Facts & Profile

Trentino

rentino (Lombard, Venetian and Ladin: Trentin, German: Trient), officially the Autonomous Province of Trento (Italian: provincia autonoma di Trento), is an autonomous province of Italy in the country's far north. Trentino and South Tyrol constitute the region of Trentino-Alto Adige/Südtirol, an autonomous region under the constitution. The province is composed of 166 comuni (municipalities). Its capital is the city of Trento (Trent). The province covers an area of more than 6,000 km2 (2,300 sq mi), with a total population of 541,098 in 2019.

Trentino has a complex history shaped by its position between Italian and Central European cultural spheres. In antiquity, it was inhabited by the Raetian people before being incorporated into the Roman Empire as part of the province of Raetia. During the Middle Ages, Trentino became part of the Prince-Bishopric of Trent within the Holy Roman Empire and later fell under Austrian rule until the end of World War I. Following the war and the Treaty of Saint-Germain-en-Laye (1919), South Tyrol was annexed to the Kingdom of Italy which separated it into two provinces renamed in 1923 as "Trentino" and "Alto Adige". It gained autonomy after World War II under Austrian protection.

Trentino is characterized by its mountainous terrain, notably the Dolomites, which form part of the Alps. The region also exhibits significant linguistic diversity: while Italian is the predominant language, communities speaking Ladin and the German dialects of Mócheno and Cimbrian preserve distinct linguistic traditions that reflect its Alpine and Central European heritage.