Since its earliest days, Rome has always been divided into administrative districts.

At present, only the first fourteen rioni (the most ancient ones) are taken into consideration; the remaining eight will be added as soon as possible.

In order to easily locate each site, the name of the street or square where the feature is located will appear by running the mouse's cursor over the relevant picture, while the position of what is described in the text is also shown by means of small schematic plans of the area.
For a general introduction to Rome's districts, simply scroll down this page, or click here.

Lastly, a brief note about the background texture chosen for these pages. It features Rome's typical cobblestones, vaguely reminiscent of the larger and more irregular ones used in ancient times. Still nowadays, these heavy blocks of basalt are the most common form of paving found all over the city. They measure 12 x 12 cm (4¾ X 4¾ in) and sink into the ground for 17 cm (6 inches), laid one by one as in a mosaic.

They are locally known as sampietrini because they were first adopted in the mid 16th century for St.Peter's Square (although the earliest ones used to be about half the size of the modern stones), and then they were gradually used all over the city. Still today they are hand-made by a team of stone-masons known as squarcioni (i.e. "smashers") who break the large blocks of basalt), scoccioni ("chippers") who give the stones a prysmatic shape) and posatori ("layers") who do the last part of the job. In recent years, though, the large demand of sampietrini and the high costs of their making according to the traditional technique has led the City Council to have some of them made and imported from... Taiwan!! DISTRICT INDEX (clickable map) now available: 12th CENTURY I · Monti II · Trevi III · Colonna IV · Campo Marzio V · Ponte VI · Parione VII · Regola VIII · Sant'Eustachio IX · Pigna X · Campitelli XI · Sant'Angelo XII · Ripa 14th CENTURY XIII · Trastevere 16th CENTURY XIV · Borgo not available yet: 19th CENTURY XV · Esquilino XVI · Ludovisi XVII · Sallustiano XVIII · Castro Pretorio 20th CENTURY XIX · Celio XX · Testaccio XXI · San Saba XXII · Prati click here for an ENLARGEMENT of the map, which shows the location of some among Rome's main sites of interest For the sake of completeness, the following map shows the full extension of Rome's municipality; the table lists the quarters (districts immediately outside the city's historical nucleus) and suburbs (districts further off the center). The outer parts are divided into zones.    QUARTIERI    I · Flaminio II · Parioli III · Pinciano IV · Salario V · Nomentano VI · Tiburtino VII · Prenestino-Labicano VIII · Tuscolano IX · Appio Latino X · Ostiense XI · Portuense XII · Gianicolense XIII · Aurelio XIV · Trionfale XV · Della Vittoria XVI · Monte Sacro XVII · Trieste XVIII · Tor di Quinto XIX · Prenestino-Centocelle XX · Ardeatino XXI · Pietralata XXII · Collatino XXIII · Alessandrino XXIV · Don Bosco XXV · Appio Claudio XXVI · Appio Pignatelli XXVII · Primavalle XXVIII · Monte Sacro Alto XXIX · Ponte Mammolo XXX · San Basilio XXXI · Giuliano-Dalmata XXXII · Europa (EUR) XXXIII · Lido di Ostia Ponente XXXIV · Lido di Ostia Levante XXXV · Lido di Castel Fusano    SUBURBI    TQ · Tor di Quinto DV · Della Vittoria T · Trionfale A · Aurelio G · Gianicolense P · Portuense    ZONE    I - Val Melaina II - Castel Giubileo III - Marcigliana IV - Casal Boccone V - Tor San Giovanni VI - Settecamini VII - Tor Cervara VIII - Tor Sapienza IX - Acqua Vergine X - Lunghezza XI - San Vittorino XII - Torre Spaccata XIII - Torre Angela XIV - Borghesiana XV - Torre Maura XVI - Torrenova XVII - Torre Gaia XVIII - Capannelle XIX - Casal Morena XX - Aeroporto di Ciampino XXI - Torricola XXII - Cecchignola XXIII - Castel di Leva XXIV - Fonte Ostiense XXV - Vallerano XXVI - Castel di Decima XXVII - Torrino XXVIII - Tor de' Cenci XXIX - Castelporziano XXX - Castelfusano XXXI - Mezzocamino XXXII - Acilia Nord XXXIII - Acilia Sud XXXIV - Casalpalocco XXXV - Ostia Antica XXXVI* - Isola Sacra XXXVII* - Fiumicino XXXVIII* - Fregene XXXIX - Tor di Valle XL - Magliana Vecchia XLI - Ponte Galeria XLII* - Maccarese Sud XLIII* - Maccarese Nord XLIV - La Pisana XLV - Castel di Guido XLVI* - Torrimpietra XLVII* - Palidoro XLVIII - Casalotti XLIX - Santa Maria di Galeria L - Ottavia LI - La Storta LII - Cesano LIII - Tomba di Nerone LIV - La Giustiniana LV - Isola Farnese LVI - Grottarossa LVII - Labaro LVIII - Prima Porta LIX - Polline