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Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern and Western Europe. It is located on a peninsula that extends into the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land border, as well as several islands, notably Sicily and Sardinia. Italy shares its borders with France, Switzerland, Austria, Slovenia and two enclaves: Vatican City and San Marino. Its territory also includes Campione (an exclave surrounded by Switzerland) and the Pelagie Islands (an archipelago in the African Plate). It is the tenth-largest country by land area in the European continent, covering an area of 301,340 km² (116,350 sq mi), and the third-most populous member state of the European Union, with a population of nearly 60 million. Its capital and largest city is Rome.

In antiquity, the Italian peninsula was home to numerous peoples; the Latin city of Rome in central Italy, founded as a Kingdom, became a Republic that conquered the Mediterranean world and ruled it for centuries as an Empire. With the spread of Christianity, Rome became the seat of the Catholic Church and of the Papacy. During the Early Middle Ages, Italy experienced the fall of the Western Roman Empire and inward migration from Germanic tribes. By the 11th century, Italian city-states and maritime republics expanded, bringing renewed prosperity through commerce and laying the groundwork for modern capitalism. The Italian Renaissance flourished in Florence during the 15th and 16th centuries and spread to the rest of Europe. Italian explorers also discovered new routes to the Far East and the New World, leading the European Age of Discovery. However, centuries of rivalry and infighting between the Italian city-states among other factors left the peninsula divided into numerous states until the late modern period. During the 17th and 18th centuries, Italian economic and commercial importance waned significantly. (Full article...)

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Rome skyline from Castel Sant'Angelo

Rome (Italian and Latin: Roma, Italian: [ˈroːma] ^ⓘ) is the capital city of Italy. It is also the capital of the Lazio region, the centre of the Metropolitan City of Rome Capital, and a special comune (municipality) named Comune di Roma Capitale. With 2,860,009 residents in 1,285 km² (496.1 sq mi), Rome is the country's most populated comune and the third most populous city in the European Union by population within city limits. The Metropolitan City of Rome, with a population of 4,355,725 residents, is the most populous metropolitan city in Italy. Its metropolitan area is the third-most populous within Italy. Rome is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, within Lazio (Latium), along the shores of the Tiber. Vatican City (the smallest country in the world) is an independent country inside the city boundaries of Rome, the only existing example of a country within a city. Rome is often referred to as the City of Seven Hills due to its geographic location, and also as the "Eternal City". Rome is generally considered to be the cradle of Western civilization and Western Christian culture, and the centre of the Catholic Church.

Rome's history spans 28 centuries. While Roman mythology dates the founding of Rome at around 753 BC, the site has been inhabited for much longer, making it a major human settlement for almost three millennia and one of the oldest continuously occupied cities in Europe. The city's early population originated from a mix of Latins, Etruscans, and Sabines. Eventually, the city successively became the capital of the Roman Kingdom, the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire, and is regarded by many as the first-ever Imperial city and metropolis. It was first called The Eternal City (Latin: Urbs Aeterna; Italian: La Città Eterna) by the Roman poet Tibullus in the 1st century BC, and the expression was also taken up by Ovid, Virgil, and Livy. Rome is also called "Caput Mundi" (Capital of the World). (Full article...)

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Image 1View of Piazzetta San Marco toward Grand Canal of Venice, at dawn, with Doges' Palace on the left and Biblioteca Marciana on the right.
Image 2Sellajoch, South Tyrol and Trentino (seen from Pordoi Pass), Langkofel on the left, Piz Ciavazes on the right
Image 3Dome of Florence Cathedral
Image 4Youth of Moses by Sandro Botticelli, 1481-82, Sistine Chapel
Image 5The Forma Urbis Romae is a massive marble map of ancient Rome, created under the emperor Septimius Severus between 203 and 211.
Image 6A section of the Sistine Chapel ceiling, painted by Michelangelo
Image 7Porta Soprana is the best-known gate of the ancient walls of Genoa.
Image 8South face of the Tofana di Rozes in the Parco naturale regionale delle Dolomiti d'Ampezzo
Image 9Interior of the Santa Maria della Vittoria in Rome

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...that the Italian winery Vini Lunardelli produced a controversial "historical line" of wine bottles featuring images of Che Guevara, Adolf Hitler, Winston Churchill and Josef Stalin on their labels?

...that Vittorio Ambrosio was an Italian general who served an instrumental role in the fall of Mussolini and the eventual Italian renunciation of its alliance with Germany?

