# Rome

By [Milena](https://paragraph.com/@milena) · 2024-01-17

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**Rome** ([Italian](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Italian_language) and [Latin](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latin): _Roma_, Italian: [\[ˈroːma\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Help:IPA/Italian) [ⓘ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:It-Roma.ogg)) is the [capital city](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Capital_city) of [Italy](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Italy). It is also the capital of the [Lazio](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lazio) [region](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Regions_of_Italy), the centre of the [Metropolitan City of Rome Capital](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metropolitan_City_of_Rome_Capital), and a special [_comune_](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comune) (municipality) named _Comune di Roma Capitale_. With 2,860,009 residents in 1,285 km2 (496.1 sq mi),[\[2\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rome#cite_note-Population-3) Rome is the country's most populated _comune_ and the [third most populous city](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_cities_in_the_European_Union_by_population_within_city_limits) in the [European Union](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/European_Union) by population within city limits. The Metropolitan City of Rome, with a population of 4,355,725 residents, is the most populous [metropolitan city](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metropolitan_cities_of_Italy) in Italy.[\[3\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rome#cite_note-PR-4) Its [metropolitan area](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rome_metropolitan_area) is the third-most populous within Italy.[\[5\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rome#cite_note-citypop-6) Rome is located in the central-western portion of the [Italian Peninsula](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Italian_Peninsula), within Lazio ([Latium](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latium)), along the shores of the [Tiber](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiber). [Vatican City](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vatican_City) (the smallest country in the world)[\[6\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rome#cite_note-7) is an independent country inside the city boundaries of Rome, the only existing example of a country within a city. Rome is often referred to as the [City of Seven Hills](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Seven_hills_of_Rome) due to its geographic location, and also as the "Eternal City".[\[7\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rome#cite_note-8) Rome is generally considered to be the cradle of Western [civilization](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_culture) and [Western](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Western_Christianity) [Christian culture](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christian_culture), and the centre of the [Catholic Church](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Catholic_Church).[\[8\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rome#cite_note-9)[\[9\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rome#cite_note-10)[\[10\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rome#cite_note-11)

[Rome's history](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Rome) spans 28 centuries. While [Roman mythology](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_mythology) dates the [founding of Rome](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Founding_of_Rome) at around 753 BC, the site has been inhabited for much longer, making it a major human settlement for almost three millennia and one of the [oldest continuously occupied cities](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_oldest_continuously_inhabited_cities) in Europe.[\[11\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rome#cite_note-Heiken,_G._2005-12) The city's early population originated from a mix of [Latins](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latins_\(Italic_tribe\)), [Etruscans](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etruscan_civilization), and [Sabines](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sabines). Eventually, the city successively became the capital of the [Roman Kingdom](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_Kingdom), the [Roman Republic](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_Republic) and the [Roman Empire](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Roman_Empire), and is regarded by many as the first-ever Imperial city and [metropolis](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metropolis).[\[12\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rome#cite_note-13) It was first called _The Eternal City_ ([Latin](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latin_language): _Urbs Aeterna_; [Italian](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Italian_language): _La Città Eterna_) by the Roman poet [Tibullus](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tibullus) in the 1st century BC, and the expression was also taken up by [Ovid](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ovid), [Virgil](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Virgil), and [Livy](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Livy).[\[13\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rome#cite_note-14)[\[14\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rome#cite_note-15) Rome is also [called "Caput Mundi"](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Caput_Mundi#Rome) (Capital of the World).

After the [fall of the Empire in the west](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fall_of_the_Western_Roman_Empire), which marked the beginning of the [Middle Ages](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middle_Ages), Rome slowly fell under the political control of the [Papacy](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Papacy), and in the 8th century, it became the capital of the [Papal States](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Papal_States), which lasted until 1870. Beginning with the [Renaissance](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renaissance), almost all popes since [Nicholas V](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pope_Nicholas_V) (1447–1455) pursued a coherent architectural and urban programme over four hundred years, aimed at making the city the artistic and cultural centre of the world.[\[15\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rome#cite_note-16) In this way, Rome first became one of the major centres of the [Renaissance](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renaissance)[\[16\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rome#cite_note-17) and then became the birthplace of both the [Baroque](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baroque) style and [Neoclassicism](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neoclassicism). Famous artists, painters, sculptors, and architects made Rome the centre of their activity, creating masterpieces throughout the city. In 1871, Rome became the capital of the [Kingdom of Italy](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kingdom_of_Italy), which, in 1946, became the Italian Republic.

In 2019, Rome was the 14th most visited city in the world, with 8.6 million tourists, the third most visited city in the European Union, and the most popular tourist destination in Italy.[\[17\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rome#cite_note-18) Its historic centre is listed by [UNESCO](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UNESCO) as a [World Heritage Site](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Heritage_Site).[\[18\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rome#cite_note-whc.unesco.org-19) The host city for the [1960 Summer Olympics](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1960_Summer_Olympics), Rome is also the seat of several specialised agencies of the [United Nations](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/United_Nations), such as the [Food and Agriculture Organization](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Food_and_Agriculture_Organization) (FAO), the [World Food Programme](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/World_Food_Programme) (WFP) and the [International Fund for Agricultural Development](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Fund_for_Agricultural_Development) (IFAD). The city also hosts the Secretariat of the Parliamentary Assembly of the [Union for the Mediterranean](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Union_for_the_Mediterranean)[\[19\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rome#cite_note-20) (UfM) as well as the headquarters of many multinational companies, such as [Eni](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eni), [Enel](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enel), [TIM](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gruppo_TIM), [Leonardo](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leonardo_S.p.A.), and banks such as [BNL](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banca_Nazionale_del_Lavoro). Numerous companies are based within Rome's [EUR](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/EUR,_Rome) business district, such as the luxury fashion house [Fendi](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fendi) located in the [Palazzo della Civiltà Italiana](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palazzo_della_Civilt%C3%A0_Italiana). The presence of renowned international brands in the city has made Rome an important centre of fashion and design, and the [Cinecittà Studios](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cinecitt%C3%A0) have been the set of many [Academy Award](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Academy_Award)–winning movies.[\[20\]](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rome#cite_note-21)

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*Originally published on [Milena](https://paragraph.com/@milena/rome)*