PROVINCES OF ITALY
|
By Dion Protani
|
Latest update: 20 October 2023
|
|
Italy's cities, counties, towns and villages are divided up into various categories, with the hierarchy typically as follows: Region, Province, Comune, Frazione.
The largest areas are the twenty regions and then most of those regions are divided up into a series of provinces. The region with the largest amount of provinces is Lombardy which has twelve, while the smallest number can be found in Trentino Alto Adige/South Tyrol, Umbria, Molise and Basilicata, each of which have just two. |
Related links
There are a number of anomalies to the system; the region of Friuli Venezia Giulia is no longer divided into provinces, but has a new system of 18 districts known as UTI, such as UTI Giuliana which now includes the regional capital of Trieste. The region of Valle d'Aosta doesn't have any provinces, while the two provinces of Trentino Alto Adige/South Tyrol are both classed as autonomous.
Typically, the provinces are named after the major city in a particular area such as Perugia Province or Vicenza Province, to give two examples. However, this isn't always the case, with provinces such as Verbano Cusio Ossola taking its name from three different areas in Piedmont, Barletta Andria Trani which represents three cities in Puglia or Lombardy's Monza and Brianza whose name is made up of both a city and a geographical area. Sardinia currently has five provinces, a reduced number after the two former provinces of Carbonia-Iglesias and Medio Campidano were subsumed into the new South Sardinia Province in 2016.
The provinces that contain Italy's largest cities such as Rome and Milan, have now been recategorised as "metropolitan cities". In most regions, where there is a metropolitan city province, that province is the home of the regional capital such as in the case of the Metropolitan City of Venice or the Metropolitan City of Bari. However, in the case of Calabria, we have Catanzaro Province which is home to the regional capital of Catanzaro, while the Metropolitan City of Reggio Calabria is home to the more populous city of Reggio Calabria that nevertheless, is not the regional capital. In Sicily there are three metropolitan city provinces including the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the capital of Sicily, and the metropolitan city provinces of Catania and Messina.
I've listed out all of the Provinces of Italy below, divided up by region with links to each one. The first province under each region is the home of that region's capital with the others following suit in alphabetical order.
There are currently 102 official provinces in Italy, a figure that doesn't include the four former provinces of Friuli Venezia Giulia that is now divided into 18 UTIs, or the region of Valle d'Aosta which doesn't have any provinces.
After the regions and then provinces, the next level down is the commune (comune singular or comuni plural in Italian), which are usually smaller towns such as Volterra in Tuscany or Tropea in Calabria for example. Of this category of town there are currently around 8,000 in total. The smallest category called frazione (singular - frazioni plural), relates to smaller towns or villages on the outskirts of the larger towns. As each comune has numerous frazioni, the total number of frazioni is way in excess of the 8,000 comuni.
Typically, the provinces are named after the major city in a particular area such as Perugia Province or Vicenza Province, to give two examples. However, this isn't always the case, with provinces such as Verbano Cusio Ossola taking its name from three different areas in Piedmont, Barletta Andria Trani which represents three cities in Puglia or Lombardy's Monza and Brianza whose name is made up of both a city and a geographical area. Sardinia currently has five provinces, a reduced number after the two former provinces of Carbonia-Iglesias and Medio Campidano were subsumed into the new South Sardinia Province in 2016.
The provinces that contain Italy's largest cities such as Rome and Milan, have now been recategorised as "metropolitan cities". In most regions, where there is a metropolitan city province, that province is the home of the regional capital such as in the case of the Metropolitan City of Venice or the Metropolitan City of Bari. However, in the case of Calabria, we have Catanzaro Province which is home to the regional capital of Catanzaro, while the Metropolitan City of Reggio Calabria is home to the more populous city of Reggio Calabria that nevertheless, is not the regional capital. In Sicily there are three metropolitan city provinces including the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the capital of Sicily, and the metropolitan city provinces of Catania and Messina.
I've listed out all of the Provinces of Italy below, divided up by region with links to each one. The first province under each region is the home of that region's capital with the others following suit in alphabetical order.
There are currently 102 official provinces in Italy, a figure that doesn't include the four former provinces of Friuli Venezia Giulia that is now divided into 18 UTIs, or the region of Valle d'Aosta which doesn't have any provinces.
After the regions and then provinces, the next level down is the commune (comune singular or comuni plural in Italian), which are usually smaller towns such as Volterra in Tuscany or Tropea in Calabria for example. Of this category of town there are currently around 8,000 in total. The smallest category called frazione (singular - frazioni plural), relates to smaller towns or villages on the outskirts of the larger towns. As each comune has numerous frazioni, the total number of frazioni is way in excess of the 8,000 comuni.