Martignano        [*] off the map, now belonging to Fiumicino HISTORICAL AND GENERAL NOTES ABOUT THE RIONI Rome's historical nucleus is divided into 22 districts called rioni. The name is a corruption of the Latin word regiones, i.e. the subdivisions first decreed by king Servius Tullius, around the 6th century BC, into which the city had been arranged. the first four regiones of king Servius Tullius They were originally four: Suburana, comprising the Coelian and the valleys between the same hill and, respectively, the Palatine and the Esquiline, Esquilina which stretched over the Esquiline Hill, Collina, comprising the Quirinal and Viminal hills; Palatina, the Palatine hill and the Roman Forum. The Capitolium hill was likely considered a sacred area of its own (the main Temple of Jupiter and other temples stood there), not counted among the regiones. This was the urban area enclosed by the Republican or Servian walls, i.e. Rome's earliest set of walls. the fourteen regiones of emperor Octavianus Augustus Following the city's expansion, Octavianus Augustus, the first emperor (27 BC-14 AD), raised their number to fourteen by including among them the urban territories built outside the old wall. Their names were referred to the main features of each district, although also their number was commonly used:    DISTRICT       NAME / REFERENCE FEATURE    Regio I Porta Capena Capena Gate (southernmost gate of the Servian Wall) Regio II Caelimontium the Coelian Hills (the Coelian and its minor reliefs) Regio III Isis et Serapis (Egyptian gods to whom two famous temples were dedicated) Regio IV Templum Pacis Temple of Peace Regio V Esquiliae Out of the Built-up Area Regio VI Alta Semita High Semitic district Regio VII Via Lata (old name of via Flaminia within Rome's boundary) Regio VIII Forum Romanum vel Magnum the Roman Forum (or Great Forum) Regio IX Circus Flaminius Flaminius' Circus Regio X Palatium the Palace Regio XI Circus Maximus the Greatest Circus Regio XII Piscina Publica Public Pool Regio XIII Aventinus Aventine Hill Regio XIV Transtiberim Beyond the Tiber (the river's western bank) The great fire of year 64 and a following one sixteen years later destroyed several regiones, and a large part of the city had to be rebuilt. Further destructions and alterations were suffered during the early Middle Ages, with the Gothic Wars and the barbaric invasions. As the Roman empire crumbled, also Rome's administration gradually lost power, and an unofficial subdivision of the urban territory based on religious jurisdiction , i.e. which parts of the city referred to the main churches as local parishes, also called Regiones, began to come into practical use as early as the 4th century. It comprised the following seven districts:    DISTRICT       NAME / REFERENCE FEATURE    Regio I Aventinensis or Horrea of the Aventine or the Wheat Deposits Regio II iuxta IV Coronatorum... by (the church of) the four Crowned (Saints)... Regio III iuxta porta Maiore by Porta Maggiore (a.k.a. Porta Praenestina) Regio IV qui appellatur Campum S.Agathae which is called Field of St.Agate Regio V iuxta arco marmoreo by the marble arch (along via Lata, no longer existing) Regio VI ad S.Maria in Sinikeo by St.Mary in Sinikeo's Regio VII ad Sanctum Petrum by St.Peter's (matching the old Regio XIV, Transtiberim) Despite the new religious arrangement, for several centuries Augustus' original Regiones were not officially discontinued, but the more time elapsed, the more things got mixed up. A document issued by pope Leo VIII (963-964) mentions the representatives of fifteen Regiones, whose names appear to be a blend of the old administrative and religious ones described so far. They were likely used unofficially, i.e. not for administrative nor religious purposes, but only to indicate a district after its main landmark. Only three of such names mention the Regio's ordering number, while for all the others this remains unclear.    