Official name: Republic of San Marino
Capital city: San Marino
Internet country code: .sm
Flag description: Two equal horizontal bands of white (top) and light blue with the national coat of arms superimposed in the center; the coat of arms has a shield (featuring three towers on three peaks) flanked by a wreath, below a crown and above a scroll bearing the word Libertas (Liberty)
National anthem: written by Federico Consolo (score only)
Geographical description: Southern Europe, an enclave in central Italy
Total area: 23.6 sq. mi. (61.2 sq. km.)
Climate: Mediterranean; mild to cool winters; warm, sunny summers
Nationality: noun: Sammarinese (singular and plural); adjective: Sammarinese
Population: 29,615 (July 2007 CIA est.)
Ethnic groups: Sammarinese, Italian
Languages spoken: Italian
Religions: Roman Catholic
| All Saints' Day | Nov 1 |
| All Souls' Day | Nov 2 |
| Anniversary of the Arengo | Mar 25 |
| Anniversary of the Fall of Fascism | Jul 28 |
| Anniversary of the Liberation of the Republic and St. Agatha's Day | Feb 5 |
| Assumption Day | Aug 15 |
| Christmas Day | Dec 25 |
| Christmas Eve | Dec 24 |
| Epiphany | Jan 6 |
| Good Friday - Easter Monday | Apr 22, 2011; Apr 6, 2012; Mar 29, 2013; Apr 18, 2014; Apr 3, 2015; Mar 25, 2016; Apr 14, 2017; Mar 30, 2018; Apr 19, 2019; Apr 10, 2020; Apr 2, 2021; Apr 15, 2022; Apr 7, 2023 |
| Immaculate Conception | Dec 8 |
| Investiture of the Regent Captains | Apr 1, Oct 1 |
| Labor Day | May 1 |
| New Year's Day | Jan 1 |
| New Year's Eve | Dec 31 |
| San Marino Foundation Day | Sep 3 |
| St. Stephen's Day | Dec 26 |
(Republica di San Marino), a state in southern Europe, in the Apennine Peninsula, surrounded by Italy.
San Marino is situated in the northeastern foothills of the Tuscan-Emilian Apennines, on the slopes of Mount Titano, which has a maximum elevation of 738 m. Area, 61 sq km. Population, 19,200 (1974). Some 20,000 citizens of San Marino live abroad, in Italy, France, and the USA. The principal towns are San Marino, the capital (with 4,500 inhabitants), Serravalle, Borgo Maggiore, Faetano, Chiesanuova, Monte Giardino, Fiorentino, Domagniano, and Acquaviva. Administratively, San Marino is divided into castelli (districts). Italian is the official language, and almost all the people are Catholics. The official calendar is the Gregorian, although a local calendar that begins with the year A.D. 301 is also used.
San Marino is a republic. The highest state body is a 60-member unicameral parliament called the Grand and General Council. The parliamentary deputies are popularly elected for terms of five years. Every six months two of the deputies are appointed captains-regent, with the functions of head of government and state. The Congress of State, an executive body, is composed of the heads of ten ministerial departments. Judicial power is entrusted to commissioners for administrative, civil, and criminal cases. The Council of Twelve is the highest judicial body in some cases.
According to tradition, San Marino was founded in A.D. 301 by a Christian stonecutter named Marinus, who had fled from Dalmatia to escape religious persecution (he was later canonized). During the invasions of Italy by barbarian tribes the Christian community that had sprung up around a cave on Mount Titano reinforced the slopes of the mountain with walls and ramparts. Later San Marino became part of the Ravenna Exarchate and the Lombard Kingdom. San Marino is considered to be the oldest of the modern European states. The name “Republic of San Marino” appears for the first time in documents dating from the tenth century. Between the 11th and 13th centuries the republic’s holdings expanded through the purchase or annexation of adjacent areas. In the 15th century San Marino annexed the castle of Fiorentino and a number of villages.
In 1739 the republic was occupied by papal troops, but the next year Pope Clement XII recognized the republic’s independence. During the 19th century San Marino often served as a refuge for Italian patriots, including the Carbonari and other revolutionaries. G. Garibaldi and his followers found asylum here in 1849, when they were forced out of the Roman Republic by Austrian and papal troops. After the formation of a united Italian state in 1861, San Marino concluded a treaty of friendship with Italy in 1862; the treaty was renewed in 1872, 1897, and 1953. Universal suffrage was introduced for men in 1909 and for women in 1960.
During World War I the republic joined the Entente, contributing 15 soldiers. When the fascists came to power in Italy in 1922, fascist elements became active in San Marino, seizing power in 1923. The fascists attacked the country’s democratic institutions, and the section of the Italian Communist Party that had been founded in the republic in February 1921 was soon destroyed. Although San Marino proclaimed its neutrality in World War II, it was bombed by the Anglo-American air force in June 1944 and was occupied by fascist German troops in September 1944.
After the war San Marino became an important center of international tourism. In the parliamentary elections of 1945 a coalition of antifascist parties came to power. Until 1957 the majority in parliament belonged to a coalition of left-wing parties headed by the Communists and Socialists. (The Socialist Party had been founded in 1903.) During these years several enterprises were nationalized, one-fourth of the country’s mountainous land was cultivated, industrial enterprises were built, and new schools were established. In October 1957, with the aid of Italian right-wing circles who had organized a blockade of the republic, San Marino’s right-wing forces staged a coup d’etat. The Communist and Socialist parties were removed from power. Since 1957 the country has been ruled by a coalition government headed by the Christian Democratic Party, founded in 1948. In 1956 consular relations were established with the USSR.
G. P. SMIRNOV
The country’s industrial and artisan production is aimed at satisfying domestic needs and serving foreign tourists. Textile enterprises produce woolen and knitted goods. Other important industrial products are cement, paper, leather, wrought metal, chemicals, furniture, and ceramics, chiefly majolica and glass articles. Building stone and sulfur are extracted. In agriculture small peasant farms predominate. In 1971, agricultural lands totaled 1,000 ha; the chief crops are grain and grapes.
Foreign trade is conducted chiefly through the port of Rimini, and Italy is the main trading partner. Important sources of state income are foreign tourism (approximately 3 million tourists in 1974) and the issuing of postage stamps and souvenirs (including special San Marino coins), together accounting for about one-third of the state revenues. San Marino is linked with Italy by a customs and postal union; every year the latter pays San Marino a fixed sum for refraining from collecting customs duties, establishing radio and television stations, or opening casinos. The monetary unit is the Italian lira.
The present educational system was established by a statute adopted in 1946. All schools are administered by the state, and education is compulsory for children between the ages of six and 14. At six years of age children enter a five-year primary school. Secondary education is offered by three-year lower middle schools and a five-year upper middle school. During the 1969–70 school year 1,580 pupils were enrolled in the country’s 18 primary schools, and 840 pupils attended its one upper middle school.
The capital is surrounded by walls, and its closely standing houses of one to three stories are situated on terraces carved out of the slopes. The public and church buildings dating from the Middle Ages and the Renaissance have been greatly altered by later renovations. Artworks from the schools of Rimini (14th century) and Bologna (17th century) have been preserved. The traditional forms of decorative applied art are stone carving and the production of ceramics. Noteworthy cultural institutions include the State Library, State Archives, State Museum, State Art Gallery, and Museum of Antique Weapons.