5 definitions found
From WordNet r 1.6 [wn]:
Italy
n : a republic in S Europe; was the core of the Roman Republic
and the Roman Empire between the 4th century BC and the
5th century AD [syn: {Italy}, {Italia}]
From U.S. Gazetteer (1990) [gazetteer]:
Italy, TX (town, FIPS 37072)
Location: 32.18139 N, 96.88388 W
Population (1990): 1699 (668 housing units)
Area: 2.9 sq km (land), 0.0 sq km (water)
Zip code(s): 76651
From Easton's 1897 Bible Dictionary [easton]:
Italy
Acts 18:2; 27:1, 6; Heb. 13:24), like most geographical names
was differently used at different periods of history. As the
power of Rome advanced, nations were successively conquered and
added to it till it came to designate the whole country to the
south of the Alps. There was constant intercourse between
Palestine and Italy in the time of the Romans.
From Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary (late 1800's) [hitchcock]:
Italy, abounding with calves or heifers
From The CIA World Factbook (1995) [world95]:
Italy
Italy:Geography
Location: Southern Europe, a peninsula extending into the central
Mediterranean Sea, northeast of Tunisia
Map references: Europe
Area:
total area: 301,230 sq km
land area: 294,020 sq km
comparative area: slightly larger than Arizona
note: includes Sardinia and Sicily
Land boundaries: total 1,899.2 km Austria 430 km France 488 km Holy
See (Vatican City) 3.2 km San Marino 39 km Slovenia 199 km
Switzerland 740 km
Coastline: 4,996 km
Maritime claims:
continental shelf: 200-m depth or to the depth of exploitation
territorial sea: 12 nm
International disputes: none
Climate: predominantly Mediterranean; Alpine in far north; hot, dry in
south
Terrain: mostly rugged and mountainous; some plains, coastal lowlands
Natural resources: mercury, potash, marble, sulfur, dwindling natural
gas and crude oil reserves, fish, coal
Land use:
arable land: 32%
permanent crops: 10%
meadows and pastures: 17%
forest and woodland: 22%
other: 19%
Irrigated land: 31,000 sq km (1989 est.)
Environment:
current issues: air pollution from industrial emissions such as sulfur
dioxide; coastal and inland rivers polluted from industrial and
agricultural effluents; acid rain damaging lakes; inadequate
industrial waste treatment and disposal facilities
natural hazards: regional risks include landslides, mudflows
avalanches, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, flooding; land subsidence
in Venice
international agreements: party to - Air Pollution, Air
Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Sulphur 85, Antarctic Treaty,
Biodiversity, Climate Change, Endangered Species, Environmental
Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping,
Nuclear Test Ban, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical
Timber 83, Wetlands; signed, but not ratified - Air Pollution-Sulphur
94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Antarctic-Environmental
Protocol, Desertification
Note: strategic location dominating central Mediterranean as well as
southern sea and air approaches to Western Europe
Italy:People
Population: 58,261,971 (July 1995 est.)
Age structure:
0-14 years: 15% (female 4,352,325; male 4,603,083)
15-64 years: 68% (female 19,969,086; male 19,874,528)
65 years and over: 17% (female 5,630,747; male 3,832,202) (July 1995
est.)
Population growth rate: 0.21% (1995 est.)
Birth rate: 10.89 births/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Death rate: 9.78 deaths/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Net migration rate: 1.03 migrant(s)/1,000 population (1995 est.)
Infant mortality rate: 7.4 deaths/1,000 live births (1995 est.)
Life expectancy at birth:
total population: 77.85 years
male: 74.67 years
female: 81.23 years (1995 est.)
Total fertility rate: 1.41 children born/woman (1995 est.)