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Caffè latte (Italian: [kafˌfɛ lˈlatte]), often shortened to just latte (/ˈlɑːteɪ, ˈlæteɪ/) in English, is a coffee drink of Italian origin made with espresso and steamed milk, traditionally served in a glass. Variants include the chocolate-flavored mocha or replacing the coffee with another beverage base such as masala chai (spiced Indian tea), mate, matcha, turmeric or rooibos; alternatives to milk, such as soy milk, almond milk or oat milk, are also used.

The term comes from the Italian caffellatte or caffè latte, from caffè e latte, literally "coffee and milk"; in English orthography either or both words sometimes have an accent on the final e (a hyperforeignism in the case of *latté, or to indicate it is pronounced, not the more-common silent final e of English). In northern Europe and Scandinavia, the term café au lait has traditionally been used for the combination of espresso and milk. In France, cafè latte is from the original name of the beverage (caffè latte); a combination of espresso and steamed milk equivalent to a "latte" is in French called un crème (un grand crème using cream instead of milk) and in German Milchkaffee. (Full article...)

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Italian cuisine Pizza Ancient Roman cuisine Pasta Roman cuisine Parmigiano-Reggiano Sicilian cuisine Mozzarella Fettuccine Alfredo Acquacotta Carbonara Gelato Marron glacé Minestrone Pizza di Pasqua Chianti Food and dining in the Roman Empire Espresso Italian wine Testaroli Prodotto agroalimentare tradizionale

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The following are images from various Italy-related articles on Wikipedia.

