Lombardy is an administrative region of Italy that covers 23,844 km2 (9,206 sq mi); it is located in northern Italy and has a population of about 10 million people, constituting more than one-sixth of Italy's population. It is the third most populous region in the European Union (EU). Over a fifth of Italy's gross domestic product (GDP) is produced in the region.
The Grisons or Graubünden, more formally the Canton of the Grisons or the Canton of Graubünden, is one of the twenty-six cantons of Switzerland. It has eleven districts, and its capital is Chur. The German name of the canton, Graubünden, translates as the "Grey Leagues", referring to the canton's origin in three local alliances, the Three Leagues. The other native names also refer to the Grey League: Grischùn in Sutsilvan, Grischun in the other forms of Romansh, and Grigioni in Italian. Rhaetia is the Latin name for the area. The Alpine ibex is the canton's heraldic symbol.
Sondrio is an Italian city and comune and Provincial Capital located in the heart of the Valtellina. As of 2012, Sondrio counts approximately 21,876 inhabitants (2015) and it is the administrative centre for the province of Sondrio. In 2007, Sondrio was given the Alpine Town of the Year award.
The Lombard language belongs to the Gallo-Italic family and is a cluster of homogeneous dialects that are spoken by millions of speakers in Northern Italy and southern Switzerland, including most of Lombardy and some areas of the neighbouring regions, notably the far eastern side of Piedmont and the extreme western side of Trentino, and in Switzerland in the cantons of Ticino and Graubünden. The language is also spoken in Santa Catarina in Brazil by Lombard immigrants from the Province of Bergamo, in Italy.
The Duchy of Milan was a state in Northern Italy, created in 1395 by Gian Galeazzo Visconti, then the lord of Milan, and a member of the important Visconti family, which had been ruling the city since 1277.
The province of Piacenza is a province in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. Its provincial capital is the city Piacenza. As of 2016, it has a total population of 286,572 inhabitants over an area of 2,585.86 square kilometres (998.41 sq mi), giving it a population density of 111.38 inhabitants per square kilometre. The city Piacenza has a population of 102,269, as of 2015. The provincial president is Patrizia Barbieri and it contains 48 comuni. The province dates back to its founding by the Romans in 218 BCE.
The province of Como is a province in the Lombardy region of Italy. It borders the Swiss cantons of Ticino and Grigioni to the north, the Italian provinces of Sondrio and Lecco to the East, the province of Monza and Brianza to the south and the province of Varese to the West. The city of Como is its capital—other large towns, with more than 10,000 inhabitants, include Cantù, Erba, Mariano Comense and Olgiate Comasco. Campione d'Italia also belongs to the province and is enclaved in the Swiss canton of Ticino.
Valtellina or the Valtelline ; Lombard: Valtelina or Valtulina; German: Veltlin; Italian: Valtellina) is a valley in the Lombardy region of northern Italy, bordering Switzerland. Today it is known for its ski center, hot spring spas, bresaola, cheeses and wines. In past centuries it was a key Alpine pass between northern Italy and Germany. The control of the Valtellina was much sought after, particularly during the Thirty Years' War as it was an important part of the Spanish Road.
The province of Varese is a province in the Lombardy region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Varese, but its largest city is Busto Arsizio. The headquarters of AgustaWestland, the company merged into Leonardo since 2016 and the world's largest producer of helicopters, is based in Samarate, a comune (municipality) of the province. As of 2015, it has a population of 889,410 inhabitants over an area of 1,198.11 square kilometres (462.59 sq mi). The province contains 139 comuni.
The province of Savona is a province in the Liguria region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Savona, which has a population of 61,219 inhabitants. The province has a total population of 279,754.
The province of Pavia is a province in the Lombardy region of Italy. Its capital is Pavia. As of 2015, the province has a population of 548,722 inhabitants and an area of 2,968.64 square kilometres (1,146.20 sq mi); the town of Pavia has a population of 72,205.
The Three Leagues, sometimes referred to as Raetia, was the 1471 alliance between the League of God's House, the League of the Ten Jurisdictions, and the Grey League. Its members were all associates of the Old Swiss Confederacy, and as such enjoyed positive relations with the Confederation, which eventually led to the formation of the Swiss canton of Grisons.
Raetia was the name of a canton of the Helvetic Republic from 1798 to 1803, corresponding to modern Graubünden and composed of the Free State of the Three Leagues. Until 1799, the canton was administered by the central government of the Helvetic Republic.
Tirano is a town and comune (municipality) in Valtellina, located in the province of Sondrio, Lombardy. It has 9,053 inhabitants (2016) and is adjacent to the Switzerland-Italy border. The river Adda flows through the town.
Chiavenna or Claven; archaic German: Cläven or Kleven) is a comune (municipality) in the Province of Sondrio in the northern Italian region of Lombardy. It is the centre of the Alpine Valchiavenna region. The historic town is a member of the Cittaslow movement.
Lombard cuisine is the style of cooking in the Northern Italian region of Lombardy. The historical events of its provinces and of the diversity of its territories resulted in a varied culinary tradition. First courses in Lombard cuisine range from risottos to soups and stuffed pasta, and a large choice of second course meat or fish dishes, due to the many lakes and rivers of Lombardy.
The Frisa Valtellinese is an indigenous breed of domestic goat from the province of Sondrio, in Lombardy in northern Italy. It is raised throughout the Valtellina, from which its principal name derives, in the Val Malenco and the upper Val Masino in the Rhaetian Alps, and in the Valchiavenna. It may also be called the Frontalasca, for the village of Frontale, a frazione of the comune of Sondalo in the Val di Rezzalo, or the Rezzalasca for that valley. The name Frisa comes from its frisature, or Swiss markings.
The border between the modern states of Switzerland and Italy extends for 744 kilometres (462 mi), from the French-Swiss-Italian tripoint at Mont Dolent in the west to the Austrian-Swiss-Italian tripoint near Piz Lad in the east. Much of the border runs across the High Alps, rising above 4,600 metres (15,100 ft) as it passes east of Dufourspitze, but it also descends to the lowest point in Switzerland as it passes Lago Maggiore at below 200 metres (660 ft).
The flag of Lombardy is one of the official symbols of the region of Lombardy, Italy. The current flag was officially adopted on 4 February 2019, although it has been used de facto since 12 June 1975.
Italy
