Reggio Calabria

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Comune di Reggio Calabria
Municipal coat of arms
Country	Italy
Region	Calabria
Province	Reggio Calabria (RC)
Mayor	Giuseppe Scopelliti (since June 1, 2002)

Elevation	31 m
Area	236 km²
Population
- Total (as of January 2006)	184,504
- Density	782/km²
Time zone	CET, UTC+1
Coordinates	38°06′41″N, 15°39′43″E
Gentilic	Reggini (Calabrian: riggitani)
Dialing code	0965
Postal code	89100
Frazioni	Catona, Gallico, Archi, Gallina, Mosorrofa, Ortì, Pellaro
Patron	Saint George
- Day	23 April
Location of Reggio Calabria in Italy
Website: www.reggiocal.it

Reggio Calabria (officially Reggio di Calabria, Rìggiu in Calabrian dialect, Righi in Greek-Calabrian), is the largest and the oldest city in Calabria, Italy, dating back to the 8th century BC (see history below). Located on the toe of the Italian boot, it's the capital of the province of Reggio Calabria and the headquarters of the Regional Council of Calabria. The city proper has about 200,000 inhabitants, but the population of the urban area is more.

Main face of the Cathedral of Reggio Calabria.

1 Geography
2 History
3 Main sights
4 Culture
5 See also
6 References
7 External links

[edit] Geography

Reggio di Calabria is located on the boot toe of Italy, across from the island of Sicily. The area has been subjected to several earthquakes and tsunami waves, over the centuries.

[edit] History

Founded as Rhegion by Greek settlers in the 8th century BC, the city was devastated by several major earthquakes and associated tsunami. During the Roman Empire it was called Rhegium Julium as a noble Roman city. Later Reggio di Calabria became a Byzantine city, and in the 12th century, it became part of the Kingdom of Sicily, and then in the 13th century, it became part of the Kingdom of Naples.

Reggio Calabria is known as the location of the first dated Hebrew book, a Rashi commentary on the Pentateuch, printed in 1475; ^[1] however, scholars consider Rome as the city where Hebrew printing began.

For Reggio di Calabria, the worst earthquakes came in 1783 and on December 28, 1908.

[edit] Main sights

The imporatant bergamot trees with their unique bergamot oranges, used for making Earl Grey tea, an international favorite, Jean-Luc Piccard from Star Trek being a notable fan.

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[edit] Culture

Reggio Calabria was the hometown of Gianni Versace, where his family were tailors.

[edit] See also

[edit] References

^ "The Books of the People of the Book - Hebraic Collections" (Hebrew book with date), Library of Congress, Washington, D.C., 2003-11-06, webpage: LibraryCongress-Hebraic.