Liguria is a coastal region of north-western Italy, the third smallest of the Italian regions. It borders France to the west, Piedmont to the north, and Emilia-Romagna and Tuscany to the east. It lies on the Ligurian Sea, a part of the Tyrrhenian Sea (northern Mediterranean Sea).

The coastal strip forms the Italian Riviera; further inland are the Ligurian Alps, on the west, and the Ligurian Apennines on the east. The capital is Genoa.

Ancient Ligurii settled the Mediterranean coast from Rhone to Arno, but later Celtic migrations, as well as colonization by Phoenicians, Greeks, and Carthaginians displaced these by the 4th century BC. The region was officially subdued by the Romans during the 2nd century BC. During the Middle Ages, Genoa gradually gained control of most of Liguria, which shared most of the city's history, and, with a few breaks in the 15th and early 16th century when the area was under either Milanese or French control, the Republic of Genoa ruled the area until 1796, when the French Revolutionary general Napoleon Bonaparte reorganized the area into the Ligurian Republic. The Ligurian Republic proved short-lived, however, and was annexed directly by France in 1805. Following the end of the Napoleonic Wars in 1815, the area was annexed by the Kingdom of Sardinia.

The Ligurian coast enjoys a mild maritime climate, compared to the semi-continental one of the Po valley, few kilometers northward; in January, Genoa records an average temperature of about 8-10°C, with no frost, which can occur only in the mountainous interior. Summer averages about 24-25°C. Rainfall can be very abundant at times; mountains very close to the coast create an orographic effect, so Genoa can see up to 2000 mm of rain in a year; other areas instead show the normal values of the Mediterranean area (500-800 mm).

It is noticeable that, despite the high population density, woods cover half of the total area.

Liguria is a very old name, dating back to pre-Roman times.

See also Seborga.

Principal towns:

• Genoa
• La Spezia
• Imperia
• Savona
• San Remo
• Ventimiglia (French Vintimille) (final destination of many trains from France)
• Portofino
• Cinque Terre

External Links

Official website of the Province of La Spezia, In Italian