Italy is a country that is located  in southern Europe.  It lies on a boot-shaped peninsula that extend from the Mediterranean Sea into southern Europe.  Italy is known as a country that has a rich heritage and the most natural beauty.  Some of the museums in Italy have the world’s best art.  The countryside also has warm sandy beaches.  
     Italy got its name because of the Ancient Romans.  Ancient Romans called peninsula, Italia. Italia means   “land of oxen” or “grazing land”. Rome is the largest city in Italy.   Other important metropolitan cites in Italy are Milan, Rome, Naples, and Turin.   Some of the most famous and largest cities are Palermo, Genoa, Bologna, Florence, Bari, Catania, Venice, and Verona.  About 95% of the people who live in Italy are native Italian who speak Italian.  Some other ethnic groups that live in Italy include people who are Italian, German, Slovene, and Albanian Italians.  Most of the people are Roman Catholics although there are some of the Jewish religion, and the Islamic religion.
    There are three volcanoes in Italy. Pompeii was an ancient Italian city that was destroyed because one of the volcanoes, Vesuvius blew up in 79 A.D. The city was covered under ash for hundreds of years until it was rediscovered in the 1700’s.
    Soccer is the most popular sport in Italy.  Every major city in Italy as a professional soccer team. Other popular sports include fishing, hunting, cycling, baseball and rollerskating.
     Italians eat their main course in the middle of the day.  They have large meals including a pasta course, followed by a main course  of meat or fish.
     Italy’s government is made of a president, a Council of Ministers headed by a Prime Minister, and a Parliament made up of a Senate and a Chamber of Deputies. Italy’s flag has three vertical stripes, green, white and red.  It was adopted in 1870.
     There are many popular tourist attractions in Italy including The Colosseum, the Ruins of Pompeii, The Vatican, and various museums. The Colosseum was voted one of the New 7 Wonders of the World in 2007.