NAME / REFERENCE FEATURE    Regio prima Aventini first District, of the Aventine Regio secunda Mamertini second District, of the Mamertine (see NOTE 1) Regio optava sub Capitolio eighth District, below the Capitolium (the Roman Forum area) Regio de Vico Patricii Districtof Patricii Lane (unidentified location) Regio Caput tauri Bull's head District(Tiburtina Gate) Regio clivi argentarii District of the Silversmiths' Ramp Regio ad duos (amantes) District by the two (lovers) (unidentified location) Regio liberatica Liberatica District (see NOTE 2) Regio Sisinii Sisinius District (unidentified location) Regio via Lata District of Lata Street Regio Coelio Monte Coelian Hill District Regio urbis Ravenne District of the city of Ravenna (Trastevere) (see NOTE 3) Regio ad gallinas albas District by the white hens (see NOTE 4) Regio horrea District of the wheat deposits (Aventine Hill) Regio secus porta Metronii District along Metronia Gate       NOTES 1. - After the Mamertine Prison, by the northern end of the Forum, where according to a legend St.Peter had been held. 2. - A corruption of 'Biberatica', an old Roman street, also used as a district landmark in the 14th century (see further). 3. - In Trastevere, the military corps from Ravenna had a camp. 4. - After the name of an old church, St.Sixtus ad gallinas albas, corresponding to the present via Panisperna. In 1144, the Senators, who by that time ruled the city, decided to rearrange Rome's inhabited territory (much smaller than in ancient times) into twelve districts, still called regiones in official documents, though no longer including the Tiber Island nor any area on the western side of the river. In fact, Trastevere - "beyond the Tiber" - entered again the official list of districts only in the early 14th century. No trace of this new arrangement is found yet in the first editions of the Mirabilia Urbis Romae ("wonders of the city of Rome"), a famous list and guide of the city's main features, written in Latin around the mid 12th century for the benefit of the many pilgrims who came to Rome, to visit St.Peter's tomb. ← a part of the map of Rome by Friar Paolino (c.1340), which shows the south of the city: in the center run the arches of the aqueduct branch built by Nero, which start by the church of Santa Croce in Gerusalemme; just below the latter is the Lateran area with St.John's, and also the mounted statue of Marcus Aurelius and the fragments (head, hand) of the huge statue of Constantine were there, while now they are in the Capitoline Museums; further down is the dark shape of the Coelian hill; on the far right run Aurelian's city walls; top left is the Esquiline hill with St.Mary the Major's; finally, bottom left stands a fancy-looking Colosseum ...with a dome! Instead in Le miracole de Roma ("Rome's wonders"), which is basically a translation of the aforesaid Mirabilia guide into archaic Italian, with some new parts added, roughly dating to the 13th century, a division into twelve districts is indeed mentioned:    ORDERING OF THE DISTRICTS ACCORDING TO LE MIRACOLE DE ROMA (13th CENTURY)    Regio Prima: Porta Capena, la dov'è la casa de lo Honore et de la Virtute, .... First District: Capena Gate, where the house of Honour and Virtue stands... Regio Secunda: Celio monte, là dove era lo Macello de Claudio et lo maiure vordello de Roma, .... Second District: Coelian hill, where Claudius' Slaughterhouse and Rome's main brothel stood... Regio Terza, là dove era lo Palazo de Yside et de Serapis, .... Third District, where the Palace of Isis and Serapis stood... Regio Quarta, la dove era templum Pacis .... Fourth District, where the temple of Peace stood... Regio Quinta, la dove era lo Pozo de Orpheo et lo Macello de Laviano .... Fifth District, where Orpheus' Well and Lavianus' Slaughterhouse stood... Regio Sexta: Alta Via, la dove era lo Templo de Salustio et de Serapis .... Sixth District: High Road, where the Temple of Sallust and Serapis stood... Regio Septima: Via Lata, lo quale avea lo Pozo de Ganimede .... Seventh District: Lata Street, which had Ganymede's Well... Regio Octava: lo Mercato Maiure de Roma .... Eighth District: Rome's Main Market... Regio Nona: Palatio Maiure, et avea la Casa de Romulo .... Ninth District: the Great Palace, and it had Romulus' House... Regio Decima avea Templum Solis et Lune, et Templum Mercurii .... the Tenth District had the Temple of the Sun and the Moon, and the Temple of Mercury... Regio Undecima: Piscina Publica .... Eleventh District: Public Pool... Regio Duodecima: Aventino .... Twelfth District: Aventine... Regio Tertiadecima ène Trastebere .... the Thirteenth District is Trastevere... The list clearly shows how the ancient arrangement by Augustus, looked at as the 'classic' one by scholars, was still used for cultural purposes, despite having lost administrative and bureaucratic effectiveness. In a late edition of the Mirabilia guide, dating from 1220-26, found in an Austrian library, a rather complex arrangement into 26 districts is mentioned. another part of the map by Friar Paolino, featuring → the Vatican, with St.Peter's (bottom) and the