For the football club, see S.S. Lazio

Lazio
Geography
Status	Region
Capital	Rome
President	Piero Marrazzo (Independent-Union)
Provinces	5
Area	17,208 km²
- Ranked	9th (5. Società Sportiva Lazio, ( commonly referred to SS Lazio or simply Lazio, is an Italian professional Sports club most noted for its football Rome ( Roma ˈroma Roma is the capital city of Italy and Lazio, and is Italy's largest and most populous city with more than 2 The Union ( Italian: L'Unione) was an Italian Centre-left Political party coalition led by Romano Prodi, the In Italy, a Province (in Italian provincia) is an administrative division of intermediate level between Municipality ( Comune Area is a Quantity expressing the two- Dimensional size of a defined part of a Surface, typically a region bounded by a closed Curve. Square Kilometre ( US spelling square kilometer) symbol km2, is a decimal multiple of the SI unit of These are ranked lists of the regions of Italy. Population figures are from 2001 7 %)
Population (2007 est. In Biology a population is the collection of inter-breeding organisms of a particular Species; in Sociology )
- Total	5,501,825
- Ranked	3rd (9. These are ranked lists of the regions of Italy. Population figures are from 2001 0 %)
- Density	308/km²

Lazio (Latium in Latin) is a regione of central Italy, bordered by Tuscany, Umbria, Abruzzo, Marche, Molise, Campania and the Tyrrhenian Sea. Population density (in agriculture standing stock and Standing crop) is a measurement of Population per unit area or unit volume Latium was a region of ancient Italy, home to the original Latin people. Latin ( lingua Latīna, laˈtiːna is an Italic language, historically spoken in Latium and Ancient Rome. Italy (Italia officially the Italian Republic, (Repubblica Italiana is located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe, and on the two largest Tuscany (Toscana is a region in Italy. It has an area of 22990 km² and a population of about 3 Umbria is one of the 20 Regions of Italy. The capital is Perugia. The Marche (plural originally from le marche de Ancona, referring to the March of Ancona) is one of the 20 Regions of Italy. Molise is a region of Southern Italy, the second smallest of the regions Campania is a region of Southern Italy in Europe. The region has a population of around 5 The Tyrrhenian Sea (Mar Tirreno is part of the Mediterranean Sea off of the western coast of Italy. Lazio is notable for its history, art, architecture, archaeology, religion and culture.

Geography

Lazio is divided into five provinces:

• Frosinone
• Latina
• Rieti

• Rome (Roma)
• Viterbo

History

Further information: Latium

The name of the region also survives in the tribal designation of the ancient population of Latins, from whom the Romans originated. The Province of Frosinone ( Italian: Provincia di Frosinone) is a province in the Lazio region of Italy, with 91  The Province of Latina (Provincia di Latina is a province in the Lazio region of Italy. The Province of Rieti (Provincia di Rieti is a province in the Latium region of Italy. The Province of Rome (Provincia di Roma is a province and the Metropolitan area of Rome in the Lazio region of Italy, with an area The Province of Viterbo (Provincia di Viterbo is a province in the Lazio region of Italy. Latium was a region of ancient Italy, home to the original Latin people. Latin is the name of various peoples or ethnicities related to the Latium region in the Italian Peninsula, to the Latin language, or to its descendants Ancient Rome was a Civilization that grew out of a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 10th century BC In Roman mythology, the shadowy king Latinus allegedly gave his name to the region. Roman mythology, or more appropriately Latin mythology, refers to the mythological beliefs of the Italic people inhabiting the region of Latium and its Latinus or Latinos was a figure in both Greek and Roman Mythology. The name is most likely derived from the Latin word "latus", meaning "wide", expressing the idea of "flat land" (in contrast to the local Sabine high country) but the name may originate from an earlier, non Indo-European one. The Sabines ( Latin Sabini, Singular Sabinus) were an Italic tribe that lived in ancient Italy, inhabiting Latium, originally inhabited by the Latins, extended its boundaries to the territories of the Sanniti, the Marsi and Campania thanks to the Roman conquests, taking in the lands of the Ernici, the Equi, the Aurunci and Volsci. This territory was called Latium Novi to differentiate it from Latium veteres, which indicated the original boundaries.

