Rome

Comune di Roma
Flag Official seal of Comune di Roma Seal
Nickname: The Eternal City
Motto: Senātus Populusque Rōmānus (SPQR) (Latin)
Location of Rome
Coordinates: 41°54′N 12°30′E
Region	Lazio
Province	Rome (RM)
Founded	21 April, 753 B.C.E.
Government
- Mayor	Giovanni Alemanno
Area
- City	1,285 km² (496.1 sq mi)
- Urban	5,352 km² (2,066 sq mi)
Elevation	+20 m (66 ft)
Population (December 2006)
- City	2,705,603 (1st)
- Density	2,105.5/km² (4,664.8/sq mi)
- Urban	4,013,057
- Metro	5,493,308
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
- Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
Postal codes	00121 to 00199
Area code(s)	06
Patron saints	Saint Peter and Saint Paul
Website: comune.roma.it

Rome (pronounced /roʊm/; Italian: Roma, pronounced [ˈroma]; Latin: Roma) is the capital city of Italy and Lazio, and is Italy's largest and most populous city, with 2,705,317 residents, an urban area of 3,457,690 as well as a metropolitan area of 3,849,000 inhabitants spread over a 5.352 km² area. It is located in the central-western portion of the Italian peninsula, on the Tiber river.

Rome stands on top of more than two and a half thousand years of history, was once the largest city in the world and the centre of Western civilisation. Rome is still the heart of Christianity, being seat of the Roman Catholic Church which controls the Vatican City as its sovereign territory, an enclave of Rome.

Today, Rome is a modern, cosmopolitan city, and the third most-visited tourist destination in the European Union. Due to its influence in politics, media, the arts and culture, Rome has been described as a global city.

As one of the few major European cities that escaped World War II relatively unscathed, central Rome remains essentially Renaissance and Baroque in character. The historic centre of Rome is listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.

Geography

Rome seen from satellite.

The name could derive from the names of legendary founders of Rome, the twins Romulus and Remus, or from the Etruscan word "rumon", which means "river", or from the Greek "reuma", which means "flowing" and therefore again, river, or from an archaic Latin word "ruma", which means the hump of an animal's back and can be imagined to mean "hill".

The city of Rome is located in the Lazio region of central Italy on the Tiber river (Italian: Tevere). The original settlement developed on hills which faced onto a ford beside the Tiber island, the only natural ford on the river. The historic centre of Rome was build on seven hills: the Aventine Hill, the Caelian Hill, the Capitoline Hill, the Esquiline Hill, the Palatine Hill, the Quirinal Hill, and the Viminal Hill. The city is also traversed by another river the Aniene with joins the Tiber to the north of the historic centre.

Although the city centre is about 24 kilometres (14.9 mi) inland from the Tyrrhenian Sea, the city territory extends to the very shore, where the south-western Ostia district is located. The altitude of the central part of Rome ranges from 13 m (43 ft) above sea level (at the base of the Pantheon) to 139 m (456 ft) above sea level (the peak of Monte Mario). The comune of Rome covers an overall area of about 1,285 km² (496 sq mi), including many green areas. Elevation

Rome enjoys a typical Mediterranean climate. The average maximum temperature in July is around 86°F (30°C) in July, although it can be uncomfortably hot, with temperatures often exceeding 95°F (35°C) at midday. Romans tend to close up their businesses during August to take holidays in cooler spots. The average maximum daytime temperature in January is 55°F (13°C). The Roman ottobrate or "beautiful October days" are known as sunny and warm days. Mean annual precipitation is 31 inches (790mm).

Historically, the urban limits of Rome were considered to be the area within the city walls, which were 12 miles (19km) long by 270 C.E. Modern Romans frequently consider the city's urban area to be delimited by its ring-road, the Grande Raccordo Anulare, which circles the city center at a distance of about six miles (10km).

Environmental issues Districts

Panorama of Rome from the dome of St. Peter's Basilica.

History

Capitoline Wolf suckles the infant twins Romulus and Remus.

The Appian Way, constructed in the fourth century B.C.E.

Forum Romanum.

Fifteenth-century miniature depicting the Sack of Rome of 410.

File:Attacco garibaldino contro i francesi 30 aprile 1849.jpg

Garibaldi defends the Roman Republic in 1849.

