Province of Parma


The Province of Parma is a province in the Emilia-Romagna region of Italy. Its largest town and capital is the city of Parma.
It is made up of 47 comuni. It has an area of and a total population of around 450,000.
The province is bordered by the Province of Reggio Emilia to the east, the Piacenza to the west, Lombardy's provinces of Cremona and Mantova to the north and by Liguria's provinces of La Spezia and Genoa and Tuscany's Province of Massa and Carrara to the south.

History

In 1861, Italian provinces were established on the French republican model.
Italian Fascism saw the end of elections in the Province of Parma in the 1920s until the end of the Second World War.
In October 2012, it was confirmed that the Province of Parma would be merged with the Province of Piacenza in 2014 to become the Province of Piacenza and Parma, despite controversy over the chosen name. However, its name was altered to the Province of Parma–Piacenza in the following month.

Geography

The province is divided into three zones from north to south: the pianura, the collina and the montagna. The first of these is surrounded by the Po. The main centres of the collina and montagna are situated along the course of the main rivers, which descend from the Parmesan Apennine Mountains.

Comuni

The Province of Parma comprises 47 comuni. The 20 largest of these are:
ComunePopulation
Parma175,307
Fidenza24,079
Salsomaggiore Terme19,449
Collecchio12,399
Noceto11,349
Medesano9,683
Montechiarugolo9,648
Sorbolo9,219
Langhirano9,203
Colorno8,649
Traversetolo8,554
Felino7,641
Borgo Val di Taro7,142
Busseto6,881
Torrile6,775
Fontanellato6,479
Fornovo di Taro6,060
Fontevivo5,388
San Secondo Parmense5,194
Soragna4,355

Cuisine

Parma is famous for its Prosciutto di Parma. The whole area is renowned for its sausage production, as well as for the Parmigiano Reggiano cheese and some kinds of pasta like gnocchi di patate, cappelletti in brodo, tortelli with different stuffing and chicche.

Transport

Highways

There are two main highways that go through Parma: A1 and A15.

Airport

The Province of Parma is served by the Giuseppe Verdi Airport.

Railways

The province is crossed by the Milan-Bologna railroad, one of the most important in Italy, with a station in Parma. The latter is the starting point for the following lines, connecting the city to the Tyrrhenian Sea, Alps and the Po River delta:
The station of Fidenza is an exchange point for the lines:
was founded in 1913. It is a Serie A football club renowned in Italy and Europe for its successes including three national cups, a European Cup Winner's Cup, two UEFA Cups, a European Supercup and an Italian Supercup. It plays in the city's stade Ennio Tardini which used to host up to 29,000 spectators but is being renovated in 2008 after the club was demoted to Serie B. In spring 2009 the team was promoted again in the top league. Crociati Noceto play in Lega Pro Seconda Divisione, the fourth tier.
Parma is also home to two rugby union teams in the top national division, Overmach Rugby Parma and SKG Gran Rugby.
Parma Panthers is the Parma American football team for which John Grisham's book Playing for Pizza was based.
Also volleyball, women basketball and baseball have large popularity in the city and have scored relevant successes.