Vatican City

name

Etymology: A calque of Italian Città del Vaticano, from Latin Cīvitās Vāticāna (“Vatican City”), referring to the Vatican hill, whose further etymology is unknown.

1. A city-state in Southern Europe, an enclave within the city of Rome, Italy. Official name: Vatican City State.

   ““The new State, which will be known as the Vatican City, has a tiny territory,” the Pope [Pius XI] said, “but it is the greatest in the world because it contains Bernig’s^([sic]) colonnades, Michelangelo’s dome, treasures of art in the Vatican library, museums and galleries, and because, above all, it contains the tomb of the Prince of the Apostles. No more precious territory exists.””

   “Unlike most other countries in the world, citizenship in Vatican City isn’t solely provided to people that are born in the country. As there are no hospitals in the Vatican State, virtually no one is born in there. Instead, Vatican citizenship is provided on a ‘jus officii’ basis.”