Dodge Charger

There have been three entirely different Dodge vehicles bearing the Charger nameplate, but the name has generally denoted a performance model in the Dodge range:.
. 2006–present Dodge Charger (LX) — rear wheel drive fullsize car.
. 1983–1987 Dodge Charger (L-body) — front wheel drive compact hatchback.
. 1966–1978 Dodge Charger (B-body) — rear wheel drive muscle car.

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News stories from Wikinews. There is a growing population of Jews and Muslims in Italy, many of whom speak Hebrew and Arabic, respectively. Even today, variations in local accents allow people from one town to distinguish people from a neighbouring town which may be only a few miles away.

The arrival of immigrants has generated a plethora of new languages, including Arabic, Hindi, Punjabi, Urdu, Turkish, Kurdish, Mandarin Chinese, and others. Finally, the largest group of non-Italian speakers (some 1.6 million people) are the ones who speak Sardinian - a romance language which evolved quite independently from Italian. Around 100,000 (the Arbëreshë) in Southern Italy and in central Sicily speak Albanian - the result of past migrations. Some 15,000 Catalan speakers reside around the area of Alghero in the north-west corner of Sardinia - believed to be the result of a migration of a large group of Catalans from Barcelona in ages past.

Scattered across Southern Italy are a number of some 30,000 Greek-speakers - considered to be the last surviving traces of the region's Greek heritage (Ancient Greek colonists reached Southern Italy and Sicily about 1500 BC). In the Molise region of central-south Italy some 4,000 people speak Serbo-Croatian - these are the descendants of a group of people who migrated from the Balkans in the Middle Ages. A very large community of some 700,000 people in Friuli speak Friulian - another Rhaetian language. Some 40,000 Ladin-speakers (Ladin is a Rhaetian language spoken in the Dolomite mountains) also live in the Trentino-South Tyrol region and in the Veneto region.

About 80,000 Slovene-speakers live in the north-eastern region of Friuli-Venezia Giulia near the border with Slovenia. Some 120,000 or so people live in the Aosta Valley region, where a Franco-Provençal dialect very similar to French called Patois is spoken. In total some 300,000 or so Italians speak German as their first language and indeed identify themselves as ethnic Austrians. Pockets of German speakers also persist in other north-eastern Italian regions - a remnant of the old Austrian influence on this area of Italy.

In the north, the province of South Tyrol (Südtirol in German, Alto Adige in Italian) is almost entirely German-speaking; the area was awarded to Italy following the First World War and her defeat of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Apart from standard Italian and regional variations, a number of truly separate languages do exist. In addition, particular dialects have become cherished beacons of regional variation and are becoming recently more protected (especially the Neapolitan dialect which is extensively used for the singing of popular folk-songs). Today, Italian is fully comprehensible to all throughout the country, but regional variations in the form of accents and vowel emphasis persist.

It was not until the 60s, with the advent of the state television broadcaster, RAI, that Italian truly became standardised. A national education system was established - leading to a decrease in variation in the Italian spoken throughout the country over time. Given the variation in Italian language throughout the peninsula, it was quickly established that 'proper' or 'standard' Italian would be based on the Florentine dialect spoken in most of Tuscany (given that it was the first region to produce authors such as Dante Alighieri, who between 1308 and 1321 wrote the Divina Commedia). Massimo d'Azeglio, one of Cavour's ministers, is said to have stated, following Italian unification, that having created Italy, all that remained was to create Italians.

Indeed, each historical region of Italy had its own dialect, with variants existing at the township-level. Prior to unification in 1861, Italian spoken throughout the country was incredibly varied - with dialects being virtually mutually incomprehensible in most of the country. The official language of Italy is Standard Italian - a direct descendant of Latin (some 75% of Italian words are of Latin origin). See the separate article: Culture of Italy..

It has moved slowly, however, on implementing certain structural reforms favoured by economists, such as lightening the high tax burden and overhauling Italy's rigid labour market and expensive pension system, because of the current economic slowdown and opposition from labour unions. Italy's economic performance has at times lagged behind that of its EU partners, and the current government has enacted numerous short-term reforms aimed at improving competitiveness and long-term growth. Italy joined the Euro from its conception in 1999. Over the past decade, Italy has pursued a tight fiscal policy in order to meet the requirements of the Economic and Monetary Union and has benefited from lower interest and inflation rates.

