View source for Marche

{{Short description|Region of Italy}}
{{Other uses}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2020}}
{{Infobox settlement
<!-- See Template:Infobox settlement for additional fields and descriptions -->
| official_name           = Marche
| native_name             = 
| native_name_lang        = it
| other_name              = the Marches
| settlement_type         = [[Regions of Italy|Region]]
| image_skyline           = 
| image_alt               = 
| image_caption           = 
| image_flag              = Flag of Marche.svg
| flag_alt                = 
| image_shield            = Coat of arms of Marche.svg
| shield_size             = 50px
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| image_blank_emblem      = 
| blank_emblem_size       = 
| blank_emblem_type       = 
| blank_emblem_alt        = 
| nickname                = 
| motto                   = 
| anthem                  = {{lang|it|[[Inno delle Marche]]}}<br />{{center| }}
| image_map               = Marches in Italy.svg
| mapsize                 = 
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| subdivision_type        = [[List of sovereign states|Country]]
| subdivision_name        = {{flag|Italy}}
| established_title       = 
| established_date        = 
| founder                 = 
| named_for               = 
| seat_type               = [[Capital city|Capital]]
| seat                    = [[Ancona]]
| government_footnotes    = 
| government_type         = 
| leader_party            = [[Brothers of Italy|FdI]]
| leader_title            = President
| leader_name             = [[Francesco Acquaroli (politician)|Francesco Acquaroli]]
| leader_title1           = 
| leader_name1            = 
| total_type              = 
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| area_magnitude          = 
| area_footnotes          = 
| area_total_km2          = 9,366
| elevation_footnotes     = 
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| population_footnotes    = 
| population_total        = 1541692
| population_as_of        = 2012-10-30
| population_density_km2  = auto
| population_demonym      = {{Langx|it|Marchigiano}} (man)<br>{{Langx|it|Marchigiana}} (woman)
| population_note         = 
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| demographics_type2       = GDP
| demographics2_footnotes  = <ref>{{citation|title=Population on 1 January by age, sex and NUTS 2 region|url=https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/databrowser/view/DEMO_R_D2JAN/default/table?lang=en|website=www.ec.europa.eu}}</ref>
|demographics2_title1     = Total
|demographics2_info1      = €42.597 billion (2021)
| timezone1               = [[Central European Time|CET]]
| utc_offset1             = +1
| timezone1_DST           = [[Central European Summer Time|CEST]]
| utc_offset1_DST         = +2
| postal_code_type        = 
| postal_code             = 
| area_code_type          = [[ISO 3166 code]]
| area_code               = IT-57
| blank2_name_sec1        = [[Human Development Index|HDI]] (2021)
| blank2_info_sec1        = 0.903<ref name="GlobalDataLab">{{Cite web|url=https://globaldatalab.org/shdi/shdi/ITA/?levels=1%2B4&interpolation=1&extrapolation=0&nearest_real=0&years=2019|title=Sub-national HDI - Area Database - Global Data Lab|website=hdi.globaldatalab.org|language=en|access-date=2023-03-05}}</ref><br/>{{color|green|very high}} · [[List of Italian regions by Human Development Index|8th of 21]]
| blank_name_sec2         = [[First-level NUTS of the European Union#Italy|NUTS Region]]
| blank_info_sec2         = ITI
| website                 = [http://www.regione.marche.it/ Regione.Marche.it]
| footnotes               = 
}}