Northern Italy
Provinces of Lombardy
Mandello del Lario, Lecco Province, Lombardy
|
There are twelve provinces in Lombardy:
|
Province
|
Code
|
Population
|
Size
|
Comunes
|
|
MI
BG BS CO CR LC LO MN MB PV SO VA |
3,249,821
1,099,621 1,247,583 594,671 351,698 332,593 225,885 403,585 867,421 534,951 179,234 879,929 |
1,575 km²
2,722 km² 4,785 km² 1,279 km² 1,770 km² 805 km² 782 km² 2,341 km² 405 km² 2,969 km² 3,195 km² 1,198 km² |
134
244 205 160 113 85 60 70 55 186 78 138 |
Provinces of Emilia Romagna
Fiumalbo, Modena Province, Emilia Romagna
|
There are nine provinces in Emilia Romagna:
|
Province
|
Code
|
Population
|
Size
|
Comunes
|
|
BO
FE FC MO PR PC RA RE RN |
1,019,539
341,967 393,556 704,672 453,604 284,075 386,309 526,349 335,478 |
3,702 km²
2,635 km² 2,378 km² 2,688 km² 3,447 km² 2,585 km² 1,859 km² 2,291 km² 864 km² |
56
21 30 48 47 48 18 42 25 |
Provinces of Piedmont
Mondovì, Cuneo Province, Piedmont
|
There are eight provinces in Piedmont:
|
Province
|
Code
|
Population
|
Size
|
Comunes
|
|
TO
AL AT BI CN NO VB VC |
2,308,409
411,922 209,648 171,838 582,353 362,199 155,065 167,189 |
6,821 km²
3,558 km² 1,510 km² 913 km² 6,902 km² 1,340 km² 2,260 km² 2,081 km² |
315
187 118 74 247 88 74 82 |
Provinces of Veneto
Pellestrina Island, Metropolitan City of Venice, Veneto
|
There are seven provinces in Veneto:
|
Province
|
Code
|
Population
|
Size
|
Comunes
|
|
VE
BL PD RO TV VI VR |
842,942
199,599 929,520 229,652 878,070 922,291 850,379 |
2,467 km²
3,610 km² 2,144 km² 1,819 km² 2,477 km² 3,109 km² 2,722 km² |
44
61 104 50 95 98 114 |
Provinces of Liguria
Camogli, Metropolitan City of Genoa, Liguria
|
There are four provinces in Liguria:
|
Province
|
Code
|
Population
|
Size
|
Comunes
|
|
GE
IM SP SV |
816,916
208,505 215,538 268,766 |
1,838 km²
1,155 km² 881 km² 1,546 km² |
67
66 32 69 |
Territories of Friuli Venezia Giulia
Castello di Miramare, UTI Giuliana, Friuli Venezia Giulia
|
Friuli Venezia Giulia is no longer split into provinces. As of 2017, the region was divided up into a series of 18 UTI (Unioni Territoriali Intercomunali - Inter-communal Territorial Unions) zones, with the regional capital of Trieste now coming under the UTI Giuliana.
There are eighteen territories in Friuli Venezia Giulia:
Provinces of Trentino Alto Adige South Tyrol
Bressanone, South Tyrol Province
|
There are two autonomous provinces in Trentino Alto Adige/South Tyrol:
|
Province
|
Code
|
Population
|
Size
|
Comunes
|
|
TN
BZ |
544,745
533,715 |
6,212 km²
7,398 km² |
175
116 |
Valle d'Aosta
Morgex, Valle d'Aosta
|
The region of Valle d'Aosta is not split up into provinces, just a series of 74 communes (comuni in Italian), which are essentially smaller towns. The one city in the region is Aosta, which is also the regional capital.
Central Italy
Provinces of Tuscany
Pietrasanta, Lucca Province, Tuscany
|
There are ten provinces in Tuscany:
|
Province
|
Code
|
Population
|
Size
|
Comunes
|
|
FI
AR GR LI LU MS PI PT PO SI |
986,001
336,870 218,538 329,590 380,676 189,841 419,037 290,819 256,047 263,526 |
3,514 km²
3,233 km² 4,503 km² 1,218 km² 1,773 km² 1,154 km² 2,448 km² 964 km² 365 km² 3,821 km² |
44
36 28 19 33 17 37 20 7 35 |
Provinces of Lazio
Gaeta, Latina Province, Lazio
|
There are five provinces in Lazio:
|
Province
|
Code
|
Population
|
Size
|
Comunes
|
|
RM
FR LT RI VT |
4,227,588
473,467 561,139 151,668 306,934 |
5,352 km²
3,247 km² 2,256 km² 2,751 km² 3,615 km² |
121
91 33 73 60 |
Provinces of Marche
Loreto, Ancona Province, Marche
|
There are five provinces in Marche
|
Province
|
Code
|
Population
|
Size
|
Comunes
|
|
AN
AP FM MC PU |
465,023
204,575 170,248 307,421 354,139 |
1,940 km²
1,228 km² 784 km² 2,779 km² 2,567 km² |
49
33 40 57 52 |
Provinces of Abruzzo
Giulianova, Teramo Province, Abruzzo
|
There are four provinces in Abruzzo:
|
Province
|
Code
|
Population
|
Size
|
Comunes
|
|
AQ
CH PE TE |
292,356
