| Country name | conventional long form: Italian Republic conventional short form: Italy local long form: Repubblica Italiana local short form: Italia former: Kingdom of Italy etymology: derivation is unclear, but the Latin "Italia" may come from the Oscan "Viteliu" meaning "[Land] of Young Cattle" (the bull was a symbol of southern Italic tribes) |
| Government type | parliamentary republic |
| Capital | name: Rome geographic coordinates: 41 54 N, 12 29 E time difference: UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time) daylight saving time: +1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October etymology: by tradition, named after Romulus, one of the legendary founders of the city and its first king |
| Administrative divisions | 15 regions (regioni, singular - regione) and 5 autonomous regions (regioni autonome, singular - regione autonoma) regions: Abruzzo, Basilicata, Calabria, Campania, Emilia-Romagna, Lazio (Latium), Liguria, Lombardia, Marche, Molise, Piemonte (Piedmont), Puglia (Apulia), Toscana (Tuscany), Umbria, Veneto; autonomous regions: Friuli Venezia Giulia, Sardegna (Sardinia), Sicilia (Sicily), Trentino-Alto Adige (Trentino-South Tyrol) or Trentino-Suedtirol (German), Valle d'Aosta (Aosta Valley) or Vallee d'Aoste (French) |
| Independence | 17 March 1861 (Kingdom of Italy proclaimed; Italy was not finally unified until 1871) |
| National holiday | Republic Day, 2 June (1946) |
| Constitution | history: previous 1848 (originally for the Kingdom of Sardinia and adopted by the Kingdom of Italy in 1861); latest enacted 22 December 1947, adopted 27 December 1947, entered into force 1 January 1948 amendments: proposed by both houses of Parliament; passage requires two successive debates and approval by absolute majority of each house on the second vote; a referendum is only required when requested by one fifth of the members of either house, by voter petition, or by five Regional Councils (elected legislative assemblies of the 15 first-level administrative regions and 5 autonomous regions of Italy); referendum not required if an amendment has been approved by a two-thirds majority in each house in the second vote; amended many times, last in 2020 |
| Legal system | civil law system; judicial review of legislation under certain conditions in Constitutional Court |
| International law organization participation | accepts compulsory ICJ jurisdiction with reservations; accepts ICCt jurisdiction |
| Citizenship | citizenship by birth: no citizenship by descent only: at least one parent must be a citizen of Italy dual citizenship recognized: yes residency requirement for naturalization: 4 years for EU nationals, 5 years for refugees and specified exceptions, 10 years for all others |
| Suffrage | 18 years of age; universal except in senatorial elections, where minimum age is 25 |
| Executive branch | chief of state: President Sergio MATTARELLA (since 3 February 2015) head of government: Prime Minister Mario DRAGHI (since 13 February 2021); the prime minister's official title is President of the Council of Ministers; note - Prime Minister Giuseppe CONTE resigned on 26 January 2021 cabinet: Council of Ministers proposed by the prime minister, known officially as the President of the Council of Ministers and locally as the Premier; nominated by the president; the current deputy prime ministers, known officially as vice-presidents of the Council of Ministers, are Matteo Salvini (L) and Luigi Di Maio (M5S) (since 1 June 2018) elections/appointments: president indirectly elected by an electoral college consisting of both houses of Parliament and 58 regional representatives for a 7-year term (no term limits); election last held on 31 January 2015 (next to be held in 2022); prime minister appointed by the president, confirmed by parliament election results: Sergio MATTARELLA (independent) elected president; electoral college vote count in fourth round - 665 out of 1,009 (505-vote threshold) |
| Legislative branch | description: bicameral Parliament or Parlamento consists of: Senate or Senato della Repubblica (321 seats; 116 members directly elected in single-seat constituencies by simple majority vote, 193 members in multi-seat constituencies and 6 members in multi-seat constituencies abroad directly elected by party-list proportional representation vote to serve 5-year terms and 6 ex-officio members appointed by the president of the Republic to serve for life) Chamber of Deputies or Camera dei Deputati (630 seats; 629 members directly elected in single- and multi-seat constituencies by proportional representation vote and 1 member from Valle d'Aosta elected by simple majority vote; members serve 5-year terms) elections: Senate - last held on 4 March 2018 (next to be held in March 2023) Chamber of Deputies - last held on 4 March 2018 (next to be held in March 2023) election results: Senate - percent of vote by party - center-right coalition 37.5% (L 17.6%, FI 14.4%, FdI 4.3%, UdC 1.2%), M5S 32.2%, center-left coalition (PD 19.1%, +E 2.3%, I 0.5%, CP 