'''Marche''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|m|ɑːr|k|eɪ}} {{respell|MAR|kay}};<ref name="AHD">{{Cite American Heritage Dictionary|Marche 2|access-date=6 May 2019}}</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20190506160248/https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/us/Marche "Marche"] (US) and {{Cite dictionary |url=http://www.lexico.com/definition/Marche |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200229141455/https://www.lexico.com/definition/marche |url-status=dead |archive-date=2020-02-29 |title=Marche |dictionary=[[Lexico]] UK English Dictionary |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]]}}</ref> {{IPA|it|ˈmarke|lang|it-Marche.ogg}}), in English sometimes referred to as '''the Marches''' ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|m|ɑr|tʃ|ᵻ|z}} {{respell|MAR|chiz}}) from the Italian name of the region ('''Le Marche'''),<ref name="Fodor's20122">{{cite book|author=Fodor's|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3SYHWfYbsykC&pg=PT1132|title=Fodor's Italy 2012|date=13 March 2012|publisher=Random House Digital, Inc.|isbn=978-0-87637-143-5|page=1132|access-date=24 April 2012}}</ref><ref name="Italy19992">{{cite book|author=Touring Club of Italy|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kUwPAAAACAAJ|title=The Marches: A Complete Guide to the Region, Its National Parks, and Over a Hundred of Its Towns, Including Urbino|publisher=Touring Club of Italy|year=1999|isbn=978-88-365-1467-0|pages=front cover|author-link=Touring Club Italiano}}</ref><ref>The Times, page [https://www.thetimes.com/travel/destinations/europe-travel/italy/le-marche-italy-secret-region-guide-f5lkrjbhg] (''...British call it the Marches.'').</ref><ref name="FacarosPauls20072">{{cite book|last1=Facaros|first1=Dana|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=RjnhlB7VF5MC|title=Cadogan Guide Tuscany, Umbria & the Marches|last2=Pauls|first2=Michael|date=1 October 2007|publisher=New Holland Publishers|isbn=978-1-86011-359-8|pages=front cover|access-date=24 April 2012}}</ref><ref name="AHD2">{{Cite American Heritage Dictionary|Marche 2|access-date=6 May 2019}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Marches|url=https://www.collinsdictionary.com/dictionary/english/marches|access-date=10 September 2019|work=[[Collins English Dictionary]]|publisher=[[HarperCollins]]}}</ref> is one of the [[Regions of Italy|twenty regions]] of [[Italy]]. The region is located in the [[Central Italy|central area]] of the country, and has a population of about 1.5 million people, being the thirteenth largest region in the country by number of inhabitants.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Marche |url=https://www.tuttitalia.it/marche/ |access-date=2023-01-18 |website=Tuttitalia.it |language=it}}</ref> The region's capital and largest city is [[Ancona]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Le province delle Marche per popolazione |url=https://www.tuttitalia.it/marche/36-province/popolazione/ |access-date=2023-01-18 |website=Tuttitalia.it |language=it}}</ref>

The Marche region is bordered by [[Emilia-Romagna]] and the republic of [[San Marino]] to the north, [[Tuscany]] and [[Umbria]] to the west, [[Lazio]] to the southwest, [[Abruzzo]] to the south, and the [[Adriatic Sea]] to the east. Except for river valleys and the often very narrow coastal strip, the land is hilly. A railway from [[Bologna]] to [[Brindisi]], built in the 19th century, runs along the coast of the entire territory. Inland, the mountainous nature of the region, even today, allows relatively little travel north and south, except by twisting roads over the passes. 

From the Middle ages to the [[Renaissance]] period, many cities of the Marche were important cultural, artistic and commercial centres, the most prominent being [[Ancona]], [[Pesaro]], [[Urbino]], [[Camerino]] and [[Ascoli Piceno]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Storia Marche |url=http://www.comuni-italiani.it/11/storia.html |access-date=2023-01-18 |website=www.comuni-italiani.it}}</ref>

Urbino, which was a major centre of Renaissance history, was also the birthplace of [[Raphael]], one of the most important painters and architects of that period.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Raphael {{!}} Biography, Artworks, Paintings, Accomplishments, Death, & Facts {{!}} Britannica |url=https://www.britannica.com/biography/Raphael-Italian-painter-and-architect |access-date=2023-01-18 |website=www.britannica.com |language=en}}</ref> The Marche region is also the birthplace of [[Gentile da Fabriano]], [[Cyriacus of Ancona]], [[Donato Bramante]], [[Giovanni Battista Pergolesi]], [[Giacomo Leopardi]], [[Gioachino Rossini]] and [[Maria Montessori]].