Most raw materials needed by industry and more than 75% of energy requirements are imported. In comparison to its western European neighbours, it has a high number of small to medium sized enterprises (SMEes). This capitalistic economy remains divided into a developed industrial north, dominated by private companies, and a less developed agricultural south (with 20% unemployment). Italy has a diversified industrial economy with roughly the same total and per capita output as France and the United Kingdom.

Around 30,000 Jews, and 30,000 Buddhists live in Italy. The Muslim population currently stands at 825,000[3] (legal immigrants) or 1.4% of the population, lower than many Western European nations. Recent immigration from the North Africa has led to an increasing number of Muslims, but has cooled off due to larger immigration from Eastern Europe. There are few Protestant denominations in Italy, mostly Waldensians.

The second largest Christian group in Italy are Jehovah's Witnesses with some 400,000 [2] active members, and are growing annually. According to many other books (Reference) surveys (from Gallup, Christian Science Monitor, and others) Italy can claim above 40% weekly church attendance rate. Italy also has some important pilgrimages and famous Roman Catholic churches, cathedrals and sites. According to estimates by (CIA World Fact Book 2005, Italian polls, Adherents.com, BBCNews and others), it is safe to conclude that 87% of the Italian population self-identify as Roman Catholic, whereas around 13% identify with either other religions or none at all.

Roman Catholicism is by far the most popular religion in the country. Remaining groups include those who are Tunisian, Macedonians, Serbians, and Filipinos etc. According to these statistics, the largest foreign minorities are Albanians (316,659), Moroccan (294,945), Romanian (248,849¹), Chinese (111,712), and Ukrainian (93,441). They currently make up a little more than 4 % of the official total population.

The number of immigrants or foreign residents in Italy have steadily increased to reach 2,402,157, according to the latest figures (1/2005) of ISTAT. However, they have all been absorbed in a homogeneous Italian ethnic group. Since the beginning of Roman civilisation, important ethnic groups like Greek settlers, Germanic and Celtic invaders and plunderers, and Norman colonisers have all left important impressions on the people today. For a country of 58.4 million people, Italy has a smaller number of migrants compared to France and Germany.

Indigenous minority groups are small. The country has the fifth-highest population density in Europe at 194 persons per square kilometre. Italy is largely homogeneous in language and religion but is diverse culturally, economically, and politically. Sicily and Sardinia are the two major islands of Italy (comprehensive list).

Its highest point is Mont Blanc (Monte Bianco) at 4,810 m, but Italy is more typically associated with two famous volcanoes: the currently dormant Vesuvius near Naples and the very active Etna on Sicily. Other well-known rivers include the Tiber, Adige and Arno. Here is also found a large alluvial plain, the Po-Venetian plain, drained by the Po River--which is the Italy's biggest river--and its many tributaries flowing down from the Alps, Apennines and Dolomites. The Apennine mountains form the backbone of this peninsula, leading north-west to where they join the Alps, the mountain range that then forms an arc enclosing Italy from the north.

Italy consists predominantly of a large peninsula (the Italian peninsula) with a distinctive boot shape that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, where together with its two main islands Sicily and Sardinia it creates distinct bodies of water, such as the Adriatic Sea to the north-east, the Ionian Sea to the south-east, the Tyrrhenian Sea to the south-west and finally the Ligurian Sea to the north-west. All regions except the Aosta Valley are further subdivided into two or more provinces. Five of these regions enjoy a special autonomous status that enables them to enact legislation on some of their specific local matters, and are marked by an *:. Italy is subdivided into 20 regions (regioni, singular regione).

To vote for the senate, the voter must be at least 25. All the Italian citizens older than 18 can vote. A constitutional court, the Corte Costituzionale, passes on the constitutionality of laws, and is a post-World War II innovation. The Italian judicial system is based on Roman law modified by the Napoleonic code and later statutes.

Legislative bills may originate in either house and must be passed by a majority in both. Both houses are elected for a maximum of 5 years, but either may be dissolved before the expiration of its normal term. In addition to 315 senators, elected members, the Senate includes former presidents and several other persons (no more than 5) appointed for life by the President of the Republic according to special constitutional provisions. The Chamber of Deputies has officially 630 members (de facto, 619 only after the 2001 elections).

