| ALL ABOUT ITALY |
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| Official Name: |
Italian Republic |
| Location: |
Southern Europe |
| Area: |
301,230 sq km |
| Climate: |
predominantly Mediterranean; Alpine in far north; hot, dry in south |
| Population: |
58,103,033 (July 2005 est.) |
| Life Expectancy: |
Male: 76 years
Female: 82 years |
| Ethnic groups: |
Italian (includes small clusters of German-, French-, and Slovene-Italians in the north and Albanian-Italians and Greek-Italians in the south) |
| Religions: |
predominately Roman Catholic with mature Protestant and Jewish communities and a growing Muslim immigrant community |
| Language: |
Italian (official), 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) |
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