Nationality:
noun: Italian(s)
adjective: Italian
Ethnic divisions: Italian (includes small clusters of German-,
French-, and Slovene-Italians in the north and Albanian-Italians and
Greek-Italians in the south), Sicilians, Sardinians
Religions: Roman Catholic 98%, other 2%
Languages: Italian, German (parts of Trentino-Alto Adige region are
predominantly German speaking), French (small French-speaking minority
in Valle d'Aosta region), Slovene (Slovene-speaking minority in the
Trieste-Gorizia area)
Literacy: age 15 and over can read and write (1990 est.)
total population: 97%
male: 98%
female: 96%
Labor force: 23.988 million
by occupation: services 58%, industry 32.2%, agriculture 9.8% (1988)
Italy:Government
Names:
conventional long form: Italian Republic
conventional short form: Italy
local long form: Repubblica Italiana
local short form: Italia
former: Kingdom of Italy
Digraph: IT
Type: republic
Capital: Rome
Administrative divisions: 20 regions (regioni, singular - regione);
Abruzzi, Basilicata, Calabria, Campania, Emilia-Romagna,
Friuli-Venezia Giulia Lazio, Liguria, Lombardia, Marche, Molise,
Piemonte, Puglia, Sardegna, Sicilia, Toscana, Trentino-Alto Adige,
Umbria, Valle d'Aosta, Veneto
Independence: 17 March 1861 (Kingdom of Italy proclaimed)
National holiday: Anniversary of the Republic, 2 June (1946)
Constitution: 1 January 1948
Legal system: based on civil law system, with ecclesiastical law
influence; appeals treated as trials de novo; judicial review under
certain conditions in Constitutional Court; has not accepted
compulsory ICJ jurisdiction
Suffrage: 18 years of age; universal (except in senatorial elections,
where minimum age is 25)
Executive branch:
chief of state: President Oscar Luigi SCALFARO (since 28 May 1992)
head of government: Prime Minister (referred to in Italy as the
President of the Council of Ministers) Lamberto DINI (since 1 February
1995)
cabinet: Council of Ministers; nominated by the President of the
Council (i.e., Prime Minister) and approved by the President of the
Republic
Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament (Parlamento)
Senate (Senato della Repubblica): elections last held 27-28 March 1994
(next must be held by spring 1999, but may be held by end of 1995);
results - percent of vote by party NA seats - (326 total, 315
elected, 11 appointed senators-for-life) PDS 61, Northern League 60,
National Alliance 48, Forza Italia 36, Italian Popular Party 31,
Communist Refoundation 18, Greens and The Network 13, Italian
Socialists 13, Christian Democratic Center 12, Democratic Alliance 8,
Christian Socialists 5, Pact for Italy 4, Radical Party (Pannella
List) 1, others 5
Chamber of Deputies (Camera dei Deputati): elections last held 27-28
March 1994 (next must be held by spring 1999, but may be held by end
of 1995); results - percent of vote by party NA seats - (630 total)
Northern League 117, PDS 114, Forza Italia 113, National Alliance 109,
Communist Refoundation 39, Christian Democratic Center 33, Italian
Popular Party 33, Greens and The Network 20, Democratic Alliance 18,
Italian Socialists 16, Pact for Italy 13, Christian Socialists 5
Judicial branch: Constitutional Court (Corte Costituzionale)
Political parties and leaders: Forza Italia (FI), Silvio BERLUSCONI
National Alliance, Gianfranco FINI, party secretary; Northern League -
Federal Italy (NL), Umberto BOSSI, president; Italian Social Movement,
Pino RAUTI Democratic Party of the Left (PDS, Massimo D'ALEMA,
secretary; Communist Refoundation (RC), Fausto BERTINOTTI Greens,
Gianni MATTIOLI Italian Socialists, Ottaviano DELTURCO Rete (The
Network), Leoluca ORLANDO; Christian Socialists, Ermanno GORRIERI
Pact for Italy, Mario SEGNI; Italian Popular Party (PPI), Rocco
BUTTIGLIONE Gerardo BIANCO; Christian Democratic Center (CCD), Pier
Ferdinando CASINI; Union of the Democratic Center (UDC), Raffaele
COSTA; Pannella List, Marco PANNELLA
Other political or pressure groups: the Roman Catholic Church; three
major trade union confederations (Confederazione Generale Italiana del
