From designer police uniforms to 350 types of pasta, ancient landmarks to bizarre traditions, here are 126 fun facts about Italy that you didn’t know.
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Italy is a fascinating country that has had a great influence not only on European but on world culture. Italian food and Italian fashion are known and loved all over the globe. But there’s more to Italy than paintings by da Vinci, delicious pizza, and Gucci bags. I have collected over 100 interesting Italy facts that will surprise you but also help you understand this beautiful country a little bit better. Cominciamo! (Let’s get started!)
Planning a trip to Italy? Don’t miss my Italy travel tips that will save you time, money and disappointment.
Italy is shaped like a high boot. If you open the map of the world and zoom in onto Europe, you will see a boot-shaped country protruding into the Mediterranean Sea – that’s Italy. It is a coincidence then that Italian shoes are some of the best in the world? There is even a saying, ‘Long-legged Italia, kicked poor Sicily, right into the middle of the Mediterranean Sea.’
As Italy is a peninsula largely located in the Mediterranean Sea, it has over 7,600 kilometers of coastline with some amazing beaches.
The population of Italy is a little over 60 million people. That makes Italy the world’s 23rd country by population. After Germany, France, and the United Kingdom, Italy is the fourth most populated country in Europe.
The Italian island of Sardinia is one of five regions in the world to be called a Blue Zone. A Blue Zone is where a higher than usual number of people live much longer than average. The other ‘Blue Zones‘ include Okinawa (Japan); Nicoya (Costa Rica); Icaria (Greece); and among the Seventh-day Adventists in Loma Linda, California,
Rome, the capital of Italy, is one of the oldest cities of the world – it was founded in 753 BCE.
The name ‘Italy’ (‘Italia’) most likely means ‘calf land’. Originally it was spelled ‘Vitalia’, originating from the Latin ‘vitulus’, meaning ‘a one-year-old calf’.
With around 60 million tourists a year. Italy is the world’s fifth most visited country.
The smallest country in the world is inside Italy, namely, Rome. Vatican City has an area of 44 hectares and a population of about 825.
The Vatican is not the only small country within Italy: there is also San Marino. It is located in the mountains in the northern part of Italy, and has an area of 61 square kilometers (23.5 sq. miles).
The Italian flag is green, white, and red, symbolizing hope, faith, and charity.
Italy is predominantly Christian, with around 90% of the population Roman Catholics.
Italy’s population is one of the oldest in the world: almost 20% of Italians are older than 65.
Before it adopted the Euro, Italy’s currency was the Lira.
The Italian economy is the eighth largest in the world.
The head of the Italian government is the Prime Minister. There is also a President, but he is largely a ceremonial figure. As of March 2021, the current President of Italy is Sergio Mattarella and the Prime Minister is Mario Draghi.
Italy is divided into 20 regions. Five of them are autonomous regions (*) that have more power and independence. The names of the regions include: Abruzzo, Basilicata, Calabria, Campania, Emilia-Romagna, Friuli-Venezia Giulia*, Latium (Lazio), Liguria, Lombardia, Marche, Molise, Piemonte, Puglia (Apulia), Sardegna (Sardinia), Sicilia (Sicily), Toscana (Tuscany), Trentino-Alto Adige (Trentino-South Tyrol)*, Umbria, Valle d’Aosta (Aosta Valley)*, and Veneto.
The Italian national anthem is called Il Canto degli Italiani (Meaning: The Song of Italians) and was written and composed in 1847, but it wasn’t until December 2017 that it was officially recognised as Italy’s national anthem!