17 March 1861 (Kingdom of Italy proclaimed; Italy was not finally unified until 1870)
6 June 1523 (Gustav VASA elected king)
Religions
Roman Catholic 90% (approximately; about one-third practicing), other 10% (includes mature Protestant and Jewish communities and a growing Muslim immigrant community)
Lutheran 87%, other (includes Roman Catholic, Orthodox, Baptist, Muslim, Jewish, and Buddhist) 13%
Languages
Italian (official), German (parts of Trentino-Alto Adige region are predominantly German speaking), French (small French-speaking minority in Valle d'Aosta region), Slovene (Slovene-speaking minority in the Trieste-Gorizia area)
Swedish, small Sami- and Finnish-speaking minorities
Exports
engineering products, textiles and clothing, production machinery, motor vehicles, transport equipment, chemicals; food, beverages and tobacco; minerals, and nonferrous metals
machinery 35%, motor vehicles, paper products, pulp and wood, iron and steel products, chemicals
External Debt
$2,460,000,000,000 $
$1,016,000,000,000 US
Exchange Rate
euros (EUR) per US dollar - 0.6689 (2008 est.), 0.7345 (2007), 0.7964 (2006), 0.8041 (2005), 0.8054 (2004)
Swedish kronor (SEK) per US dollar - 6.4074 (2008 est.), 6.7629 (2007), 7.3731 (2006), 7.4731 (2005), 7.3489 (2004)
Military Budget as percentage of GDP
1.800%
1.500%
Beijing Olympics Medal Count
28
5
Location
Southern Europe, a peninsula extending into the central Mediterranean Sea, northeast of Tunisia
Northern Europe, bordering the Baltic Sea, Gulf of Bothnia, Kattegat, and Skagerrak, between Finland and Norway
Area
301,340 km sq
450,295 km sq
Coastline
7,600 km
3,218 km
Climate
predominantly Mediterranean; Alpine in far north; hot, dry in south
temperate in south with cold, cloudy winters and cool, partly cloudy summers; subarctic in north