Foundation

Rome's early history is shrouded in legend. According to Roman tradition, the city was founded by the twins Romulus and Remus on April 21, 753 B.C.E. Archaeological evidence supports the view that Rome grew from pastoral settlements on the Palatine Hill built in the area of the future Roman Forum. While some archaeologists argue that Rome was indeed founded in the middle of the eighth century B.C.E., the date is subject to controversy. The original settlement developed into the capital of the Roman Kingdom (ruled by a succession of seven kings, according to tradition), and then the Roman Republic (from 510 B.C.E., governed by the Senate), and finally the Roman Empire (from 27 B.C.E., ruled by an Emperor). This success depended on military conquest, commercial predominance, as well as selective assimilation of neighbouring civilizations, most notably the Etruscans and Greeks. From its foundation Rome, although losing occasional battles, had been undefeated in war until 386 B.C.E., when it was briefly occupied by the Gauls. According to the legend, the Gauls offered to deliver Rome back to its people for a thousand pounds of gold, but the Romans refused, preferring to take back their city by force of arms rather than ever admitting defeat, after which the Romans recovered the city in the same year.

Roman dominance expanded over most of Europe and the shores of the Mediterranean Sea, while its population surpassed one million inhabitants. For almost a thousand years, Rome was the most politically important, richest and largest city in the Western world, and remained so after the Empire started to decline and was split, even if it ultimately lost its capital status to Milan and then Ravenna, and was surpassed in prestige by the Eastern capital Constantinople.

Fall and Middle Ages

With the reign of Constantine I (306-337), the Bishop of Rome gained political as well as religious importance, eventually becoming known as the Pope and establishing Rome as the centre of the Catholic Church. After the Sack of Rome in 410 C.E. by Alaric I and the fall of the Western Roman Empire in 476 C.E., Rome alternated between Byzantine and plundering by Germanic barbarians. Its population declined to a mere 20,000 during the Early Middle Ages, reducing the sprawling city to groups of inhabited buildings interspersed among large areas of ruins and vegetation. Rome remained nominally part of the Byzantine Empire rule until 751 when the Lombards finally abolished the Exarchate of Ravenna. In 756, Pepin the Short (714-768) gave the pope temporal jurisdiction over Rome and surrounding areas, thus creating the Papal States.

Rome remained the capital of the Papal States until its annexation into the Kingdom of Italy in 1870; the city became a major pilgrimage site during the Middle Ages and the focus of struggles between the Papacy and the Holy Roman Empire starting with Charlemagne, who was crowned its first emperor in Rome in 800 by Pope Leo III. Apart from brief periods as an independent city during the Middle Ages, Rome kept its status of Papal capital and "holy city" for centuries, even when the Pope briefly relocated to Avignon (1309–1377).

Renaissance

The latter half of the 15th century saw the seat of the Italian Renaissance move to Rome from Florence. The popes wanted to equal and surpass the grandeur of other Italian cities and to this end created ever more extravagant churches, bridges and public spaces, including a new Saint Peter's Basilica, the Sistine Chapel, Ponte Sisto (the first bridge to be built across the Tiber since antiquity), and Piazza Navona. The Popes were also patrians of the arts engaging such artists as Michelangelo, Perugino, Raphael, Ghirlandaio, Luca Signorelli, Botticelli and Cosimo Rosselli.

The period was also infamous for papal corruption with many popes fathering children, and engaging in nepotism and simony. The corruption of the Popes and the extravagance of their building projects led, in part, to the Reformation (1517-1648) and, in turn, the Counter-reformation (1560-1648).

Reunification

Italy became caught up in the nationalistic turmoils of the 19th century and twice gained and lost a short-lived independence. Rome became the focus of hopes of Italian reunification when the rest of Italy was reunited under the Kingdom of Italy with a temporary capital at Florence. In 1861 Rome was declared the capital of Italy even though it was still under the control of the Pope. During the 1860s the last vestiges of the Papal states were under French protection. And it was only when this was lifted in 1870, owing to the outbreak of the Franco-Prussian War, that Italian troops were able to capture Rome.

20th century

After a victorious World War I (1914-1918), Rome witnessed the rise to power of Italian fascism guided by Benito Mussolini (1883-1945), who marched on the city in 1922, eventually declared a new Empire and allied Italy with Nazi Germany. This was a period of rapid growth in population, from the 212,000 people at the time of unification to more than 1,000,000, but this trend was halted by World War II (1939-1945), during which Rome was damaged by both Allied forces bombing and Nazi occupation; after the execution of Mussolini and the end of the war, a 1946 referendum abolished the monarchy in favour of the Italian Republic.

Rome grew momentously after the war, as one of the driving forces behind the "Italian economic miracle" of post-war reconstruction and modernisation. It became a fashionable city in the 1950s and early 1960s, the years of la dolce vita ("the sweet life"), and a new rising trend in population continued till the mid-1980s, when the commune had more than 2,800,000 residents; after that, population started to slowly decline as more residents moved to nearby suburbs.

