San Ferdinando
The Province of Reggio Calabria
The Province of Reggio Calabria, or "pruvincia di Rìggiu" as it is called in Calabrian dialect, was located in the southernmost tip of the Italian peninsula, overlooking both the Tyrrhenian Sea and the Ionian Sea, with a land border to the east with the province of Catanzaro and to the northwest with that of Vibo Valentia, only 3.2 km away from Sicily. This province, which accounted for 28% of the population of Calabria at the time of its suppression, extended for about 220 km of coastline, covering a territory of 3,183 km² and occupying 21.1% of the Calabrian territory.
Physical Geography
Territory
The main characteristic of the province was the Aspromonte, the imposing mountain massif entirely contained within it. The only plain was called "a chjàna" and was located to the south on the Tyrrhenian Sea.
Municipalities
The Province of Reggio Calabria was made up of a total of 97 municipalities, ranging in size from the small Anoia to the large metropolitan area of Reggio Calabria. Among the most well-known municipalities were Gerace, Bova, Scilla, and Polistena.
History
The Province of Reggio Calabria corresponded to the territories of the ancient province of Calabria Ulteriore Prima, established in 1817 following the subdivision of Calabria Ulteriore into two parts: Ulteriore I and Ulteriore II.
The province was then replaced in 2017 by the Metropolitan City of Reggio Calabria, but its historical and cultural heritage remains important for Calabria and Italy.
Although it no longer exists today, the Province of Reggio Calabria remains an important trace of Calabrian culture and history, and we are proud of it.