== Toponymy ==
The name of the region derives from the plural of the medieval word ''[[wikt:marca#Italian|marca]]'', a [[March (territory)|march or mark]], that is, a border zone, originally referring to a borderland territory of the [[Holy Roman Empire]], such as the [[March of Ancona]] and others pertaining to the ancient region.<ref>{{Cite web|title=Marche, unica regione d'Italia al plurale: ma perché si chiamano così?|url=https://www.anconatoday.it/social/marche-perche-si-chiamano-cosi-plurale.html|access-date=2021-12-13|website=AnconaToday|language=it}}</ref>

== Geography ==
[[File:Cingoli BalconeDelleMarche.jpg|left|thumb|765px|View of Marche countryside]]
[[File:Sirolo-vista conero.jpg|thumb|left|A view of [[Monte Conero]]]]
Marche extends over an area of {{convert|9366|km2|mi2|sp=}} of the central [[Adriatic]] slope between [[Emilia-Romagna]] to the north, [[Tuscany]] and [[Umbria]] to the west, and [[Lazio]] and [[Abruzzo]] to the south, the entire eastern boundary being formed by the [[Adriatic]]. The [[Umbria]]n [[Enclave and exclave|enclave]] of Monte Ruperto (a subdivision of the [[Comune]] of [[Città di Castello]]) is entirely surrounded by the [[Province of Pesaro and Urbino]], which constitutes the northern part of the region.

Most of the region is mountainous or hilly: the [[Apennine Mountains|Apennine]] range runs longitudinally along the region's eastern border and descends through a hilly landscape towards the [[Adriatic]] sea. With the sole exception of [[Monte Vettore]], {{convert|2476|m|ft}} high, the mountains do not exceed {{convert|2400|m|ft}}. The hilly area covers two-thirds of the region and is intersected by wide gullies with numerous short rivers and by alluvial plains perpendicular to the Appennini range. The main mountain range has a few deep river gorges: the best known are those of the [[Furlo]], the Rossa and the [[Frasassi]].

The coastline is {{convert|173|km|mi}} long and is relatively flat and straight except for the hilly area between [[Gabicce]] and [[Pesaro]] in the north, and the eastern slopes of [[Monte Conero]] near [[Ancona]].

Climate is temperate. Inland, in the mountainous areas, is more continental with cold and often snowy winters; by the sea is more mediterranean. Precipitation varies from {{convert|1000|to|1500|mm|in|abbr=off|round=5}} per year inland and {{convert|600|to|800|mm|in|abbr=on|round=5}} per year on the Adriatic coast.

A region with an annular [[Drainage system (geomorphology)|drainage pattern]] possibly corresponding to a mud [[diapir]] or [[astrobleme]] exists near [[Sant'Angelo in Pontano]].<ref>{{Cite journal |title=Preliminary geomorphological and hydrographical characterization of a circular structure in the Marche Region (Central Italy) and its possible origin |journal=[[Géomorphologie]] |url=https://journals.openedition.org/geomorphologie/17007#tocto2n8 |last1=Colucci |first1=Sabrina |last2=Fidani |first2=Cristiano |year=2022 |volume=28 |issue=2 |pages=126–136 |doi=10.4000/geomorphologie.17007|s2cid=250379245 |url-access=subscription }}</ref>

As of 2023, according to the report on land consumption of the Higher Institute for Environmental Protection and Research, Marche and [[Liguria]] hold the Italian record for coastal overbuilding.<ref>{{cite web|title=Liguria, the future razed to the ground|date=5 December 2023 |url=https://www.vanityfair.it/article/consumo-di-suolo-liguria}}<!-- auto-translated by Module:CS1 translator --></ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.isprambiente.gov.it/it/attivita/suolo-e-territorio/suolo/il-consumo-di-suolo/i-dati-sul-consumo-di-suolo|title=Report for the consumption of soil|publisher=Istituto superiore per la protezione e la ricerca ambientale|language=it}}</ref>

=== Mountains ===
{{cmn|colwidth=30em|rules=yes|
* [[Croce di Monte Bove]]
* [[Monte Argentella]]
* [[Monte Bove Sud]]
* [[Monte Igno]]
* [[Monte Montiego]]
* [[Monte Porche]]
* [[Monte Strega]]
* [[Monte Vermenone]]
* [[Monte Vettore]]
}}

