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Rome (Italian
and Latin:
Roma) is the capital city of
Italy and of
its Latium
region. It is located on the
Tiber and
Aniene
rivers,
near the
Mediterranean Sea, at
41°54′ N 12°29′ E. The
Vatican City, a sovereign
enclave
within Rome, is the seat of the
Roman Catholic Church and the home of the
Pope. Rome is
the largest city in Italy and its municipality is one of the largest in
Europe with an area of 1290 square kilometers (it could easily encircle the
nine italian cities following Rome in size:
Milan,
Naples,
Turin,
Bologna,
Palermo,
Catania,
Florence,
Genoa and
Bari). It has a
population of 2,546,807 (2004) with almost 4 million living in the
metropolitan area. The current
mayor of Rome is
Walter Veltroni.
With a GDP of
€75 billion (higher than
New
Zealand's and equivalent to
Singapore's),
in the year 2001
Rome's municipality produced 6.5% of
Italy's total
GDP, the highest
rate among all of
Italy's cities.
The city's history extends nearly 2,800 years, during which time it has
been the seat of the
ancient Rome (the
Roman Kingdom,
Roman Republic,
Roman Empire), and later the
Papal States,
Kingdom of Italy and
Italian Republic
Monuments and sites
Source: Wikipedia
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