Rome (Latin and Italian: Roma [ˈroːma] ( listen)) is the capital city of Italy and a special

comune (named Comune di Roma Capitale). Rome also serves as the capital of the Lazio
region. With 2,868,782 residents in 1,285 km2 (496.1 sq mi),[1] it is also the country's most
populated comune. It is the fourth-most populous city in the European Union by population
within city limits. It is the centre of the Metropolitan City of Rome, which has a population of
4.3 million residents.[2] Rome is located in the central-western portion of the Italian
Peninsula, within Lazio (Latium), along the shores of the Tiber. The Vatican City (the
smallest country in the world)[3] is an independent country inside the city boundaries of
Rome, the only existing example of a country within a city: for this reason Rome has been
often defined as capital of two states.[4][5]

Rome's history spans 28 centuries. While Roman mythology dates the founding of Rome at
around 753 BC, the site has been inhabited for much longer, making it one of the oldest
continuously occupied sites in Europe.[6] The city's early population originated from a mix of
Latins, Etruscans, and Sabines. Eventually, the city successively became the capital of the
Roman Kingdom, the Roman Republic and the Roman Empire, and is regarded as the
birthplace of Western civilization and by some as the first ever metropolis.[7] It was first
called The Eternal City (Latin: Urbs Aeterna; Italian: La Città Eterna) by the Roman poet
Tibullus in the 1st century BC, and the expression was also taken up by Ovid, Virgil, and
Livy.[8][9] Rome is also called the "Caput Mundi" (Capital of the World). After the fall of the
Western Empire, which marked the beginning of the Middle Ages, Rome slowly fell under
the political control of the Papacy, which had settled in the city since the 1st century AD,
until in the 8th century it became the capital of the Papal States, which lasted until 1870.
Beginning with the Renaissance, almost all the popes since Nicholas V (1447–1455) pursued
over four hundred years a coherent architectural and urban programme aimed at making the
city the artistic and cultural centre of the world.[10] In this way, Rome became first one of the
major centres of the Italian Renaissance,[11] and then the birthplace of both the Baroque style
and 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, which, in 1946, became the Italian Republic.

Rome has the status of a global city.[12][13][14] In 2016, Rome ranked as the 14th-most-visited
city in the world, 3rd most visited in the European Union, and the most popular tourist
attraction in Italy.[15] Its historic centre is listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site.[16]
Monuments and museums such as the Vatican Museums and the Colosseum are among the
world's most visited tourist destinations with both locations receiving millions of tourists a
year, and the city hosted the 1960 Summer Olympics. Rome is the seat of several specialized
agencies of the United Nations, such as the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the
World Food Programme (WFP) and the International Fund for Agricultural Development
(IFAD). The city also hosts the Secretariat of the Parliamentary Assembly of the Union for
the Mediterranean[17] (UfM) as well as the headquarters of many international business
companies such as Eni, Enel, TIM, Leonardo S.p.A., and national and international banks
such as Unicredit and BNL. Its business district, called EUR, is the base of many companies
involved in the oil industry, the pharmaceutical industry, and financial services. Rome is also
an important fashion and design centre thanks to renowned international brands centered in
the city. Rome's Cinecittà Studios have been the set of many Academy Award–winning
movies.