Government

The Quirinal Palace, official residence of the President of the Italian Republic.

File:FAO Roma 032.jpg

FAO headquarters in Rome (former seat of the Department of Italian East Africa)

Rome is the national capital of Italy and is the seat of the Italian Government, which is a republic in which the president is chief of state who is elected by an electoral college consisting of both houses of parliament and 58 regional representatives for a seven-year term. The prime minister, who is head of government, appointed by the president and confirmed by parliament. The bicameral Parlamento consists of a senate of 315 members, and the chamber of deputies of 630 members, both houses elected by popular vote to serve five-year terms.

Rome constitutes one of Italy's 8101 communes, albeit the largest both by extent and population. It is governed by a Mayor, currently Giovanni Alemanno, and a city council. The seat of the commune is in on the Capitoline Hill the historic seat of government in Rome. The local administration in Rome is commonly referred to as "Campidoglio", the name of the hill in Roman dialect.

Rome is divided into 19 administrative areas, called municipi or municipalities. Each municipality is governed by a president and a council of four members who are elected by the denizens of the municipality every five years. The municipalities frequently divide the traditional, non-administrative divisions of the city.

Rome is also divided into differing types of non-administrative divisions. The historic centre is divided into 22 rioni, all of which are located within the Aurelian walls except Prati and Borgo. After the designation of the newest and last rione, Prati, newer districts of the city were designated as quarters, of which there were 35 in 2008. Rome also has six officially designated suburban zones and 52 agricultural zones. Many of the latter, however, have actuality been subject to considerable development.

Rome is unique in having a sovereign state located entirely within its city limits, the Vatican City. The Vatican is a enclave of Rome and a sovereign possession of the Holy See the supreme government of the Roman Catholic Church. Rome hosts foreign embassies to both Italy and the Holy See, although frequently the same ambassador is accredited to both.

Another body the Sovereign Military Order of Malta (SMOM) took refuge in Rome in 1834 after having lost Malta to Napoleon. It is sometimes classified as having sovereignty but doesn't claim any territory in Rome or anywhere else, hence leading to dispute over its actual sovereign status.

Rome is also the seat of significant international organisations of the United Nations, such as the World Food Program (WFP), the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), and the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD).

In 1957, Rome hosted the signing of the Treaty of Rome, which established the European Economic Community (predecessor to the European Union), and also played host to the official signing of the proposed European constitution in July 2004.

Economy

File:Palazzo Eni.jpg

Eni's headquarters in EUR, Rome's business district.

File:Stazione termini con le terme di diocleziano.jpg

Roma Termini railway station is one of the largest train stations in Europe.

Italy has a diversified industrial economy with roughly the same total and per capita output as France and the United Kingdom, although it is constrained by a high tax burden, a rigid labor market, and an over-generous pension system. Modern day Rome has a dynamic and diverse economy with thriving technologies, communications, and service sectors.

The city is a centre for banking as well as electronics and aerospace industries. Numerous international headquarters, government ministries, conference centres, sports venues and museums are located in Rome's principal business districts: the Esposizione Universale Roma (EUR); the Torrino (further south from the EUR); the Magliana; the Parco de' Medici-Laurentina and the so-called Tiburtina-valley along the ancient Via Tiburtina.

The city hosts the headquarters of three of the world's 100 largest companies: Enel, ENI, and Telecom Italia.

Tourism is inevitably one of Rome's chief industries, with numerous notable museums including the Vatican Museum, the Borghese Gallery, and the Musei Capitolini.

Rome is also the hub of the Italian film industry, thanks to the Cinecittà studios. Founded in 1937 by Benito Mussolini, the studios were bombed by the Western Allies during World War II. The 99 acre (40 ha) studio complex is 5.6 miles (9km) from the centre of Rome and is part of one of the biggest production communities in the world, second only to Hollywood. Industries include engineering, electronics, chemicals, printing, clothing, and food processing.

Rome was listed as having the 38th largest gross domestic product in the world in 2005, at $US123-billion. Per capita GDP was $US47,000. The city produces 6.7 percent of Italy's GDP, which was more than any other city in that country, and continued to grow at 4 percent annually, at a higher rate than any other city in the country.

Rome is at the centre of a network of roads which roughly follow the lines of the ancient Roman roads that began at the Capitoline Hill and connected Rome with its empire. This radial network causes considerable traffic problems. Today Rome is circled, at a distance of about 10km, by the ring-road called the Grande Raccordo Anulare.

Above ground public transport in Rome is made up of a bus and tram network. Rome has a two-line metro system called the Metropolitana, the building of which started in the 1930s. Rome's main train station, Termini is one of the biggest train stations in Europe, with 29 platforms, over 150 million passengers each year, with around 400,000 daily travellers.

