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The Italian Republic (or) Italy is a country in southern Europe with a population of approximately 58,000,000 people. Included in the Republic are the Italian peninsula, the Po River valley, and two islands in the Mediterranean Sea (Sicily and Sardinia). It shares the northern alpine boundary with France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia. The countries of San Marino and the Vatican City are within the borders, but are not part of the Republic. Italy is known for its beauty and landscapes; it is also home to 40 UNESCO World Heritage sites, the most in the world. Italy is a highly developed country, and was a founding member of the European Union. Approximately 90 percent of the Italian population considers itself to be Roman Catholic; there are pilgrimages and famous churches, cathedrals, and sites in Italy. Italy is also said to have about a 40 percent weekly church attendance rate. Interestingly, the second largest religious group is Johovah's Witnesses, with approximately 400,000 members. The official language of Italy is Standard Italian, which is a direct descendant of Latin (75 percent of Italian words are of Latin origin).
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