== History ==
{{see also|List of museums in Marche|Anconine Republic|Duchy of Urbino}}

Marche was known in ancient times as the [[Picenum]] territory. The first period of cultural unity of the Marches was in the [[Iron Age]], when the region was almost entirely inhabited by the [[Picentes]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Origine e area di diffusione della civiltà dei piceni |url=https://www.antiqui.it/piceni/origine.htm |access-date=2023-01-18 |website=www.antiqui.it}}</ref> Many artefacts from their time are exhibited in [[National Archaeological Museum of the Marche Region]] in Ancona. In the fourth century BC, the northern area was occupied by the [[Senones]], a tribe of [[Gaul]]s. The [[Battle of Sentinum]] was fought in Marche in 295 BC; afterwards, the [[Ancient Rome|Romans]] founded numerous colonies in the area, connected to Rome by the [[Via Flaminia]] and the [[Via Salaria]]. [[Ascoli Piceno|Ascoli]] was a seat of Italic resistance during the [[Social War (91–87 BC)]].

[[File:Anfiteatro_Urbs_Salvia.jpg|thumb|Roman Amphitheatre in the [[Archaeological Park of Urbs Salvia]]]]

Following the fall of the [[Western Roman Empire]], the region was invaded by the [[Goths]]. After the [[Gothic War (6th century)|Gothic War]], it was part of the [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantine]] [[Exarchate of Ravenna]] ([[Ancona]], [[Fano]], [[Pesaro]], [[Rimini]], and [[Senigallia]] forming the so-called [[Pentapolis]]). After the fall of the Exarchate, it was briefly in the possession of the [[Lombards]], but was conquered by [[Charlemagne]] in the late eighth century. In the ninth to eleventh centuries, the marches of [[Camerino]], [[March of Fermo|Fermo]] and [[march of Ancona|Ancona]] were created, hence the modern name.

Marche was nominally part of the [[Papal States]], but most of the territory was under local lords, while the major cities ruled themselves as free communes. In the twelfth century, the [[Republic of Ancona|commune of Ancona]] resisted both the [[Holy Roman Empire|imperial authority]] of [[Frederick Barbarossa]] and the [[Republic of Venice]], and was a [[maritime republic]] on its own. An attempt to restore Papal suzerainty by [[Gil Álvarez Carrillo de Albornoz|Gil de Albornoz]] in the fourteenth century was short-lived.

[[File:Urbino-palazzo e borgo.jpg|thumb|right|The Renaissance town of [[Urbino]]]]
[[File:Ancona - Duomo di San Ciriaco - veduta aerea.jpg|thumb|Cathedral of Ancona]]
During the [[Renaissance]], the region was fought over by rival aristocratic families, such as the [[House of Malatesta|Malatesta]] of Rimini, [[Pesaro]], [[Fano]] and the house of [[Montefeltro]] of [[Urbino]]. The last independent entity, the [[Duchy of Urbino]], was dissolved in 1631, and from then on, Marche was firmly part of the [[Papal States]] except during the Napoleonic period. This saw the short-lived [[Anconine Republic|Republic of Ancona]], in 1797–98; the merging of the region with the [[Roman Republic (1798-1799)|Roman Republic]] in 1798–99, and with the [[Kingdom of Italy (Napoleonic)|Kingdom of Italy]] from 1808 to 1813; and the short occupation by [[Joachim Murat]] in 1815. After Napoleon's defeat, Marche returned to Papal rule until 4 November 1860, when it was annexed to the [[unification of Italy|unified Kingdom of Italy]] by a [[plebiscite]].