Rome is served by three airports. Rome's international airport, Fiumicino, is Italy's chief airport. The older Rome Ciampino Airport is a joint civilian and military airport. The Aeroporto dell'Urbe, is a small, low-traffic airport located about 6 km north of the city centre, which handles most helicopter and private flights.

Demography

Historic Centre of Rome, the Properties of the Holy See in that City Enjoying Extraterritorial Rights and San Paolo Fuori le Mura*
UNESCO World Heritage Site
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Type	Cultural
Criteria	i, ii, iii, iv, vi
Reference	{{{ID}}}
Region**	Europe and North America
Inscription history
Inscription	{{{Year}}}  (Unknown Session)
Extensions	1990
* Name as inscribed on World Heritage List. ** Region as classified by UNESCO.

In 2007, there were 2,718,768 people residing in Rome, and some four million in the greater Rome area. In the five years between 2002 and 2007, the population of Rome grew by 6.54 percent, while Italy as a whole grew by 3.56 percent. The current birth rate of Rome is 9.10 births per 1,000 inhabitants compared to the Italian average of 9.45 births.

Rome was the largest city in the world, and probably the largest ever built until the nineteenth century. Estimates of its peak population range from 450,000 to over 3.5 million people at the time of emperor Augustus (63 B.C.E. to 19 C.E.). After the fall of the Roman Empire, the city's population fell dramatically to around less than 50,000 people, and continued to either stagnate or shrink until the Renaissance.

When the Kingdom of Italy annexed Rome in 1870, it had a population of about 200,000, which rapidly increased to 600,000 at the eve of World War I. The fascist regime of Mussolini tried to block an excessive demographic rise of the city, but failed to prevent it from reaching one million people by 1931. After the second world war, growth continued, helped by a post-war economic boom. A construction boom also created a large number of suburbs during the 1950s and 1960s

A large majority of the population in 2006, 92.63 percent, was Italian. The largest other ethnic groups came from from Romania and Poland, 3.14 percent, East Asia (mostly Filipino), 1.28 percent, and the Americas (mostly from Peru), 1.09 percent. There were also tens of thousands of illegal migrants living in Rome.

The original language of Rome was Latin, which evolved during the Middle Ages into Italian. The latter emerged as the confluence of various regional dialects, among which the Tuscan dialect predominated, but the population of Rome also developed its own dialect, the Romanesco.

Rome is the centre of the Roman Catholic denomination of Christianity, and much in common with the rest of Italy, the large majority of Romans are Roman Catholics. In recent years, the Islamic community in Rome has grown significantly, in great part due to immigration from North African and Middle Eastern countries. As a consequence, the city promoted the building of the largest mosque in Europe, inaugurated in 1995.

Rome is a nation-wide centre for higher education. Its first university, La Sapienza (founded in 1303), has more than 150,000 students. Two new public universities were founded: Tor Vergata in 1982, and Roma Tre in 1992. Rome also contains a number of pontifical universities and institutes, including the Pontifical Gregorian University (the oldest Jesuit university in the world, founded in 1551), the Pontifical University of St Thomas Aquinas. Private universities include the LUMSA, the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore (Roman centre), the LUISS, Istituto Europeo di Design, the St. John's University, the John Cabot University, the IUSM, the American University of Rome, the Scuola Lorenzo de' Medici, the Link Campus of Malta, the S. Pio V University of Rome, and the Università Campus Bio-Medico. Rome is also the location of the John Felice Rome Centre, a campus of Loyola University Chicago.

Of interest

The Pantheon.

The Basilica di Santa Maria Maggiore is the largest church in Rome dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary.

The Vittorio Emanuele Monument.

One of the symbols of Rome is the Colosseum (70–80 C.E.), the largest amphitheatre ever built in the Roman Empire. Originally capable of seating 60,000 spectators, it was used for gladiatorial combat. The list of the very important monuments of ancient Rome includes the Roman Forum, the Domus Aurea, the Pantheon, Trajan's Column, Trajan's Market, the Catacombs, the Circus Maximus, the Baths of Caracalla, Castel Sant'Angelo, the Mausoleum of Augustus, the Ara Pacis, the Arch of Constantine, the Pyramid of Cestius, and the Bocca della Verità.

