Main Entry:

It·a·ly

Pronunciation:

\ˈi-tə-lē\

Variant(s):

or Italian Ita·lia \ē-ˈtäl-yä\ or Latin Ita·lia \ə-ˈtal-yə, i-\

Function:

geographical name

1 peninsula 760 miles (1223 kilometers) long S Europe projecting into the Mediterranean between Adriatic & Tyrrhenian seas 2 country comprising the peninsula of Italy, Sicily, Sardinia, & numerous other islands; a republic since 1946, formerly a kingdom ∗ Rome area 116,313 square miles (302,251 square kilometers), population 57,844,017