A disunited history
The idea of Italy as a unified country, is a relatively new one. Two and a half thousand years ago the peninsula was filled with a host of tribes and city states, celtic in the north, Etruscan, Umbrian, and Latin in the centre, with a large number of Greek colonies in the south.
The Romans brought the whole territory under their control, but when the Roman Empire disappeared so did unity. Italy then broke into about fifteen separate countries, often warring with each other, with shifting borders, different cultures and languages, until they were united into the Kingdom of Italy in 1871.
The regions today
The Italian Constitution recognizes the existence of 20 regions, based on these old cultural and geographical divisions. Five of them, for example Trentino-Alto Adige, enjoy a special degree of autonomy from the Italian State. Even today, more than 150 years after unification, the differences between these regions are still quite marked, particularly when it comes to food.
The Italian regions are listed below in alphabetical order.
Abruzzo
|
|
Basilicata
|
|
![]() |
Calabria
|
Campania
|
|
![]() |
Emilia-Romagna
|
Friuli-Venezia Giulia
|
|
Lazio
|
|
Liguria
|
|
Lombardia (Lombardy)
|
|
Marche
|
|
Molise
|
|
Piemonte (Piedmont)
|
|
![]() |
Puglia
|
Sardegna (Sardinia()
|
|
Sicilia (Sicily)
|
|
![]() |
Toscana (Tuscany)
|
Trentino-Alto Adige
|
|
![]() |
Umbria
|
Valle d’Aosta
|
|
![]() |
Veneto
|
1861 non 71 l’unità d’Italia 🙂
Per i Romani e Laziali, no. 1861, la proclamazione del Regno d’Italia ma senza lo stato pontificale, quindi l’Italia non era unificata e il capitale era Torino. 2 Ottobre 1870, il plebiscito per l’annessione di Roma al Regno d’Italia, e giugno 1871, Roma diventa capitale d’Italia.