obelisk on its right side; in the top left corner is the Castle, the dark shape on the right is the Janiculum Hill    ORDERING OF THE DISTRICTS ACCORDING TO MIRABILIA URBIS ROMAE (LATE EDITION, 13th CENTURY)    Prima regio dicitur porticus Sancti Petri, The first district is called St.Peter's porch (see NOTE 1) secunda pons Sancti Petri, the second (is called) St.Peter's bridge III scorteclari the 3rd, the skinners IV parrio the 4th, Parione (see NOTE 2) V Sanctus Laurentius in Damaso the 5th, St.Laurence in Damaso VI campus Martis, the 6th, the Field of Mars septima Sanctus Laurentius in Lucina, the seventh, St.Laurence in Lucina octava columpna Antonini coclidis, the eighth, the spiral column of Antoninus IX Sancta Maria in Aquiro, the 9th, St.Mary in Aquiro X Sanctus Eustachius, the 10th, St.Eustachius XI vinea Tedemari, the 11th, Tedemarius' vineyard XII Areola, the 12th, Small Area (unidentified location) XIII Caoccavaia, the 13th, Caoccavaia (unidentified location) XIV S.Angelus piscivendoli, the 14th, St.Angel of the fishmongers' Quintadecima Pinea, the fifteenth, Pine-cone Sextadecima S.Marcus, the sixteenth, St.Mark VIIdecima Trivium, the 7teenth, Three-way Junction Octadecima Violata, the eighteenth, Violata (see NOTE 3) Nonadecima Campitellus, the nineteenth, Campitelli Vicesima S.Adrianus, the twentieth, St.Hadrian Vicesima I Biberatica, the twenty-1st, Biberatica (see NOTE 4) Vicesima II Montes vel Lateranum, the twenty-2nd, the Hills or the Lateran Vicesima III Ripa, the twenty-3rd, River Bank Vicesima IV Marmorata, the twenty-4th, Marmorata Vicesima V Insula, the twenty-5th, the Island Vicesima VI Transtyberim, the twenty-6th, Beyond the Tiber       NOTES 1. - In the Middle Ages, a long porch stretched all the way from the castle built over Hadrian's tomb to St.Peter's basilica. 2. - Parione means "large wall", referring to the scanty remains of the Stadium of Domitian (presently, piazza Navona). 3. - Likely, a misspelling of 'Via Lata', i.e. the name of the urban stretch of the Flaminian Way, since the Middle Ages 4. - Via Biberatica, also mentioned in the next list, was an ancient Roman street that ran by Trajan's Market. Interestingly, two among the aforesaid landmarks, namely the first and the second ones in the list, were located by the Vatican Hill, despite in the 1200s this area was not yet officially part of Rome's urban area. map of Rome's highlights dated 1472, looking southwards; Leo's City (bottom right corner) was still a separated citadel A catalogue of Rome's churches compiled in early Italian one and a half centuries later, in the late 1300s, mentions again the names of the districts, reveals that an evident change had occurred by that time, as shown in the table below. This text (featured in the next table) starts with the following lines: In the city are thirteen districts which, using a corrupted and popular term, are referred to as Rioni. The first one of them is the district of the Hills and Biberatica (Street). Second. district of the three-way crossing and Lata street. Third. district of the column and St.Mary in Aquiro.... etc. Therefore, despite the ordering had changed, the use of mentioning an outstanding local feature or landmark besides the name of the district, was still maintained for some time. Such additional reference often was the district's main church. This arrangement is not only the one in which the word Rioni is first mentioned, but also the one whose names are basically the same ones presently in use, although their boundaries partly mismatched. The following table compares their names and their ordering.      14th CENTURY ORDERING ORDERING         OF THE DISTRICTS         MODERN NAMES AND ORDERING         OF THE SAME THIRTEEN DISTRICTS    In urbe sunt Tredecim Regiones. Que corrupto et vulgari vocabulo dicuntur Rioni. Quarum Prima est Regio Montium et Biberate.    The first of which is the district of the Hills and Biberatica (Street). I. Monti  (matching) Secunda. Regio Trivi et Vielate.    Second. District of the Three-way Crossing and Lata street. II. Trevi  (matching) Tertia. Regio Colupne et sancte Marie in Aquiro.    Third. District of the Column and St.Mary in Aquiro's. III. Colonna  (matching) Quarta. Regio Posterule et sancti Laurentii in Lucina.    Fourth. District of the Small Gate and St.Laurence in Lucina's. IV. Campo Marzio Quinta. Regio Pontis et Scortichiariorum.    Fifth. District of the Bridge and the Skinners. V. Ponte  (matching) Sexta. Regio sancti Eustachii et vinee Tedemarii.    