Napoli

Description

Napoli: Naples is the capital of the Italian region Campania and the third-largest municipality in Italy, after Rome and Milan. Naples is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world. Bronze Age Greek settlements were established in the Naples area in the second millennium BC. A larger colony initially known as Parthenope, developed on the Island of Megaride around the ninth century BC, at the end of the Greek Dark Ages. The city was refounded as Neápolis in the sixth century BC and became a lynchpin of Magna Graecia, playing a key role in the merging of Greek culture into Roman society and eventually becoming a cultural centre of the Roman Republic. Naples remained influential after the fall of the Western Roman Empire, serving as the capital city of the Kingdom of Naples between 1282 and 1816. Naples has the fourth largest urban economy in Italy, after Milan, Rome and Turin. It is the world`s 103rd richest city by purchasing power. The port of Naples is one of the most important in Europe, and has the world`s second-highest level of passenger flow, after the port of Hong Kong. Naples` historic city centre is the largest in Europe, covering 1,700 hectares and enclosing 27 centuries of history, and is listed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. Naples has long been a major cultural centre with a global sphere of influence, particularly during the Renaissance and Enlightenment eras. In the immediate vicinity of Naples are numerous culturally and historically significant sites, including the Palace of Caserta and the Roman ruins of Pompeii and Herculaneum.