheral portions, especially to the north, it comprises towns surrounded by rural landscape.-Geography:The Province of Rome...
to less than 60 inhabitants per km2 in the mountainous and rural Province of Rieti
Province of Rieti
The Province of Rieti is a province in the Lazio region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Rieti.It has an area of 2,749 km², and a total population of 153,258 . There are 73 comuni in the province, see Comuni of the Province of Rieti.It was founded in 1927.-External links:*...
. As of January 2010, the Italian national institute of statistics ISTAT estimated that 497,940 foreign-born immigrants live in Lazio, equal to 8.8% of the total regional population.
Government and politics
Rome is center-left politically oriented by tradition, while the rest of Lazio is center-right oriented. In the 2008 general electionItalian general election, 2008
A snap general election was held in Italy on 13 April and 14 April 2008. The election came after President Giorgio Napolitano dissolved parliament on 6 February 2008 following the defeat of the government of Prime Minister Romano Prodi in a January 2008 Senate vote, and the unsuccessful tentative...
, Lazio gave 44.2% of its vote to the centre-right coalition, while the centre-left block took 41.4% of vote.
Administrative divisions
Lazio is divided into five provinces:| Province | Area (km²) | Population | Density (inh./km²) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Province of Frosinone Province of Frosinone The Province of Frosinone is a province in the Lazio region of Italy, with 91 comuni . Its capital is the city of Frosinone. It has an area of 3,244 km², and a total population of 489,042 .The Province was established by Royal Decree on 6 December 1926 with territories belonging to Lazio... |
3,244 | 496,545 | 153.1 |
| Province of Latina Province of Latina The Province of Latina is a province in the Lazio region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Latina.It has an area of 2,251 km², and a total population of 519,850... |
2,251 | 543,844 | 241.4 |
| Province of Rieti Province of Rieti The Province of Rieti is a province in the Lazio region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Rieti.It has an area of 2,749 km², and a total population of 153,258 . There are 73 comuni in the province, see Comuni of the Province of Rieti.It was founded in 1927.-External links:*... |
2,749 | 158,545 | 57.7 |
| Province of Rome Province of Rome The Province of Rome , is a province in the Lazio region of Italy. The province can be viewed as the extended metropolitan area of the city of Rome, although in its more peripheral portions, especially to the north, it comprises towns surrounded by rural landscape.-Geography:The Province of Rome... |
5,352 | 4,097,085 | 765.5 |
| Province of Viterbo Province of Viterbo The Province of Viterbo is a province in the Lazio region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Viterbo. It is bordered to the north by the Province of Grosseto and Siena, by the north-east with the Province of Terni and Rieti, in the west by the Tyrrhenian Sea and south by the Province of Rome.It... |
3,612 | 314,690 | 87.1 |