376,397 314,689 301,814 |
5,048 km²
2,599 km² 1,230 km² 1,948 km² |
108
104 46 47 |
Provinces of Umbria
Spoleto, Perugia Province, Umbria
|
There are two provinces in Umbria:
|
Province
|
Code
|
Population
|
Size
|
Comunes
|
|
PG
TR |
643,311
221,702 |
6,334 km²
2,127 km² |
59
33 |
Provinces of Molise
Venafro, Isernia Province, Molise
|
There are two provinces in Molise:
|
Province
|
Code
|
Population
|
Size
|
Comunes
|
|
CB
IS |
214,629
81,918 |
2,925 km²
1,535 km² |
84
52 |
Southern Italy
Provinces of Puglia
Santa Maria al Bagno, Lecce Province, Puglia
|
There are six provinces in Puglia:
|
Province
|
Code
|
Population
|
Size
|
Comunes
|
|
BA
BT BR FG LE TA |
1,222,818
382,685 382,454 601,419 777,507 560,048 |
3,825 km²
1,543 km² 1,839 km² 7,007 km² 2,799 km² 2,467 km² |
41
10 20 61 97 29 |
Provinces of Campania
Herculaneum, Metropolitan City of Naples, Campania
|
There are five provinces in Campania:
|
Province
|
Code
|
Population
|
Size
|
Comunes
|
|
NA
AV BN CE SA |
3,017,658
405,963 269,233 911,606 1,075,299 |
1,171 km²
2,806 km² 2,080 km² 2,651 km² 4,923 km² |
92
118 78 104 158 |
Provinces of Calabria
Cirella, Cosenza Province, Calabria
|
There are five provinces in Calabria:
|
Province
|
Code
|
Population
|
Size
|
Comunes
|
|
CZ
CS KR RC VV |
346,514
684,786 166,617 526,586 153,225 |
2,391 km²
6,710 km² 1,717 km² 3,183 km² 1,139 km² |
80
150 27 97 50 |
Provinces of Basilicata
Castelmezzano, Potenza Province, Basilicata
|
There are two provinces in Basilicata:
|
Province
|
Code
|
Population
|
Size
|
Comunes
|
|
PZ
MT |
354,122
193,457 |
6,594 km²
3,447 km² |
100
31 |
Italian Island Regions
Provinces of Sicily
Cefalù, Metropolitan City of Palermo, Sicily
|
There are nine provinces in Sicily:
|
Province
|
Code
|
Population
|
Size
|
Comunes
|
|
PA
AG CL EN CT ME RG SR TP |
1,214,291
419,847 252,803 158,183 1,066,765 609,223 314,950 386,451 418,363 |
5,009 km²
3,042 km² 2,128 km² 2,574 km² 3,573 km² 3,266 km² 1,624 km² 2,124 km² 2,460 km² |
82
43 22 20 58 108 12 21 25 |
Provinces of Sardinia
Asinara Island, Sassari Province, Sardinia
|
There are five provinces in Sardinia:
|
Province
|
Code
|
Population
|
Size
|
Comunes
|
|
CA
NU OR SS SU |
420,117
202,951 153,226 481,052 340,879 |
1,248 km²
5,638 km² 2,990 km² 7,692 km² 6,530 km² |
17
74 87 92 107 |
Top Ten Italian Provinces by Population
|
Position
1.
2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. |
Province
Metropolitan City of Rome
Metropolitan City of Milan Metropolitan City of Naples Metropolitan City of Turin Brescia Province Metropolitan City of Bari Metropolitan City of Palermo Bergamo Province Metropolitan City of Bologna Salerno Province |
Population
4,227,588
3,249,821 3,017,658 2,308,409 1,247,583 1,222,818 1,214,291 1,099,621 1,019,539 1,075,299 |
Region
Lazio
Lombardy Campania Piedmont Lombardy Puglia Sicily Lombardy Emilia Romagna Campania |
Top Ten Italian Provinces by Size
|
Position
1.
2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. |
Province
Sassari Province
Bolzano Province Foggia Province Cuneo Province Metropolitan City of Turin Cosenza Province Potenza Province South Sardinia Perugia Province Trento Province |
Size
7,692 km²
7,398 km² 7,007 km² 6,902 km² 6,821 km² 6,710 km² 6,594 km² 6,530 km² 6,334 km² 6,212 km² |
Region
Sardinia
Trentino Alto Adige/South Tyrol Puglia Piedmont Piedmont Calabria Basilicata Sardinia Umbria Trentino Alto Adige/South Tyrol |
Top Ten Italian Provinces by Number of Comunes
|
Position
1.
2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. |
Province
Metropolitan City of Turin
Cuneo Province Bergamo Province Brescia Province Alessandria Province Pavia Province Trento Province Como Province Salerno Province Cosenza Province |
Comunes
315
247 244 205 187 186 175 160 158 150 |
Region
Piedmont
Piedmont Lombardy Lombardy Piedmont Lombardy Trentino Alto Adige/South Tyrol Lombardy Campania Calabria |