Lavoro or CGIL which is PDS-dominated, Confederazione Italiana dei
Sindacati Lavoratori or CISL which is centerist, and Unione Italiana
del Lavoro or UIL which is center-left); Italian manufacturers and
merchants associations (Confindustria, Confcommercio); organized farm
groups (Confcoltivatori, Confagricoltura)
Member of: AfDB AG (observer), AsDB Australia Group BIS, CCC, CDB
(non-regional), CE CEI, CERN, EBRD, EC ECE, ECLAC EIB, ESA, FAO, G-
7, G-10, GATT, IADB, IAEA, IBRD, ICAO, ICC, ICFTU ICRM, IDA, IEA,
IFAD, IFC, IFRCS ILO, IMF, IMO, INMARSAT INTELSAT, INTERPOL, IOC,
IOM, ISO, ITU, LAIA (observer), MINURSO MTCR, NACC, NATO, NEA, NSG,
OAS (observer), OECD ONUSAL OSCE, PCA, UN UNCTAD UNESCO, UNHCR
UNIDO UNIFIL, UNIKOM UNITAR, UNMOGIP UNOMOZ UNTSO UPU, WCL, WEU,
WHO WIPO, WMO, WTO, ZC
Diplomatic representation in US:
chief of mission: Ambassador Boris BIANCHERI-CHIAPPORI
chancery: 1601 Fuller Street NW Washington, DC 20009
telephone: [1] (202) 328-5500
consulate(s) general: Boston, Chicago, Houston, Miami, New York, Los
Angeles, Philadelphia, San Francisco
consulate(s): Detroit and New Orleans
US diplomatic representation:
chief of mission: Ambassador Reginald BARTHOLOMEW
embassy: Via Veneto 119/A, 00187-Rome
mailing address: PSC 59, Box 100, Rome; APO AE 09624
telephone: [39] (6) 46741
FAX: [39] (6) 4882672
consulate(s) general: Florence, Milan, Naples
Flag: three equal vertical bands of green (hoist side), white, and
red; similar to the flag of 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
Economy
Overview: Since World War II the Italian economy has changed from one
based on agriculture into a ranking industrial economy, with
approximately the same total and per capita output as France and the
UK The country is still divided into a developed industrial north,
dominated by private companies, and an undeveloped agricultural south,
dominated by large public enterprises. Services account for 48% of
GDP, industry 35%, agriculture 4%, and public administration 13%. Most
raw materials needed by industry and over 75% of energy requirements
must be imported. After growing at an average annual rate of 3% in
1983-90, growth slowed to about 1% in 1991 and 1992, fell by 0.7% in
1993, and recovered to 2% in 1994. In the second half of 1992, Rome
became unsettled by the prospect of not qualifying to participate in
EU plans for economic and monetary union later in the decade; thus it
finally began to address its huge fiscal imbalances. Subsequently, the
government has adopted fairly stringent budgets, abandoned its highly
inflationary wage indexation system, and started to scale back its
extremely generous social welfare programs, including pension and
health care benefits. Monetary officials were forced to withdraw the
lira from the European monetary system in September 1992 when it came
under extreme pressure in currency markets. For the 1990s, Italy faces
the problems of pushing ahead with fiscal reform, refurbishing a
tottering communications system, curbing pollution in major industrial
centers, and adjusting to the new competitive forces accompanying the
ongoing expansion and economic integration of the European Union.
National product: GDP - purchasing power parity - $998.9 billion (1994
est.)
National product real growth rate: 2.2% (1994 est.)
National product per capita: $17,180 (1994 est.)
Inflation rate (consumer prices): 3.9% (1994)
Unemployment rate: 12.2% (January 1995)
Budget:
revenues: $339 billion
expenditures: $431 billion, including capital expenditures of $NA
(1994 est.)
Exports: $190.8 billion (f.o.b., 1994)
commodities: metals, textiles and clothing, production machinery,
motor vehicles, transportation equipment, chemicals, other
partners: EU 53.4%, US 7.8%, OPEC 3.8% (1994)
Imports: $168.7 billion (c.i.f., 1994)
commodities: industrial machinery, chemicals, transport equipment,
petroleum, metals, food, agricultural products
partners: EU 56.3%, OPEC 5.3%, US 4.6% (1994)
External debt: $67 billion (1993 est.)
