a region in north Italy on the Ligurian Sea. Area, 5,413 sq km. Population, 1,882,000 (1970). It comprises the provinces of Genoa, Imperia, La Spezia, and Savona. The main city is Genoa. The Ligurian Apennines (in the north and east) and the spurs of the Maritime Alps (in the west) occupy approximately two-thirds of the region. In certain areas the mountains extend to the coast and drop sharply to the sea. The coast has many indentations, and the rest of the region consists primarily of hilly terrain. Facing the sea and protected in the north by mountains, the coastal section of Liguria has a mild even climate and is known for its climatic resorts (Rapallo, Nervi, San Remo).
Liguria is one of Italy’s most economically developed regions, with extensive foreign trade connections and large-scale industry based on imported raw materials and fuel. Liguria occupies an advantageous geographic position in relation to Mediterranean transport: Genoa is its main port and one of the largest ports on the Mediterranean Sea. Approximately 40 percent of the economically active population of the region is employed in industry, and 12 percent in agriculture. The main branches of industry are ferrous and nonferrous metallurgy (in Cornigliano Ligure there is a large metallurgical complex); shipbuilding; production of railroad rolling stock, hydroelectric turbines, diesel motors, boilers, and electrical equipment; oil refining; chemical and cement industries; manufacture of industrial fabrics; and food, woodworking, and leather industries. Steam power plants produce the bulk of the electric power (10.7 billion kilowatt-hours in 1970). Industrial enterprises are concentrated principally near Genoa and west of it. In addition to Genoa, Savona and La Spezia (in the east) are important ports. Commercial agriculture, mostly capitalist, is found in the piedmont and along the coast; it consists of viticulture, fruit-growing, and the raising of olives, early vegetables, and flowers. In the mountain zone pasture livestock raising and small-scale farming (small land-holdings) are practiced.
T. A. GALKINA