Image 1The espresso comes from the Italian esprimere, which means "to express," and refers to the process by which hot water is forced under pressure through ground coffee. (from Culture of Italy)
Image 2Federico Fellini, considered one of the most influential and widely revered filmmakers in the history of cinema (from Culture of Italy)
Image 3Royal Palace of Caserta, the largest royal residence in the world (from Culture of Italy)
Image 4Ferragosto fireworks display in Padua on 15 August 2010 (from Culture of Italy)
Image 5Alessandro Manzoni is famous for the novel The Betrothed (1827), generally ranked among the masterpieces of world literature. (from Culture of Italy)
Image 6A wooden puppet depicting the Befana (from Culture of Italy)
Image 7The Trevi Fountain in Rome (from Culture of Italy)
Image 8The Altare della Patria in Rome, a national symbol of Italy celebrating the first king of the unified country, and resting place of the Italian Unknown Soldier since the end of World War I. It was inaugurated in 1911, on the occasion of the 50th Anniversary of the Unification of Italy. (from Culture of Italy)
Image 9The Sagra dell'uva in Marino, celebrating grapes (from Culture of Italy)
Image 10David, by Michelangelo (Accademia di Belle Arti, Florence, Italy) is a masterpiece of Renaissance and world art. (from Culture of Italy)
Image 11Italian folk dance in Molise (from Culture of Italy)
Image 12Prada shop at Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II in Milan (from Culture of Italy)
Image 13The Arch of Constantine in Rome (from Culture of Italy)
Image 14The Jefferson Memorial in Washington, D.C., reflects the president's admiration for classical Roman aesthetics (from Culture of Italy)
Image 15Festival of Saint Agatha (from Culture of Italy)
Image 16The Creation of Adam is one of the scenes on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel of the Vatican, painted by Michelangelo sometime between 1508 and 1512. (from Culture of Italy)
Image 17Pietà, by Michelangelo is a key work of Italian Renaissance sculpture. (from Culture of Italy)
Image 18The Roman Empire provided an inspiration for the medieval European. Although the Holy Roman Empire rarely acquired a serious geopolitical reality, it possessed great symbolic significance. (from Culture of Italy)
Image 19Pinocchio Disney film is based on The Adventures of Pinocchio by Carlo Collodi. (from Culture of Italy)
Image 20Folkloristic reconstruction of the Company of Death led by Alberto da Giussano who is preparing to carry out the charge during the battle of Legnano at the Palio di Legnano 2014 (from Culture of Italy)
Image 21William Shakespeare is an example of an Italophile of the 16th century. (from Culture of Italy)
Image 22Giorgio Moroder, pioneer of Italo disco and electronic dance music, is known as the "Father of disco". (from Culture of Italy)
Image 23John Florio is recognised as the most important Renaissance humanist in England (from Culture of Italy)
Image 24The discovery of the New World by Christoper Columbus (from Culture of Italy)
Image 25Clockwise from top left: Thomas Aquinas, proponent of natural theology and the Father of Thomism; Giordano Bruno, one of the major scientific figures of the Western world; Cesare Beccaria, considered the Father of criminal justice and modern criminal law; and Maria Montessori, credited with the creation of the Montessori education (from Culture of Italy)
Image 26Dante Alighieri, one of the greatest poets of the Middle Ages. His epic poem The Divine Comedy ranks among the finest works of world literature. (from Culture of Italy)
Image 27Gucci and Dolce & Gabbana Store on the Las Vegas Strip in Las Vegas (from Culture of Italy)
Image 28Statues of Pantalone and Harlequin, two stock characters from the Commedia dell'arte, in the Museo Teatrale alla Scala (from Culture of Italy)
Image 29The Calling of St Matthew by Caravaggio (from Culture of Italy)
Image 30The cover of the Corriere dei Piccoli on 11 July 1911 carries a cartoon strip in the Italian style without speech bubbles. (from Culture of Italy)
Image 31Sandro Botticelli, The Birth of Venus (c. 1486). Tempera on canvas. 172.5 cm × 278.9 cm (67.9 in × 109.6 in). Uffizi, Florence. (from Culture of Italy)
Image 32Columbus Breaking the Egg by William Hogarth (from Culture of Italy)
Image 33The Ecstasy of Saint Teresa by Gian Lorenzo Bernini (from Culture of Italy)
Image 34Luciano Pavarotti, considered one of the finest tenors of the 20th century and the "King of the High Cs" (from Culture of Italy)
Image 35The Venice Film Festival is the oldest film festival in the world. (from Culture of Italy)
Image 36Scrovegni Chapel. The chapel contains a fresco cycle by Giotto, completed about 1305 and considered to be an important masterpiece of Western art. (from Culture of Italy)
Image 37Teatro di San Carlo, Naples. It is the oldest continuously active venue for opera in the world. (from Culture of Italy)
Image 38The historic seat of the Corriere della Sera in via Solferino in Milan (from Culture of Italy)
Image 39Dario Fo, one of the most widely performed playwrights in modern theatre, received international acclaim for his highly improvisational style. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1997. (from Culture of Italy)
Image 40Palio di Siena (from Culture of Italy)
Image 41The Sistine Chapel ceiling, with frescos done by Michelangelo (from Culture of Italy)
Image 42Tagliatelle with ragù (from Culture of Italy)
Image 43The Colosseum, originally known as the Flavian Amphitheatre, is an elliptical amphitheatre in the centre of the city of Rome, the largest ever built in the Roman Empire. (from Culture of Italy)
Image 44Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa is an Italian art masterpiece worldwide famous. (from Culture of Italy)
Image 45Entrance to Cinecittà in Rome, the largest film studio in Europe (from Culture of Italy)
Image 46Rai Radio 1 (from Culture of Italy)
Image 47Palazzo della Civiltà Italiana in Rome is a perfect example of modern Italian architecture. (from Culture of Italy)
Image 48Romulus and Remus, the Lupercal, Father Tiber, and the Palatine on a relief from a pedestal dating to the reign of Trajan (AD 98–117) (from Culture of Italy)
Image 49Gelato is Italian ice cream. (from Culture of Italy)
Image 50The Uffizi in Florence (from Culture of Italy)
Image 51The statue of Italia turrita in Reggio Calabria. Italia turrita is the national personification of Italy. (from Culture of Italy)
Image 52The Forum of Pompeii with Vesuvius in the distance (from Culture of Italy)
Image 53Roman mosaic of Virgil, the most important Latin poet of the Augustan period (from Culture of Italy)
Image 54The Leaning Tower of Pisa (from Culture of Italy)
Image 55Italian wine and salumi (from Culture of Italy)
Image 56Antonio Vivaldi, in 1723. His best-known work is a series of violin concertos known as The Four Seasons. (from Culture of Italy)
Image 57Castel del Monte, Apulia (from Culture of Italy)
Image 58Palazzo Senatorio, seat of the municipality of Rome. It has been a town hall since AD 1144, making it the oldest town hall in the world. (from Culture of Italy)
Image 59Regional seat of RAI in Cosenza (from Culture of Italy)
Image 60The Piazza dei Miracoli, with Pisa Cathedral, the Pisa Baptistery, and the Leaning Tower of Pisa, in Pisan Romanesque style (from Culture of Italy)
Image 61Carnival of Venice (from Culture of Italy)
Image 62Traditional pizza Margherita, whose ingredients, tomato (red), mozzarella (white) and basil (green), are inspired by the colours of the national flag of Italy. (from Culture of Italy)
Image 63The Last Supper by Leonardo da Vinci, possibly one of the most famous and iconic examples of Italian art (from Culture of Italy)