Indeed the most inland zones of the peninsula are little more than 100 km from the sea and on the two larger islands is rarely greater than 50 km. The population of Italy is some 57,000,000 people with a density of about 190 inhabitants per sq.km. which makes Italy one of the most heavily populated countries in Europe. Italy is a heavy industrialized country. Mechanical engineering production is extremely varied and includes companies such as shipbuilding, aerospace, car building and related component manufacturing. The chemical and microelectronic industry are also relevant in the country as well as the food industry.
Textiles are the oldest Italian industry.
Italian fashion, design and food have made Italy famous all around the world and in actual facts it is hard to find anyone who does not know what pizza, spaghetti, Ferrari or Armani are. For its natural characteristics, and for its rich heritage of history, art and culture, the expression of the landscape and of his inhabitants, Italy is one of the countries that attract the greatest number of international tourists. The many different dominations that ruled over the country over the centuries and the millenniums, the great period of the Roman Empire have left their traces and the great richness of art and monuments really makes Italy one of the most interesting mediterranean countries. The extension of the Roman Empire over the centuries. This tiny ancient European State, whose early statutes date back to 1263, was recognized by Napoleon in 1797 and by the Congress of Vienna in 1815.