The [[Bombardment of Ancona]] occurred during the [[Adriatic Campaign of World War I|Adriatic campaign]] of World War I. The [[1916 Rimini earthquakes]] damaged or destroyed several buildings in Pesaro, Fano, and its [[hinterlands]].<ref name=":9">{{Cite web |last= |first= |date=7 December 2023 |title=8 dicembre 1916 - Legge speciale per Rimini distrutta dal terremoto |trans-title=8 December 1916 – Special law for Rimini destroyed by the earthquake |url=https://www.chiamamicitta.it/8-dicembre-1916-legge-speciale-per-rimini-distrutta-dal-terremoto/ |access-date=4 January 2024 |website=Chiamami Città |language=it-IT}}</ref><ref name=":53">{{Cite web |date=28 July 2004 |title=Terremoto del 17.05.1916, Alto Adriatico (Rimini) |trans-title=Earthquake of 17 May 1916, High Adriatic (Rimini) |url=https://www.lavalledelmetauro.it/contenuti/opere-specialistiche/scheda/296.html |access-date=4 January 2024 |website=www.lavalledelmetauro.it}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=22 March 2019 |title=Pesaro. Fai, per le Giornate di Primavera monumenti aperti |trans-title=Pesaro, FAI: Monuments open for the Spring Days |url=https://lapiazzarimini.it/2019/pesaro-fai-per-le-giornate-di-primavera-monumenti-aperti/ |access-date=11 January 2024 |website=La Piazza |language=it-IT}}</ref>

The [[Battle of Ancona]] occurred during the [[Italian campaign (World War II)|Italian campaign]] of World War II.

After the referendum of 2006, 7 municipalities of [[Montefeltro]] were detached from the [[Province of Pesaro and Urbino]] to join the [[Province of Rimini]] ([[Emilia-Romagna]]) on 15 August 2009.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.iusetnorma.it/news_normativa/normativa/l-03-08-09n117.htm|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110722040247/http://www.iusetnorma.it/news_normativa/normativa/l-03-08-09n117.htm|url-status=dead|title=Article about the legislation|archive-date=22 July 2011}}</ref><ref>{{in lang|it}} [http://www.ilrestodelcarlino.it/rimini/cronaca/2010/07/10/355107-valmarecchia_rimane_emilia_romagna.shtml Article] on ''[[il Resto del Carlino]]''</ref> The municipalities are [[Casteldelci]], [[Maiolo]], [[Novafeltria]], [[Pennabilli]], [[San Leo]], [[Sant'Agata Feltria]] and [[Talamello]].

Towns in Marche were devastated by many powerful earthquakes during the centuries, the last time in 2016 (in [[August 2016 Central Italy earthquake|August]] and in [[October 2016 Central Italy earthquakes|October]]).<ref>[https://www.nytimes.com/2016/08/25/world/europe/italy-earthquake.html Powerful Earthquakes in Italy].</ref>

In [[2022 Marche flood|September 2022, Marche was hit by heavy flooding]].<ref>[https://www.ilmessaggero.it/italia/alluvione_marche_morti_feriti_dispersi_cosa_e_successo-6930369.html Alluvione Marche, 8 morti e 4 dispersi: si cerca un bambino, salva la mamma. Dispersa un'altra madre con bimba], ''Il Messaggero''</ref>

== Economy ==
[[File:Indesit Headquarter.jpg|thumb|right|[[Indesit]] Headquarters in [[Fabriano]], [[Province of Ancona]]. The home appliance sector represents the core of the regional industry]]
Prior to the 1980s, Marche was considered a rather poor region, although economically stable in some sectors, thanks particularly to its agricultural output and to the contribution of traditional crafts.<ref name="europa1">{{cite web|url=http://circa.europa.eu/irc/dsis/regportraits/info/data/en/ite3_eco.htm |title=Eurostat |publisher=Circa.europa.eu |access-date=23 April 2010 |url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110721132505/http://circa.europa.eu/irc/dsis/regportraits/info/data/en/ite3_eco.htm |archive-date=21 July 2011 }}</ref>

Today the contribution of agriculture to the economy of the region is less significant and the gross value generated by this sector remains slightly above the national average. Marche has never suffered from the extremes of fragmented land ownership or 'latifondo'. Greatly diffused in the past, the sharecropping never produced an extreme land fragmentation. The main products are cereals, vegetables, animal products and grapes. Truffle hunting is popular; although it has often led to 'truffle wars' between hunters due to the imposition of quotas. Olives are also produced and managed by various harvesters. In spite of the marine impoverishment, the sea has always furnished a plentiful supply of fish, the main fishing centres being [[Ancona]], [[San Benedetto del Tronto]], [[Fano]] and [[Civitanova Marche]].<ref name="europa1"/>