Often overlooked, Rome's medieval heritage is one of the largest in Italian cities. Basilicas dating from the Paleochristian age include Santa Maria Maggiore and San Paolo Fuori le Mura, both housing precious fourth century mosaics. The 12th-century Basilica di San Clemente, located near the Colosseum, is built on top of a well-preserved fourth-century church (with many frescoes), which was built next to a third-century Mithraic Temple. Later notable medieval mosaic and fresco art can be also found in the churches of Santa Maria in Trastevere, Santi Quattro Coronati and Santa Prassede. Lay buildings include a number of towers, the largest being the Torre delle Milizie and the Torre dei Conti, both next the Roman Forum, and the huge staircase leading to the basilica of Santa Maria in Ara Coeli.

The most impressive Renaissance architecture masterpiece in Rome is the Piazza del Campidoglio by Michelangelo, along with the Palazzo Senatorio, seat of the city government. During this period, the great aristocratic families of Rome used to build opulent dwellings as the Palazzo del Quirinale (now seat of the President of the Italian Republic), the Palazzo Venezia, the Palazzo Farnese, the Palazzo Barberini, the Palazzo Chigi (now seat of the Italian Prime Minister), the Palazzo Spada, the Palazzo della Cancelleria, and the Villa Farnesina.

Rome is also famous for majestic squares (often adorned with obelisks), many of which were built in the 17th century. The principal squares are Piazza Navona, Piazza di Spagna, Campo de' Fiori, Piazza Venezia, Piazza Farnese and Piazza della Minerva.

After 1870, when Rome became capital city of the new Kingdom of Italy, many great palaces in neoclassical styles were built to host ministries, embassies and other governing agencies, most especially the Monument of Vittorio Emanuele II, where the Grave of the Unknown Soldier, that represents the 650,000 Italians that fell in World War I, is located.

The most important fascist site in Rome is the E.U.R. district, most especially the Palazzo della Civiltà Italiana (1938–1943), the iconic design of which has been labelled the cubic or Square Colosseum.

Public parks and nature reserves cover a large area in Rome, and the city has one of the largest areas of green space amongst European capitals.

The most important museums and galleries of Rome include the National Museum of Rome, the Museum of Roman Civilization, the Villa Giulia National Etruscan Museum, the Capitoline Museums, the Borghese Gallery, the Museum of Castel Sant'Angelo, and the National Gallery of Modern Art.

Rome hosts the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia (founded in 1585), and an opera house, the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma, as well as several minor musical institutions.

Rome hosted the 1960 Summer Olympics and is an official candidate to hosting the 2020 Summer Olympics.

Football is the most popular sport in Rome, as in the rest of the country. The Olympic Stadium hosted the final game of the 1990 FIFA World Cup; it is also the home stadium for local Serie A clubs A.S. Roma and S.S. Lazio, whose rivalry has become a staple of Roman sports culture. Indeed, famous footballers who play for these teams and are also born in the city tend to become especially popular, as has been the case with players such as Francesco Totti and Daniele De Rossi (both for A.S. Roma).

While far from being as popular as football, Rugby union is gaining wider acceptance. The Stadio Flaminio is the home stadium for the Italy national rugby union team, which has been playing in the Six Nations Championship since 2000, albeit with less than satisfactory performances, as they have never won the championship so far. Rome is home to local rugby teams, such as Unione Rugby Capitolina, Rugby Roma, and S.S. Lazio.

Every May, Rome hosts the ATP Masters Series tennis tournament on the clay courts of the Foro Italico. Cycling was immensely popular in the post-WWII period, although its popularity has faded in the last decades; Rome has hosted the final portion of the Giro d'Italia twice, in 1989 and 2000. Rome is also home to many other sports teams, including basketball (Virtus Roma), volleyball (M. Roma Volley), handball or waterpolo.

See also

• Churches of Rome
• Glocal Forum, the International on-governmental organization with main office located in Rome
• Large Cities Climate Leadership Group
• List of ancient monuments in Rome
• Shopping areas and markets in Rome

Further reading

• Lucentini, Mario (2002). La Grande Guida di Roma (in Italian). Rome: Newton & Compton Editori. ISBN 88-8289-053-8. 
• Spoto, Salvatore (1999). Roma Esoterica (in Italian). Rome: Newton & Compton Editori. ISBN 88-8289-265-4. 
• Richard Brilliant (2006). Roman Art. An American's View. Rome: Di Renzo Editore. ISBN 88-8323-085-X. 

Documentaries

• The Holy Cities: Rome produced by Danae Film Production, distributed by HDH Communications; 2006.

External links

Official

• Official site of the City of Rome (Italian)
• APT (official Tourist Office) of the City of Rome (English)
• Rome Museums — Official site (Italian)
• Vatican Museums (English)
• Capitoline Museums (English)

Other

• Travel guide to Rome from Wikitravel
• Rome travel guides at the Open Directory Project
• City models of Ancient Rome

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