Latina () is the capital of the

province of Latina The province of Latina () is a province in the Lazio region of Italy. Its provincial capital is the city of Latina. It is bordered by the provinces of Frosinone to the northeast and by the Metropolitan City of Rome Capital to the northwest. ...

, in the

Lazio Lazio ( , ; ) or Latium ( , ; from Latium, the original Latin name, ) is one of the 20 Regions of Italy, administrative regions of Italy. Situated in the Central Italy, central peninsular section of the country, it has 5,714,882 inhabitants an ...

region, in

Central Italy Central Italy ( or ) is one of the five official statistical regions of Italy used by the National Institute of Statistics (ISTAT), a first-level NUTS region with code ITI, and a European Parliament constituency. It has 11,704,312 inhabita ...

. As of 2024, the city has 127,486 inhabitants and is the second-largest city of the region, after the national capital

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

.It is one of the youngest cities in Italy, being founded as Littoria in 1932 under the fascist administration, when the area surrounding it which had been a swamp since antiquity was drained.

History

Although the area was first settled by the

Latins The term Latins has been used throughout history to refer to various peoples, ethnicities and religious groups using Latin or the Latin-derived Romance languages, as part of the legacy of the Roman Empire. In the Ancient World, it referred to th ...

, the modern city was founded by

Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who, upon assuming office as Prime Minister of Italy, Prime Minister, became the dictator of Fascist Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 un ...

on 30 June 1932 as Littoria, named for the fascio littorio. The city was inaugurated on 18 December of the same year. Littoria was populated with settlers coming mainly from

Friuli Friuli (; ; or ; ; ) is a historical region of northeast Italy. The region is marked by its separate regional and ethnic identity predominantly tied to the Friulians, who speak the Friulian language. It comprises the major part of the autono ...

and

Veneto Veneto, officially the Region of Veneto, is one of the 20 regions of Italy, located in the Northeast Italy, north-east of the country. It is the fourth most populous region in Italy, with a population of 4,851,851 as of 2025. Venice is t ...

, who formed the so-called Venetian- Pontine community (today surviving only in some peripheral boroughs). The edifices and the monuments, mainly in rationalist style, were designed by famous architects and artists such as

Marcello Piacentini Marcello Piacentini (8 December 188119 May 1960) was an Italian people, Italian urban theorist and one of the main proponents of Italian Fascist architecture. Biography Early career Born in Rome, he was the son of architect Pio Piacentini. He ...

Angiolo Mazzoni Angiolo Mazzoni (21 May 1894 – 28 September 1979) was a state architect and engineer of the Italian Fascist government of the 1920s and 1930s. Mazzoni designed hundreds of public buildings, post offices and train stations during the Interwar pe ...

and Duilio Cambellotti. In 1934 it became a provincial capital and, after

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, renamed Latina in 1946. With the arrival of other people mostly from Lazio itself, the original Venetian-like dialect was increasingly substituted by a form of

Romanesco dialect Romanesco () is one of the Central Italian dialects spoken in the Metropolitan City of Rome Capital, especially in the core city. It is linguistically close to Tuscan and Standard Italian, with some notable differences from these two. Rich in v ...

. The city coat of arms is a blue shield with a stylized drawing of the City Hall Clock Tower in the middle, standing on a field of green, and flanked by two stalks of

wheat Wheat is a group of wild and crop domestication, domesticated Poaceae, grasses of the genus ''Triticum'' (). They are Agriculture, cultivated for their cereal grains, which are staple foods around the world. Well-known Taxonomy of wheat, whe ...

tied at the base with a red ribbon engraved with the motto ''LATINA OLIM PALUS'' ("Latina, once a swamp") in

Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...

. The shield is surmounted by a

mural crown A mural crown () is a Crown (headgear), crown or headpiece representing city walls, fortified tower, towers, or fortresses. In classical antiquity, it was an emblem of tutelary deities who watched over a city, and among the ancient Rome, Romans ...