Since the 1980s, the economy of the region has been radically transformed without, however, repudiating its rural past. Many of the small craft workshops scattered throughout the rural settlements have modernised and become small businesses, some of which have become major brands known all over the world ([[Indesit]], [[Tod's]], Guzzini, Teuco). This evolution led to the emergence of 'specialized' industrial areas, which are still profitable: 
* footwear and leather goods in a large area straddling the provinces of [[Macerata]] and [[Fermo]]; 
* furniture in the [[Pesaro]] area in particular; 
* household appliances and textile industry in the province of [[Ancona]], in which the main engineering companies are also to be found (including ship building, petrochemicals and paper, as well as consumer durables). 
* The city of [[Castelfidardo]] remains an important centre for the production of musical instruments, the [[accordion]] in particular. 

The [[Gross domestic product]] (GDP) of the region was 43.3 billion euros in 2018, accounting for 2.5% of Italy's economic output. GDP per capita adjusted for purchasing power was 28,200 euros or 94% of the EU27 average in the same year. The GDP per employee was 96% of the EU average.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://ec.europa.eu/eurostat/documents/2995521/10474907/1-05032020-AP-EN.pdf/81807e19-e4c8-2e53-c98a-933f5bf30f58|title=Regional GDP per capita ranged from 30% to 263% of the EU average in 2018|website=Eurostat}}</ref>

The unemployment rate stood at '''7.4%''' in 2020.<ref> {{cite web|url=https://appsso.eurostat.ec.europa.eu/nui/show.do?dataset=lfst_r_lfu3rt&lang=en|title=Unemployment NUTS 2 regions Eurostat|language=en}} </ref> Marche is well known for its [[shoemaking]] tradition, with fine and luxurious Italian footwear manufacturing facilities in the region.{{Citation needed|date=March 2019}}

===Tourism===
The region continues to draw tourists, whose increasing numbers have been attracted by the rich and broadly distributed heritage of history and monuments, as well as by the traditional seaside resorts.<ref name="europa1"/> Marche has many small and picturesque villages, 31 of them have been selected by {{lang|it|[[I Borghi più belli d'Italia]]}} ({{langx|en|The most beautiful Villages of Italy}}),<ref>{{cite web|url=https://borghipiubelliditalia.it/marche/|title=Marche|date=9 January 2017 |access-date=1 August 2023|language=it}}</ref> a non-profit private association of small Italian towns of strong historical and artistic interest,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.repubblica.it/viaggi/2023/01/16/news/borghi_piu_belli_italia_14_nuovi_2023-383794441/|title=Borghi più belli d'Italia. Le 14 novità 2023, dal Trentino alla Calabria|date=16 January 2023 |access-date=28 July 2023|language=it}}</ref> that was founded on the initiative of the Tourism Council of the National Association of Italian Municipalities.<ref>{{Cite web |url = http://borghipiubelliditalia.it/ |title = I Borghi più belli d'Italia, la guida online ai piccoli centri dell'Italia nascosta|access-date=3 May 2018|language=it}}</ref>

