Southern Italy

Southern Italy or Il Mezzogiorno (, meaning "Midday") is the traditional term for the southern regions of Italy, encompassing the southern section of the continental Italian Peninsula and the two major islands of Sicily and Sardinia. It coincides with the administrative regions of Basilicata, Campania, Calabria, Puglia, Abruzzo, Molise, Sicily, and Sardinia. Some also include the most southern and eastern parts of Lazio (Sora, Cassino, Gaeta, Cittaducale and Amatrice districts) within the Mezzogiorno, because these territories were part, along with all the already listed ones (except Sardinia), of the historical Kingdom of Two Sicilies.

Southern Italy carries a unique legacy of culture. It features many major tourist attractions, such as the Palace of Caserta, the Amalfi Coast, Pompeii, Herculaneum, and other archaeological sites (many of which are protected by UNESCO). Other tourist areas include Pizzo, Tropea, Palermo, and Alberobello. Some of its beaches, woodlands and mountains are preserved in several National Parks, other major examples include La Sila, a mountainous plateau occupying the provinces such as Cosenza and Catanzaro in the region of Calabria. Many medieval towns are located in Southern Italy. The history of Southern Italy boasts numerous kings, queens, princes, dukes, counts, popes, writers, poets, philosophers, knights, artists, architects, craftsmen, musicians, scholars, scientists, politicians, inventors and mathematicians. There are also many ancient Greek cities in Southern Italy which were founded several centuries before the start of the Roman Empire. All of which helped in the formation of the culture of Italy.

The Istituto Nazionale di Statistica (ISTAT) uses the term Southern Italy also for identifying one of the five statistical regions in its reporting, but excluding both Sicily and Sardinia, which form a distinct statistical region denominated Insular Italy. These same subdivisions are at the bottom of the Italian First level NUTS of the European Union and the Italian constituencies for the European Parliament.