0.5%, SVP-PATT 0.4%), LeU 3.3%; seats by party - center-right coalition 77(L 37, FI 33, FdI 7), M5S 68, center-left coalition 44(PD 43, SVP-PATT 1), LeU 4; composition - men 208, women 113, percent of women 35.2% Chamber of Deputies - percent of vote by party - center-right coalition 37% (L 17.4%, FI 14%, FdI 4.4%, UdC 1.3%), M5S 33%, center-left coalition 22.9% (PD 18.8%, E+ 2.6%, I 0.6%, CP 0.5%, SVP-PATT 0.4%); seats by party - center-right coalition 151 (L73, FI 59, FdI 19), M5S 133, center-left coalition 88 (PD 86, SVP 2), LeU 14; composition - men 405, women 225, percent of women 35.7%; note - total Parliament percent of women 35.5% Note: in October 2019, Italy's Parliament voted to reduce the number of Senate seats from 315 to 200 and the number of Chamber of Deputies seats from 630 to 400; a referendum to reduce the membership of Parliament held on 20-21 September 2020 was approved, effective for the 2023 election |
| Judicial branch | highest courts: Supreme Court of Cassation or Corte Suprema di Cassazione (consists of the first president (chief justice), deputy president, 54 justices presiding over 6 civil and 7 criminal divisions, and 288 judges; an additional 30 judges of lower courts serve as supporting judges; cases normally heard by 5-judge panels; more complex cases heard by 9-judge panels); Constitutional Court or Corte Costituzionale (consists of the court president and 14 judges) judge selection and term of office: Supreme Court judges appointed by the High Council of the Judiciary, headed by the president of the republic; judges may serve for life; Constitutional Court judges - 5 appointed by the president, 5 elected by Parliament, 5 elected by select higher courts; judges serve up to 9 years subordinate courts: various lower civil and criminal courts (primary and secondary tribunals and courts of appeal) |
| Political parties and leaders | Governing Coalition: Other parties and parliamentary groups: |
| International organization participation | ADB (nonregional member), AfDB (nonregional member), Arctic Council (observer), Australia Group, BIS, BSEC (observer), CBSS (observer), CD, CDB, CE, CEI, CERN, EAPC, EBRD, ECB, EIB, EITI (implementing country), EMU, ESA, EU, FAO, FATF, G-7, G-8, G-10, G-20, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC (national committees), ICCt, ICRM, IDA, IEA, IFAD, IFC, IFRCS, IGAD (partners), IHO, ILO, IMF, IMO, IMSO, Interpol, IOC, IOM, IPU, ISO, ITSO, ITU, ITUC (NGOs), LAIA (observer), MIGA, MINURSO, MINUSMA, NATO, NEA, NSG, OAS (observer), OECD, OPCW, OSCE, Pacific Alliance (observer), Paris Club, PCA, PIF (partner), Schengen Convention, SELEC (observer), SICA (observer), UN, UNCTAD, UNESCO, UNHCR, UNIDO, UNIFIL, Union Latina, UNMOGIP, UNRWA, UNTSO, UNWTO, UPU, WCO, WHO, WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC |
| Diplomatic representation in the US | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Maurizio GREGANTI, Minister (since 15 June 2021) chancery: 3000 Whitehaven Street NW, Washington, DC 20008 telephone: [1] (202) 612-4400 FAX: [1] (202) 518-2154 email address and website: amb.washington@cert.esteri.it https://ambwashingtondc.esteri.it/ambasciata_washington/en/ consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Detroit, Houston, Miami, New York, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, San Francisco consulate(s): Charlotte (NC), Cleveland (OH), Detroit (MI), Hattiesburg (MS), Honolulu (HI), New Orleans, Newark (NJ), Norfolk (VA), Pittsburgh (PA), Portland (OR), Seattle |
| Diplomatic representation from the US | chief of mission: Ambassador (vacant); Charge d'Affaires Thomas D. SMITHAM (since 4 January 2021); note - also accredited to San Marino embassy: via Vittorio Veneto 121, 00187 Roma mailing address: 9500 Rome Place, Washington DC 20521-9500 telephone: [39] 06-46741 FAX: [39] 06-4674-2244 email address and website: uscitizenrome@state.gov https://it.usembassy.gov/ consulate(s) general: Florence, Milan, Naples |
| Flag description | three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and red; design inspired by the French flag brought to Italy by Napoleon in 1797; colors are those of Milan (red and white) combined with the green uniform color of the Milanese civic guard note: similar to the flag of Mexico, which is longer, uses darker shades of green and red, and has its coat of arms centered on the white band; Ireland, which is longer and is green (hoist side), white, and orange; also similar to the flag of the Cote d'Ivoire, which has the colors reversed - orange (hoist side), white, and green |
| National anthem | name: "Il Canto degli Italiani" (The Song of the Italians) lyrics/music: Goffredo MAMELI/Michele NOVARO note: adopted 1946; the anthem, originally written in 1847, is also known as "L'Inno di Mameli" (Mameli's Hymn), and "Fratelli D'Italia" (Brothers of Italy) |
| National symbol(s) | white, five-pointed star (Stella d'Italia); national colors: red, white, green |
Source: CIA World Factbook
This page was last updated on September 18, 2021