== Demographics ==
{{Historical populations
|type     =
|footnote = Source: [[Istituto Nazionale di Statistica|ISTAT]]
|1861 |909000
|1871 |958000
|1881 |972000
|1901 |1089000
|1911 |1145000
|1921 |1201000
|1931 |1240000
|1936 |1278000
|1951 |1330352|1961 |1321382|1971 |1340444|1981 |1392813|1991 |1409876|2001 |1450731|2011 |1538699|2021|1487150}}
The population density in the region is below the national average. In 2008, it was {{convert|161.5|PD/km2}}, compared to the national figure of {{convert|198.8|PD/km2|abbr=on}}. It is highest in the province of Ancona ({{convert|244.6|PD/km2|abbr=on|disp=or}} inhabitants per km<sup>2</sup>), and lowest in the province of Macerata ({{convert|116.1|PD/km2|abbr=on|disp=or}}). Between 1952 and 1967 the population of the region decreased by 1.7% as a result of a negative migration balance, well above the national average, with a rate varying between 4.9 and 10.0 per 1,000 inhabitants. The Average fund of this region is worth about a few million or maybe higher. In the same period the natural balance of the population was positive, but lower than the national average and insufficient to counterbalance the net emigration. The population continued to decline until 1971, but in 1968 began growing again.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://circa.europa.eu/irc/dsis/regportraits/info/data/en/ite3_pop.htm |title=Eurostat |publisher=Circa.europa.eu |access-date=23 April 2010 |url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110721132530/http://circa.europa.eu/irc/dsis/regportraits/info/data/en/ite3_pop.htm |archive-date=21 July 2011 }}</ref> In 2008, the [[Istituto Nazionale di Statistica|Italian national institute of statistics]] (ISTAT) estimated that 115,299 foreign-born immigrants live in Marche, 7.4% of the total regional population.

== Government and politics ==
{{Main|Politics of Marche}}
Marche forms, along with Emilia-Romagna, Tuscany and Umbria, the Italian "[[Red belt (Italy)|Red Quadrilateral]]", a strongly left-wing area. In the [[2014 European Parliament election in Italy|2014 European elections]], the people of Marche gave 45% of their votes to [[Matteo Renzi]]'s [[Democratic Party (Italy)|Democratic Party]].

As of the [[2020 Marche regional election]] Marche is governed by the [[Centre-right coalition (Italy)|centre-right coalition]].

== Administrative divisions ==
The region is divided into five [[Provinces of Italy|provinces]]: [[Province of Ancona|Ancona]], [[Province of Ascoli Piceno|Ascoli Piceno]], [[Province of Fermo|Fermo]], [[Province of Macerata|Macerata]], [[Province of Pesaro e Urbino|Pesaro e Urbino]].
{{Image label begin|image=Marches Provinces Blank.png|width=220|float=none}}
{{Image label small|x=0.6|y=0.4|scale=220|text=[[Province of Ancona|Ancona]]}}
{{Image label small|x=0.7|y=0.87|scale=220|text=[[Province of Ascoli Piceno|Ascoli Piceno]]}}
{{Image label small|x=0.8|y=0.7|scale=220|text=[[Province of Fermo|Fermo]]}}
{{Image label small|x=0.5|y=0.7|scale=220|text=[[Province of Macerata|Macerata]]}}
{{Image label small|x=0.2|y=0.3|scale=220|text=[[Province of Pesaro e Urbino|Pesaro e Urbino]]}}
{{Image label end}}
{| class="wikitable centered"
|-
! style="background:#ccf;"|Province
! style="background:#ccf;"|Abbreviation
! style="background:#ccf;"|Area (km<sup>2</sup>)
! style="background:#ccf;"|Population
! style="background:#ccf;"|Density (inhabitants/km<sup>2</sup>)
|-
| [[Province of Ancona]]
| AN
| 1,940
| 474,630
| 244.6
|-
| [[Province of Ascoli Piceno]]
| AP
| 1,228
| 212,846
| 186.2
|-
| [[Province of Fermo]]
| FM
| 859
| 177,578
| 206,6
|-
| [[Province of Macerata]]
| MC
| 2,774
| 321,973
| 116.1
|-
| [[Province of Pesaro and Urbino]]
| PU
| 2,564
| 364,896
| 141.9
|}

== References ==
{{reflist}}

== External links ==
* {{commons-inline}}
* {{wikivoyage-inline|Marche}}
* {{official|https://www.regione.marche.it/}}

{{Marche}}
{{regions of Italy}}
{{Italy topics}}
{{Authority control}}
{{coord|43|37|00|N|13|31|00|E|display=title|region:IT_type:adm1st_source:GNS-enwiki}}
[[Category:Marche| ]]
[[Category:NUTS 2 statistical regions of the European Union]]
[[Category:Regions of Italy]]
[[Category:Wine regions of Italy]]
[[Category:Picenum]]