A landscape in Lazio: part of Tivoli, near Rome, seen from the upper terraces of the Villa d'Este. Tivoli, the classical Tibur, is an ancient Italian town in Lazio, about 30 km from Rome, at the falls of the Aniene river where it Rome ( Roma ˈroma Roma is the capital city of Italy and Lazio, and is Italy's largest and most populous city with more than 2 The Villa d'Este is a Villa situated at Tivoli, near Rome. Listed as a UNESCO world heritage site, it is a masterpiece of Italian

During the Augustus' administrative system, Latium - together with the present region of Campania- was the first Italian region.

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 Longobards impaired 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 XVI century. Innocent III tried to strengthen his own territorial power, wishing to assert his authority on the provincial administrations of Tuscia, Campagna and Marittima through the Church's representatives, in order to tear down the Colonna's power. Other popes tried to do the same.

During the Avignon period the feudal lords' power increased thanks to the absence of the Pope from Rome. Small communes, and Rome above all, opposed the lords power raise and with Cola di Rienzo tried to put themselves up as antagonists of the ecclesiastical power. Between 1353 and 1367 the restoration of the pontifical authority brought to a total retrieval of Latium and the rest of the Pontifical States.

From the middle of the XVI century the pontifical power's victory unified Latium's history with that of the Pontifical States becaming the provincial administrations of St. Peter's estate, with a governor in Viterbo and of Marittima and Campagna and one in Frosinone.

After the short Roman Republic and the region's annexation to France, by Napoleon I, Latium became again part of the Pontifical States. In 1870 when the French troops abandoned Rome, General Cadorna entered the pontifical territory, occupying Rome on the 20th of September and Latium was enclosed within the Kingdom of Italy.

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 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 (Frosinone), petrochemical (Gaeta, Rome), textile (Frosinone), engineering (Rieti, Anagni), automobile (Cassino), electronic and electrotechnical (Viterbo) sectors. Rome ( Roma ˈroma Roma is the capital city of Italy and Lazio, and is Italy's largest and most populous city with more than 2 Civitavecchia is a town and Comune of the Province of Rome in the central Italian region of Latium. Frosinone is a town and Comune in Lazio, central Italy, the Capital of the Province of Frosinone. Gaeta is a city and Comune in the Province of Latina, in Lazio, central Italy. Rome ( Roma ˈroma Roma is the capital city of Italy and Lazio, and is Italy's largest and most populous city with more than 2 Frosinone is a town and Comune in Lazio, central Italy, the Capital of the Province of Frosinone. Rieti (Reate is a town in Lazio, Italy, with a population of 47332 Anagni, (Latin Anagnia) is an ancient town in Latium, Italy, in the hills east-southeast of Rome famous for its connections with the papacy and for the For other meanings see Cassino (disambiguation Cassino is a Comune in the province of Frosinone, Italy Viterbo is an ancient city and Comune in the Lazio region of central Italy, the capital of the Province of Viterbo.

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). Eni SpA () is an Italian multinational oil and gas company with a presence in 70 countries currently Italy's largest industrial company with Enel ( E nte N azionale per l'energia EL ettrica is an Italian Energy provider and the third largest energy provider in the Finmeccanica SpA is an Italian conglomerate. Finmeccanica is the second largest industrial group and the largest of the Hi-tech industrial groups based AlitaliaLinee Aeree Italiane SpA ( Italian for Alitalia - Italian Air Lines) ( is the Flag carrier Airline of Italy. Rai - Radiotelevisione Italiana, known until 1954 as Radio Audizioni Italiane, is the Italian public service broadcaster, and is considered

Politics

Main article: Politics of Lazio

Rome is center-right politically oriented by tradition, while the rest of Lazio is center-left oriented. The Politics of Lazio, Italy takes place in a framework of a presidential Representative democracy, whereby the President of Regional Government In the April 2008 elections, Lazio gave 44. A snap general election was held in Italy on 13 April and 14 April 2008. 19% of its votes to the centre-right coalition, while the centre-left block took 41. 42% of votes.

Demographics

The population distribution is influenced by Rome, where 55% of the population is concentrated. The presence of the capital of Italy gives Lazio the fourth highest density of population in the country. As of 2006, the Italian national institute of statistics ISTAT estimated that 275,065 foreign-born immigrants live in Lazio, equal to 5. 2% of the total regional population. 9% of Italy's population is in Lazio, and 55% of Lazio's population is in Rome.

Towns of Lazio with a population of 50,000 or more;

External links

• Tradizioni musicali del Lazio
• Official Site of the Regione Lazio (Italian)
• Official Site of the Regione Lazio (English)
• Map of Lazio (Italian)
• Dialects of southern Lazio
• Guided visits, excursions and tourist information (English)

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