Under 1993 legislation, Italy has single-member districts for 75% of the seats in parliament; the remaining 25% of seats are allotted on a proportional basis. The houses of parliament are popularly and directly elected by a mixed majoritarian and proportional representation system. The Council of Ministers must retain the support (fiducia) of both houses. The president nominates the prime minister, who proposes the other ministers (formally named by the president).

The President of the Republic (Presidente della Repubblica) is elected for 7 years by the parliament sitting jointly with a small number of regional delegates. The 1948 Constitution of Italy established a bicameral parliament (Parlamento), consisting of a Chamber of Deputies (Camera dei Deputati) and a Senate (Senato della Repubblica), a separate judiciary, and an executive branch composed of a Council of Ministers (cabinet) (Consiglio dei ministri), headed by the prime minister (Presidente del consiglio dei ministri). The Vatican is now an independent enclave surrounded by Rome. Rome itself remained for a decade under the Papacy, and became part of the Kingdom of Italy only on September 20, 1870.

The architects of Italian unification were Count Camillo Benso di Cavour, the Chief Minister of Victor Emmanuel, and Giuseppe Garibaldi, a general and national hero. Modern Italy became a nation-state belatedly — on March 17, 1861, when most of the states of the peninsula were united under king Victor Emmanuel II of the Savoy dynasty, which ruled over Sardinia and Piedmont. After Magna Graecia, the Etruscan civilization and especially the Roman Republic and Empire that dominated this part of the world for many centuries, Italy was central to European science and art during the Middle Ages and Renaissance. Important cultures and civilizations have existed there since prehistoric times.

Italy has influenced the cultural and social development of the whole Mediterranean area, deeply influencing European culture as well. . Presently, Italy is a modern country with the 6th GDP in 2004, a member of G8 and a founding member of what is now the European Union signing the Treaty of Rome in 1957. Italy is called Belpaese (Italian for beautiful country) by their inhabitants, due to the beauty and variety of its landscapes and for its world's largest artistic patrimony; the country is home to the greatest number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites (40 until January 1, 2006).

Italy was also home to many well-known and influential civilisations, including the Etruscans, Greeks and the Romans. For more than 3,000 years Italy witnessed many migrations and invasions from Germanic, Celtic, Frankish, Byzantine Greek, Norman, and the French Angevin, and Lombard peoples. The independent countries of San Marino and the Vatican City are enclaves within Italian territory. It comprises the boot-shaped Italian peninsula, the Po River valley, and two large islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia, and shares its northern alpine boundary with France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia.

Italy, officially the Italian Republic (Italian: Italia or Repubblica Italiana), is a country in southern Europe. ² Prior to 1999: Italian Lira.. Travel guide to Italy from Wikitravel. Istituto nazionale di statistica - National statistics office, (in Italian).

Ministero degli Affari Esteri - Italian Foreign Office. Italia.gov.it - Main governmental portal (in Italian). Parlamento - Official site of the Italian parliament (Senate in Italian only). Presidenza della Repubblica - Official site of the Italian president (in Italian).

Retrieved October 31, 2005. Evenimentul Zilei, October 31, 2005. Mitrica, Mihai Un milion de romani s-au mutat in Italia ("One million Romanians have moved to Italy"). List of Italian companies.

Veneto (Venice, Venezia). Umbria (Perugia). Tuscany, Toscana (Florence Firenze). Trentino-South Tyrol*, Trentino-Alto Adige / Südtirol (Trento).

Sicily*, Sicilia (Palermo). Sardinia*, Sardegna (Cagliari). Piedmont, Piemonte (Turin, Torino). Molise (Campobasso).

Marche (Ancona). Lombardy Lombardia (Milan, Milano). Liguria (Genoa, Genova). Latium, Lazio (Rome, Roma).

Friuli-Venezia Giulia* (Trieste). Emilia-Romagna (Bologna). Campania (Naples, Napoli). Calabria (Catanzaro).

Basilicata (Potenza). Apulia, Puglia (Bari). Aosta Valley*, Valle d'Aosta / Vallée d'Aoste (Aosta). Abruzzo (with capital L'Aquila).