Emilia (region of Italy)

Emilia (Emilian: Emîlia) is a historical region of northern Italy which approximately corresponds to the western and north-eastern portions of today’s Emilia-Romagna region, of which Romagna forms the remainder.

Etymology

It takes its name from the Via Aemilia, a Roman road constructed by the consul Marcus Aemilius Lepidus in 187 BCE to connect Rimini with Piacenza.

Boundaries

The eastern boundary is formed by the rivers Sillaro and Reno, which divide it from Romagna. To the north the river Po forms its border with Veneto and Lombardy. To the west and south the Apennine drainage divide separates it from Liguria and Tuscany. Administratively it comprises the provinces of Piacenza, Parma, Reggio Emilia, Modena, Ferrara and (except for the communes of Imola and Dozza, and the valley of the Santerno) Bologna.

The region corresponds approximately to the ancient Cispadane Gaul which, under the Augustan territorial organisation of Italia c. 7 CE, became Regio VIII Aemilia.

Language

See also: Italian language and Emilian language

Although Italian is today the most widely, it is the Emilian dialect which is specific to the region, although it is spoken in hybrid form in neighbouring provinces.