San Marino{{otheruses}} The '''Most Serene Republic of San Marino''' or '''San Marino''' (Italian language|Italian: ''Serenissima Repubblica di San Marino'' or ''San Marino'') is one of the smallest nations in the world. Located in southern Europe, it is landlocked by Italy and has a population of less than 29,000 including 5,000 Sammarineses living in foreign countries and 1,000 foreigners living in San Marino. {| border=1 align=right cellpadding=4 cellspacing=0 width=300 style="margin: 0 0 1em 1em; background: #f9f9f9; border: 1px #aaaaaa solid; border-collapse: collapse; font-size: 95%;" |+ <big>'''Serenissima Repubblica di San Marino'''</big> | align="center" colspan="2"| {| border=0 cellpadding=2 cellspacing=0 style="background:#f9f9f9; text-align:center;" | width="140px"| Image:San marino flag large.png|125px|Flag of San Marino || align=center width=130px| Image:Smarino.jpg|San Marino: Coat of Arms |- | width="130px"| (Flag of San Marino|In Detail) |} |- | align=center colspan=2 | ''National motto: Libertas (English language|English: Liberty)'' |- | align=center colspan=2 style="background:#f9f9f9;" | image:LocationSanMarino.png|Location of San Marino |- |'''Official language''' || Italian language|Italian |- |'''Capital''' || City of San Marino, San Marino|San Marino |- |'''Largest City''' || City of San Marino, San Marino|San Marino |- |'''List of Captains Regent of San Marino|Captains Regent''': || Fausta Morganti and Cesare Gasperoni |- |'''Area'''  - Total  - % water |List of countries by area|Ranked 231st 1 E7 m2|61 km² Negligible |- |'''Population'''  - Total (2000)  - Population density|Density |List of countries by population|Ranked 215th 27,336 448/km² |- |'''Independence''' |3 September 301 |- |'''Currency''' || Euro (€) |- | '''Time zone'''  - in European Summer Time|summer | Central European Time|CET (Coordinated Universal Time|UTC+1) Central European Summer Time|CEST (Coordinated Universal Time|UTC+2) |- | '''National anthem''' || Inno Nazionale (no words) [http://home.planet.nl/~jschoone/sm.html Music] |- | '''Top-level domain|Internet TLD''' || .sm |- | '''List_of_country_calling_codes|Calling Code''' || +378 (+0549 from Italy) |} == History == ''Main article: History of San Marino'' San Marino claims to be the world's oldest republic still in existence, being founded in A.D. 301 by a skilled builder referred to as St. Marinus. Its written constitution was adopted on October 8, 1600. The tiny nation was recognised by Napoleon's France in 1797, and by the other European nations at the 1815 Congress of Vienna. Although a sovereign nation, it is strongly dependent on Italy, by which it has been completely surrounded since that country's unification in the 19th century. Giuseppe Garibaldi was unifying Italy in the 1860's and took refuge from his enemies in San Marino. There he got aid and money and supplies to continue his campaign for unification from San Marino citizens and leaders. In return, Garibaldi guaranteed that San Marino would always be an independent sovereign state. == Politics == ''Main article: Politics of San Marino'' The ''Consiglio Grande e Generale'', or Grand and General Council, is elected by popular vote every five years. This parliament selects two of its members to serve as Regents for periods of six months. These regents are known as the ''Capitani Reggenti'', or Ruling Captains. The ''Capitani Reggenti'' and the cabinet form the executive branch of the government. The Council also elects the ''Consiglio dei XII'' (Council of Twelve), which forms the judicial branch during the period of legislature of the Council. == Municipalities == San Marino is divided into nine municipalities, known locally as ''castelli'', that are also towns. See list of cities in San Marino. == Geography == Image:Sm-map.png|framed|Map of San Marino ''Main article: Geography of San Marino'' San Marino is an enclave in Italy, on the border between the Regions of Italy|''regioni'' of Emilia-Romagna and Marche. Its topography is dominated by the Apennines mountain range, and it has a rugged terrain. The highest point in the country, Monte Titano, is situated at 749 m above sea level. There are no bodies of water of any significant size. The climate is Mediterranean, with warm summers and mild winters. San Marino is the third-smallest country in Europe, with only Vatican City and Monaco being smaller. == Economy == ''Main article: Economy of San Marino'' Although San Marino is not an official European Union member, it is allowed to use the euro as its currency by virtue of arrangements with the council of the European Union; it is also granted the right to use its own designs on the national side of the euro coins. Before the Euro, the Sammarinese lira was coupled to and exchangeable with the Italian lira. The small number of Sammarinese euro coins, as was the case with the lire before it, are primarily of interest to coin collecting|coin collectors. The tourism|tourist sector contributes over 50% of San Marino's Gross domestic product|GDP, with more than 3.3 million tourists visiting in 1997. The key industry|industries are banking, electronics, and ceramics. The main agriculture|agricultural products are wine and cheese. San Marino's postage stamps, which are only valid within the country, are mostly sold to philately|philatelists and also form a source of income. The per capita level of output and standard of living are comparable to those of Italy, which supplies much of its food. == Demographics == ''Main article: Demographics of San Marino; see also Demographics of Italy.'' Being completely surrounded by Italy, there is no significant difference between the population of San Marino and Italy and many Italians live in San Marino. The language spoken is Italian language|Italian, and Roman Catholicism is the predominant religion. == Culture == ''Main article: Culture of San Marino'' *Music of San Marino *Sport of San Marino == Miscellaneous topics == *Communications in San Marino *Transportation in San Marino *Military of San Marino *Foreign relations of San Marino == External links == *[http://www.terraserver.com/imagery/image_gx.asp?cpx=12.464536101301183&cpy=43.98664482242744&res=62.5&provider_id=320&t=pan Satellite Image of San Marino] *[http://www.visitsanmarino.com Visit San Marino] - Official San Marino Tourism Site *[http://www.sanmarinosite.com San Marino Site] - A portal on San Marino, partly in English *[http://www.museidistato.sm/Museo_trad/index.htm Musei di Stato della Repubblica di San Marino] *[http://webcam.deili.info/en,1,40 Webcam in San Marino] ==References== * Microsoft Encarta Online Encyclopedia 2005 (2005). [http://au.encarta.msn.com/encyclopedia_761565721_2/San_Marino_(country).html San Marino (country)]. Retrieved January 31, 2005. {{Europe}} Category:European microstates Category:San Marino|* ar:سان مارينو bg:Сан Марино ca:San Marino cs:San Marino cy:San Marino da:San Marino de:San Marino el:Σαν Μαρίνο et:San Marino es:San Marino eo:San-Marino fr:Saint-Marin ga:San Mairíne gl:San Mariño - San Marino hr:San Marino id:San Marino io:San Marino it:San Marino he:סאן מרינו li:San Marino lv:Sanmarīno lt:San Marinas hu:San Marino ms:San Marino minnan:San Marino nl:San Marino ja:サンマリノ nn:San Marino no:San Marino oc:San Marino nds:San Marino pl:San Marino pt:San Marino ro:San Marino ru:Сан-Марино sa:सान मरीनो simple:San Marino sk:San Maríno sl:San Marino sq:San Marino fi:San Marino sv:San Marino tr:San Marino uk:Сан-Марино zh:圣马力诺 First page | Prev | Next | Last page |

This article on San Marino is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "San Marino".

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