Geography of Italy

The geography of Italy describes all the natural features of Italy. Italy is in southern Europe and looks like a long boot. It includes the Italian Peninsula, crossed by the Apennines mountains, part of the Alps mountains, the wide plain of the Po Valley, and islands like Sicily and Sardinia.

Italy's total area is 301,230 km² (116,310 sq mi), most of it land and some water. It lies between latitudes 35° and 47° N, and longitudes 6° and 19° E. Italy borders Switzerland, France, Austria, and Slovenia. It also includes small areas called San Marino and Vatican City. The coastline is very long, at 7,900 km (4,900 mi), and touches seas such as the Adriatic Sea, Ionian Sea, and Tyrrhenian Sea.

General features

Italy is connected to the European continent by the Alps. It lies in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, between the Balkans to the east and North Africa to the south.

The islands of Sardinia and Corsica separate the Tyrrhenian Sea from the Sardinian Sea.

The coastline of Italy is very long — about 8,000 kilometers (5,000 miles).

Italy has more hilly areas than mountainous or flat areas.

No place in Italy is more than 294 km (183 miles) from the sea. The farthest place from the sea is Madesimo in the province of Sondrio.

Boundaries

Italy shares borders with Switzerland, France, Austria and Slovenia. San Marino and Vatican City are small countries inside Italy.

Latitude and longitude

• Northernmost point — Testa Gemella Occidentale, Prettau (Predoi), South Tyrol
• Southernmost point — Punta Pesce Spada, Lampedusa, Sicily
• Westernmost point — Rocca Bernauda, Bardonecchia, Piedmont
• Easternmost point — Capo d'Otranto, Otranto, Apulia

Elevation

• Highest point: Mont Blanc (Aosta Valley)
• Lowest point: Jolanda di Savoia (province of Ferrara)
• Highest settlement: Trepalle, Livigno

Maritime claims

• Territorial sea: 12 nmi (22.2 km; 13.8 mi)
• Continental shelf: 200-metre depth
• Exclusive Economic Zone: 541,915 km² (209,235 mi²)

Geographical centre

There are several places that could be the geographical centre of Italy:

• Monteluco (province of Perugia);
• Narni (province of Terni);
• Orvieto (province of Terni);
• Rieti (province of Rieti).

Land use

Italy's land is used in different ways. Most of the land is used for farming. Half of the land is for growing crops. Forests cover almost as much land as farming. Only a small amount of land is for cities and factories. Some land is wet or has water like lakes.

There is a lot of land that can be watered for crops. Italy has plenty of fresh water that people can use every year for drinking, industries, and farming too.

Divisions

Further information: Italy (geographical region)

The Italian geographical region is bigger than the Italian Republic. It covers about 324,000 square kilometres and includes parts of Croatia, France, Slovenia, and Switzerland. It also has four small independent states: the Principality of Monaco, the Republic of Malta, the Republic of San Marino, and the Vatican City State (the Holy See). Both Italy and the Italian geographical region have three main parts.

Continental Italy

Further information: Northern Italy

Continental Italy is the area south of the Alps, including the Po Valley, Liguria, and part of the Apennines. Some places like Nice and parts of Julian March are in the Italian geographical region but not in the Italian Republic.

Peninsular Italy

Further information: Central Italy, Southern Italy, and Italian peninsula

Peninsular Italy is the southern part of the Italian geographical region. It reaches up to Punta Melito in Calabria and Santa Maria di Leuca in Apulia. The Italian peninsula sits in the middle of southern Europe, in the Mediterranean Sea, and has many islands and archipelagos.

Insular Italy

Further information: Insular Italy and List of islands of Italy

Insular Italy has Sardinia, Sicily, and many smaller islands. Corsica belongs to France but is part of the Italian geographical region.

The largest islands in Italy are:

• Sicily
• Sardinia
• Elba
• Sant'Antioco
• Pantelleria

Other islands are in groups like the Tuscan archipelago, the Phlegraean Islands, the Pontine Islands, the Aeolian Islands, the Aegadian Islands, the Pelagian Islands, and many more.

Orography

Mountains

Almost 40% of Italy has mountains. The Alps form a natural border along the northern edge of the country, while the Apennine Mountains run down the middle of the Italian Peninsula like its spine. These mountains stretch for about 1,350 kilometers. The highest mountain in the European Union is Mont Blanc, which stands at 4,810 meters tall and sits between France and the Aosta Valley.

The Apennines begin south of the Po Valley and continue all the way down the peninsula to Sicily. Some of Italy's famous peaks, like Monte Rosa and Monte Cervino, are found in the western Alps.

Hills

Hills cover much of Italy, especially in the central and southern parts of the peninsula. These hills are not very steep and usually don't rise higher than 800 meters. Some famous hilly areas include the Langhe and Murghe, which are formed from old seabeds pushed up over time.

Plains

Plains make up about 23% of Italy. The largest plain is the Po Valley, which stretches for 652 kilometers from the Cottian Alps to the Adriatic Sea. This wide flat area is very important for farming. Smaller plains can also be found near coastlines and rivers all over Italy.

Hydrography

Italy is surrounded by the sea except to the north. It has many rivers and lakes. The south gets less rain and has fewer rivers.

Rivers

Italian rivers are shorter than rivers in other parts of Europe because mountains run down the middle of the country. But there are many rivers because Italy gets a lot of rain and has the Alps in the north.

The main rivers flow into different seas. The longest river is the Po, which runs through the Po Valley and empties into the Adriatic Sea. Other important rivers include the Adige, which also flows into the Adriatic Sea, and the Tiber, which flows through Rome and into the Tyrrhenian Sea.

Lakes

Italy has more than 1,000 lakes. Many of these lakes were created by dams built across river valleys.

In the north, there are famous lakes like Garda, Maggiore, and Como. There are also coastal lakes, like Lesina, and volcanic lakes, like Bolsena and Bracciano. Other lakes include Trasimeno, Varano, and Omodeo.

Seas and coasts

The Italian peninsula is in the Mediterranean Sea, which is divided into several smaller seas. The Ligurian Sea is along the northwest coast, the Tyrrhenian Sea along the west, the Adriatic Sea along the east, and the Ionian Sea along the southeast.

Italy has a very long coastline. The Adriatic coast is mostly straight and sandy, while the Tyrrhenian coast has many rocky areas and beautiful beaches. The Ionian coast is also sandy and includes the wide Gulf of Taranto. The Strait of Messina connects the Ionian and Tyrrhenian seas.

Geology

Main article: Geology of Italy

Italy's land is shaped by forces deep underground. These forces created the mountains and hills we see today.

The country sits between two large pieces of Earth's crust, called plates. This makes Italy prone to earthquakes in places like the north and south-west of Sicily, the Apennines, and parts of northern Apulia, Friuli-Venezia Giulia, and Veneto. Places like the Alps, most of the Po Valley, and parts of Sardinia have fewer earthquakes.

Italy is also home to many volcanoes. The most famous are Vesuvius near Naples and Etna near Catania, which is the highest volcano in Europe. Other active volcanoes include Stromboli and Vulcano in the Aeolian Islands. Some islands in the south were formed by volcanic activity.