Piedmont, Italy

Piedmont (Italian: Piemonte; Piedmontese and Occitan: Piemont; French: Piémont) is one of the 20 Regions of Italy. It has an area of 25,399 sq.km and a population of 4.4 million. The capital is Turin, the local language (or alternatively the local dialect of the Italian language, which is the official language of the whole of Italy) is Piedmontese and Occitan is also spoken in Occitan Valleys.

Piedmont is surrounded on three sides by the Alps, including the Monviso (Mont Vis), where the Po rises, and the Monte Rosa. It borders with France, Switzerland and the Italian regions of Lombardy, Liguria and Aosta Valley. The percentage of the territory which is a protected area is 7.6%. There are 56 different national or regional parks. One such park is the Gran Paradiso National Park (Grand Paradis).