Industrial production: growth rate 4.3% (1994 est.); accounts for 35%
of GDP
Electricity:
capacity: 61,630,000 kW
production: 209 billion kWh
consumption per capita: 4,033 kWh (1993)
Industries: machinery, iron and steel, chemicals, food processing,
textiles, motor vehicles, clothing, footwear, ceramics
Agriculture: accounts for about 4% of GDP; self-sufficient in foods
other than meat, dairy products, and cereals; principal crops -
fruits, vegetables, grapes, potatoes, sugar beets, soybeans, grain,
olives; fish catch of 525,000 metric tons in 1990
Illicit drugs: important gateway country for Latin American cocaine
and Southwest Asian heroin entering the European market
Economic aid:
donor: ODA and OOF commitments (1970-89), $25.9 billion
Currency: 1 Italian lira (Lit) = 100 centesimi
Exchange rates: Italian lire (Lit) per US$1 - 1,609.5 (January 1995),
1,612.4 (1994), 1,573.7 (1993), 1,232.4 (1992), 1,240.6 (1991),
1,198.1 (1990)
Fiscal year: calendar year
Italy:Transportation
Railroads:
total: 19,503 km
standard gauge: 18,230 km 1.435-m gauge (10,499 km electrified; 2,112
km privately owned)
narrow gauge: 1,273 km 0.950-m to 1.000-m gauge (224 km electrified;
1,273 km privately owned)
Highways:
total: 305,388 km
paved: 277,388 km (6,940 km of expressways)
unpaved: gravel, crushed stone 23,000 km earth 5,000 km (1992)
Inland waterways: 2,400 km for various types of commercial traffic,
although of limited overall value
Pipelines: crude oil 1,703 km petroleum products 2,148 km natural
gas 19,400 km
Ports: Ancona, Augusta, Bari, Cagliari (Sardinia), Catania Gaeta,
Genoa, La Spezia Livorno Naples, Oristano (Sardinia), Palermo
(Sicily), Piombino Porto Torres (Sardinia), Ravenna, Savona, Trieste,
Venice
Merchant marine:
total: 441 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 5,767,969 GRT/8,547,221
DWT
ships by type: bulk 40, cargo 62, chemical tanker 34, combination
ore/oil 3, container 18, liquefied gas tanker 37, multifunction
large-load carrier 1, oil tanker 136, passenger 7, roll-on/roll-off
cargo 54, short-sea passenger 30, specialized tanker 11, vehicle
carrier 8
Airports:
total: 138
with paved runways over 3,047 m: 5
with paved runways 2,438 to 3,047 m: 34
with paved runways 1,524 to 2,437 m: 15
with paved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 26
with paved runways under 914 m: 34
with unpaved runways 1,524 to 2,438 m: 2
with unpaved runways 914 to 1,523 m: 22
Italy:Communications
Telephone system: 25,600,000 telephones; modern, well-developed, fast
fully automated telephone, telex, and data services
local: NA
intercity: high-capacity cable and microwave radio relay trunks
international: international service by 21 submarine cables, 3
satellite earth stations operating in INTELSAT with 3 Atlantic Ocean
antennas and 2 Indian Ocean antennas; also participates in INMARSAT
and EUTELSAT systems
Radio:
broadcast stations: AM 135, FM 28 (repeaters 1,840), shortwave 0
radios: 16 million
Television:
broadcast stations: 83 (repeaters 1,000)
televisions: 18 million
Italy:Defense Forces
Branches: Army, Navy, Air Force, Carabinieri
Manpower availability: males age 15-49 14,934,657; males fit for
military service 12,962,594; males reach military age (18) annually
382,142 (1995 est.)
Defense expenditures: exchange rate conversion - $21.5 billion, 2% of
GDP (1994)
more about italy
browse words by letter
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
i
j
k
l
m
n
o
p
q
r
s
t
u
v
w
x
y
z
or search
thesauri
dictionary
search words
|
Lake Atitlan, Guatemala
|
