Italy in a Glance

The Republic of Italy (Italian: Repubblica Italiana), commonly known as Italy (Italian: Italia), is a European country mainly composed of the southern European Apennine Peninsula and two islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia. The northern Alpine region borders France, Switzerland, Austria, and Slovenia, while the east, south, and west are respectively adjacent to the Adriatic Sea, the Ionian Sea, and the Tyrrhenian Sea of the Mediterranean. The coastline is about 7,200 kilometers long. Most areas have a subtropical Mediterranean climate.