Economy

The city has some

pharmaceutical Medication (also called medicament, medicine, pharmaceutical drug, medicinal product, medicinal drug or simply drug) is a drug used to diagnose, cure, treat, or prevent disease. Drug therapy ( pharmacotherapy) is an important part of the ...

chemical industry The chemical industry comprises the companies and other organizations that develop and produce industrial, specialty and other chemicals. Central to the modern world economy, the chemical industry converts raw materials ( oil, natural gas, air, ...

and a strong service sector. Latina is also an important centre for agriculture (vegetables, flowers, sugar, fruit, cheese and derivates). The former

Latina nuclear power plant Latina Nuclear Power Plant is a former nuclear power plant at Latina, Lazio, Italy. Consisting of one 153 MWe Magnox reactor, it operated from 1963 until 1987. A second reactor, the experimental CIRENE design, began construction at Latina ...

has been shut down and is currently undergoing decommissioning.

Government

Frazioni

The

frazioni A ''frazione'' (: ''frazioni'') is a type of subdivision of a ''comune'' ('municipality') in Italy, often a small village or hamlet outside the main town. Most ''frazioni'' were created during the Fascist era (1922–1943) as a way to consolidat ...

of Latina are: Latina Lido, Latina Scalo, Borgo Bainsizza, Borgo Carso, Borgo Faiti, Borgo Grappa, Borgo Isonzo, Borgo Montello, Borgo Piave, Borgo Podgora, Borgo Sabotino, Borgo Santa Maria,

Borgo San Michele Borgo San Michele is one of the frazioni of Latina, Lazio Latina () is the capital of the province of Latina, in the Lazio region, in Central Italy. As of 2024, the city has 127,486 inhabitants and is the second-largest city of the region, afte ...

, Chiesuola, and Tor Tre Ponti.

Geography

Latina is located in the Province of Latina, part of the southern section of the region of

. The city is about south of Rome The municipality borders on

Aprilia Aprilia is an Italian motorcycle and Scooter (motorcycle), scooter manufacturer in Noale, Italy, founded by Alberto Beggio. History Early days Aprilia, named after the Pre-war automobile, pre-war Lancia Aprilia, was founded after the Seco ...

Cisterna di Latina Cisterna di Latina is a town and ''comune'' in the province of Latina in Lazio, of central Italy. It was the scene of the Battle of Cisterna in January 1944. The Garden of Ninfa is located in the commune's territory. The town, then known as ''T ...

Nettuno Nettuno is a town and ''comune'' of the Metropolitan City of Rome in the Lazio region of central Italy, south of Rome. A resort city and agricultural center on the Tyrrhenian Sea, it has a population of approximately 50,000. Economy It has a ...

Pontinia Pontinia is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Latina in the Italian region Lazio, located about southeast of Rome and about southeast of Latina. Pontinia was established in 1935, as part of the project under Prime Minister Benito M ...

Sabaudia Sabaudia is a coastal town on the Tyrrhenian Sea, in the province of Latina, Lazio, in central Italy. Sabaudia's centre is characterised by several examples of Fascist architecture, as it was one of several towns built in the 1930s built on land ...

Sermoneta Sermoneta is a hill town and ''comune'' in the province of Latina (Lazio), central Italy. It is a walled hill town, with a 13th-century Romanesque church, the Collegiate Church of Santa Maria Assunta (sometimes erroneously called a cathedral) ...

and

Sezze Sezze (from the Latin "Setia") is a town and ''comune'' in the Province of Latina, central Italy, about south of Rome and from the Mediterranean coast. Sezze's historical center of is on a high hill commanding the Pianura Pontina, Pontine plai ...

Climate

Latina has a

Mediterranean climate A Mediterranean climate ( ), also called a dry summer climate, described by Köppen and Trewartha as ''Cs'', is a temperate climate type that occurs in the lower mid-latitudes (normally 30 to 44 north and south latitude). Such climates typic ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

''Csa'') like most of southern Italy.

In popular culture

The Italian film ''

My Brother Is an Only Child ''My Brother Is an Only Child'' () is a 2007 Italian drama film directed by Daniele Luchetti. It is based on an Antonio Pennacchi novel. The title comes from a song by Rino Gaetano from 1976. Plot Accio (Elio Germano) and Manrico (Riccardo Scam ...

