Campania

I

Introduction

Campania, administrative region in southern Italy, bordered on the north-west by Latium, on the north by Molise, on the north-east by Apulia, on the east by Basilicata, and on the south and west by the Tyrrhenian Sea. The region has a total land area of 13,595 sq km (5,249 sq mi) and comprises the provinces of Avellino, Benevento, Caserta, Naples, and Salerno.

II

Physical Geography

The eastern section of Campania is crossed by the Apennines; Mount Cervati (1,898 m/6,227 ft), the highest peak located wholly within the Campania region, is part of the Apennine chain. In the north of the region, the Matese Mountains contain Monte Miletto, which straddles the border with Molise and rises to an altitude of 2,050 m (6,726 ft) above sea level. Mount Vesuvius (1,277 m/4,190 ft), on the Bay of Naples, is an active volcano and last erupted in 1944. To the west is a large volcanic plain known as the Phlegræan Fields, which contains Lake Avernus, the flooded crater of an extinct volcano, and the Solfatara, a shallow crater that regularly emits jets of sulphurous vapours and hot mud. The islands of Capri and Ischia in the Bay of Naples form part of the region. In the south of the region is Italy’s second-largest national park—the Cilento and Vallo di Diano National Park, created in 1991; the park extends across an area of 1,810 sq km (699 sq mi) and supports a wide variety of wildlife, including wild boars, wolves, badgers, martens, sparrowhawks, and golden eagles.

III

Population

Campania is Italy’s second most populous region, with 5,790,187 inhabitants (2007 estimate). The average population density is 426 people per sq km (1,103 per sq mi) and the coastal region is especially densely populated. Naples (population, 2007 estimate, 975,139) is the regional capital and largest city; other cities include Salerno (2007 estimate, 132,790); Caserta (2007 estimate, 79,228); Benevento (2007 estimate, 62,958); and Avellino (2007 estimate, 56,908).

Campania has long been associated with Greek and Roman mythology and has a wealth of important historical monuments. In the ancient coastal city of Cumae are a number of caverns, one of which, according to Roman mythology, was the seat of the Cumaean Sibyl, Deiphobe. Ancient Greek and Roman writers believed that Lake Avernus was the entrance to Hades. Several locations in the region have been designated by UNESCO as World Heritage Sites. The historic centre of Naples was granted World Heritage status in 1995; the city’s well-known landmarks include the 12th-century Castel dell'Ovo and the 13th-century Castel Nuovo, the 14th-century Church of Santa Chiara, and the 17th-century former royal palace, the Palazzo Reale. Three cities at the base of Mount Vesuvius, which were destroyed following the volcano’s dramatic eruption of ad 79—Pompeii, Herculaneum, and Torre Annunziata—were collectively inscribed on the World Heritage List in 1997. The coastal region around the resort town of Amalfi, on the Gulf of Salerno, was added in the same year. The ancient city of Paestum, the archaeological site of Velia, and the nearby Cilento and Vallo di Diano National Park became a joint World Heritage Site in 1998.

The University of Naples (1224) is the region’s leading institution of higher education. The University of Salerno (1968) developed from the ancient Schola Medica Salernitana, an eminent European medical school during the Middle Ages. While Italian is the official language of Campania, the regional language Napoletano-Calabrese (including the Neapolitan dialect) is widely spoken.

IV

Economy

The coastal provinces of Caserta, Napoli, and Salerno are noted for the production of citrus fruit and garden vegetables. Maize, oats, tobacco, olives, and grapes also are grown there. Other leading regional industries are livestock raising; fishing; forestry; tanning; canning; oil refining; shipbuilding; and the manufacture of glass, ceramics, chemicals, machinery, textiles, and iron and steel. The tourist industry is also important. Sorrento and Positano are popular resorts and the hot springs and volcanic landscape at Pozzuoli attract thousands of visitors each year.