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This is one of the largest Italian regions (the sixth), an intermediate zone linking the north with the centre of the country, the part of continental Italy joining the Italian peninsula; as such, it is of great importance from the point of view of communications.

Stretching as far as the Adriatic sea to the east, Emilia Romagna borders with Veneto to the north-east, with Lombardy to the north and north-west, with Piedmont and Liguria to the west, with Tuscany to the south and with the Marches and the Republic of San Marino to the south-east, and there is close coincidence of administrative and physical boundaries, delineated by easily distinguishable natural features: the Po river to the north (except for the Oltrepò Mantovano, part of Lombardy), the Apennine ridge separating the Po Valley slopes from the Tuscany-Marches to the south, and the Adriatic coast to the east.

History. Emilia-Romagna is a region with a relatively simple morphology constituted of only two distinct parts: along the boundary with Liguria, Tuscany and the Marches, rise the Tusco-Emilian Apennines, at their feet a large stretch of the Po Valley, south of the river and the entire Romagnola plain. The Apennines are not particularly high here (Mount Cimone, 2,165 m., Monte Cusna, 2,121 m.) and are rarely rugged. From the watershed, a series of nearly parallel ridges thrusts outwards towards the plain, progressively decreasing in height, sharply separated from the transverse river valleys.

Beyond the extreme outlying hills lie the undulations of the stony upper plain, formed by the fusion of fluvial detritus, beyond which extends the wide fertile alluvial plain. Of the great swamps, which at one time characterized the lower Emilia and Romagna plain before systematic regulation of the waterways, remain only the Valleys of Comacchio and the stretches of water belonging to the Po Delta. Except for this river, which flows along the northern boundary of the region, all the water courses are of a torrential nature.

In autumn and spring they are in spate while the water level is at a minimum in summer. They flow from the Apennine watershed, cutting parallel down hill before reaching the plain and flowing from the right into the Po (Tidone, Trebbia, Nure, Arda, Taro, Parma, Enza, Secchia, Panaro), or directly into the Adriatic Sea (Reno, Lamone, Savio). The climate of Emilia-Romagna has sub-continental characteristics, with cold winters and hot summers, moderated, however, by sea breezes along the Adriatic, while the temperatures are closely affected by altitude in the Apennine region. The rainfall, more abundant in autumn and spring, increases progressively from the plain to the mountainous areas, where values may rise, above 3,000 mm./year. Fog is frequent on the plains in the cold season.

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