'' is set in Latina. The

Amazon Prime Video Amazon Prime Video, known simply as Prime Video, is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming television service owned by Amazon. The service primarily distributes films and television series produced or co-produced by ...

original series ''

Prisma Prisma or PRISMA may refer to: Media * ''Prisma'', 2019 album by Beret * ''Prisma'', 2013 album by Motel * ''Prisma'' (magazine), 1930s Catalan magazine * Prisma (typeface), a typeface designed by Rudolf Koch * Prisma (app), a photo editing soft ...

'' follows the coming-of-age of a group of teenagers from Latina.

People

Manuela Arcuri Manuela Arcuri (born 8 January 1977) is an Italian actress and model. She's best known for starring in Canale 5 period drama series ''Il peccato e la vergogna'' (2008–2014). Biography Arcuri was born in Anagni, near Frosinone, to a father f ...

, actress *

Calcutta Kolkata, also known as Calcutta (List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern ba ...

, stage name of Edoardo d'Erme, musician and composer *

Fabrizio del Monte Fabrizio del Monte (born 5 December 1980 in Latina, Lazio) is an Italian racing driver. He drove for three seasons in European Formula 3000 before driving three Champ Car events in 2005, often on the strength of sponsorship. He said he had secu ...

, racing driver *

Tiziano Ferro Tiziano Ferro (; born 21 February 1980) is an Italian pop singer and songwriter. He broke through in 2001 with his international hit single " Perdono" and has remained commercially successful since then, in several countries. Ferro has released ...

, pop singer * Antonio Pennacchi, writer *

Mattia Perin Mattia Perin (; born 10 November 1992) is an Italian professional Association football, footballer who plays as a Goalkeeper (association football), goalkeeper for club Juventus FC, Juventus. Perin began his career with Genoa in 2010, and, asi ...

, football goalkeeper *

Karin Proia Karin Proia (born 14 March 1974) is an Italian actress who began acting in 1994. She has also directed. Movies she has appeared in include the Italian movies '' The Crusaders'', the comedy ''Five Stormy Days'' and ''Wasteland''. She has also a ...

, actress * Ilaria Spada, actress *

Elena Santarelli Elena Santarelli (born 18 August 1981) is an Italian model, television personality and actress. Life and career Born in Latina, the niece of footballer Ubaldo Righetti, Santarelli started her career as a catwalk model, working among others f ...

, actress, model and television presenter

International relations

Twin towns / Sister cities

Latina is twinned with: *

Palos de la Frontera Palos de la Frontera () is a town and Municipalities of Spain, municipality located in the southwestern Spain, Spanish province of Huelva (province), Huelva, in the autonomous community of Andalusia. It is situated some from the provincial capi ...

Huelva Huelva ( , , ) is a municipality of Spain and the capital of the Huelva (province), province of Huelva, in the Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia. Located in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula, it sits betwee ...

, Andalusia, Spain *

Farroupilha Farroupilha is a city in Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil, in the Serra Gaúcha between the cities of Bento Gonçalves, Rio Grande do Sul, Bento Gonçalves and Caxias do Sul. The city's total area is 359.3 km2. Farroupilha has 73,061 residents ...

, Rio Grande do Sul, Brazil *

Birkenhead Birkenhead () is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England. The town is on the Wirral Peninsula, along the west bank of the River Mersey, opposite Liverpool. It lies within the Historic counties of England, historic co ...

, Wirral, Merseyside, England

Gallery

File:Sanmarcolatina.jpg, St. Mark's Cathedral File:Fontana in Piazza Prefettura.jpg, The fountain in Piazza Libertà File:Borgo Sabotino church 3.jpg, The church of Borgo Sabotino File:Torre Pontina.jpg,

Torre Pontina Torre Pontina is a mixed-use skyscraper in Latina, the tallest building in the city and one of the highest residential towers in Italy. The foundation of the building was laid in 2007. The building is near the Latinafiori Shopping Center. Se ...

, the tallest building in the city and the 11th tallest in Italy

References

External links

Official website
* {{Authority control Cities and towns in Lazio Planned communities in Italy Italian fascist architecture Populated places established in 1932