Sixth. District of St.Eustachius' and Tedemario's wineyard VI. Parione Septima. Regio Arenule et Chacabariorum.    Seventh. District of Arenula and the Pot-makers VII. Arenula  (matching) Octava. Regio Parionis et sancti Laurentii in Damaso.    Eighth. District of Parione and St.Laurence in Damaso's VIII. Parione Nona. Regio Pinee et sancti Marci.    Ninth. District of the Pine-cone and St.Mark's IX. Pigna  (matching) Decima. Regio Sancti Angeli in foro piscium.    Tenth. District of the Holy Angel in the fish-market X. Campitelli Undecima. Regio Ripe et Marmorate.    Eleventh. District of the River Bank and Marmorata XI. Sant'Angelo Duodecima. Regio Campitelli in sancti Adriani.    Twelfth. District of Campitelli by St.Hadrian's XII. Ripa Tertiodecima. Regio Transtiberim.    Thirteenth. District beyond the Tiber XIII. Trastevere  (matching) Seven of the modern ones have a matching name and ordering, and five of them have a matching name but their sequence is different; only one (Campo Marzio) does not correspond. These names also show that the ones found in the long 26-entry list of the late Mirabilia edition hel in Austria, previously described, might have been based on a misinterpretation, i.e. by splitting the same twelve double names into twenty-four separate entries. Over two centuries later, by the end of the 1500s, also Borgo - formerly called Leo's City, because already encircled by walls since the time of pope Leo IV (847-855), was officially included in Rome's urban territory, and became the 14th rione. In 1743, pope Benedict XIV reorganized the fourteen rioni; in the following year the districts were marked by placing a total of 220 marble plaques in the streets along which their new boundaries ran. Such boundaries have barely changed ever since, and most of the aforesaid plaques are still in their original location. They can be seen on many old buildings; some of them have been cleaned and restored, while others show heavy signs of ageing. In 1798, when Rome was occupied by Napoleon's troops, the administrative areas into which the city was divided were renamed Sezioni ("sections"); also their names, and also the extension of some of them, changed according to the following table. chronological evolution of the 22 rioni: 12th century 14th century 16th century 19th century 20th century 2 colours: rioni sprung from older ones    ADMINISTRATIVE DIVISION OF ROME UNDER THE FRENCH OCCUPATION    I. Rione Monti  (divided into two parts)         "         " II. Rione Trevi III. Rione Colonna IV. Rione Campo Marzio V. Rione Ponte VI. Rione Parione  with  VII. Rione Regola VIII. Rione Sant'Eustachio IX. Rione Pigna  with  XI. Rione Sant'Angelo X. Rione Campitelli  with  XII. Rione Ripa XIII. Rione Trastevere XIV. Rione Borgo ® ® ® ® ® ® ® ® ® ® ® ® Sezione delle Terme Sezione della Suburra Sezione del Quirinale Sezione del Pincio Sezione di Marte Sezione di Bruto Sezione di Pompeo Sezione di Flaminio Sezione del Pantheon Sezione del Campidoglio Sezione del Gianicolo Sezione del Vaticano "Section of the Baths" "Section of the Suburra" "Section of the Quirinal Hill" "Section of the Pincio Hill" "Section of Mars" "Section of Brutus" "Section of Pompeus" "Section of Flaminius" "Section of the Pantheon" "Section of the Capitolium Hill" "Section of the Janiculum Hill" "Section of the Vatican Hill"

Once the occupation was over, in 1814, the old division in fourteen Rioni was restored.

Shortly after the fall of the Papal State (1870), Rome's administrators grouped them into larger administrative districts, for which the old term Regioni (i.e. Italian for Latin Regiones) was retrieved:

CLUSTER	DISTRICTS COMPRISED
Regione I, Campidoglio	I. Monti + X. Campitelli
Regione II, Pantheon	II. Trevi + VI. Parione + VIII Sant'Eustachio + IX. Pigna
Regione III, Campo Marzio	III. Colonna + IV. Campo Marzio
Regione IV, Adriana	V. Ponte + VII. Regola + XIV. Borgo
Regione V, Tiberina	XI. Sant'Angelo + XII. Ripa + XIII. Trastevere

This arrangement though did not last very long, and was discontinued before the turn of the century; the Rioni soon turned again into fourteen individual administrative units. In 1874, the largest district, Monti, was split into two halves: the oldest one (western part) kept its name, while the eastern part became Rome's 15th rione, Esquilino. A few years later other areas in the northern and north-eastern part of the city were declared rioni: Pinciano, Ludovisi and Castro Pretorio. In 1921, further ones were created in the south, by shortening older and larger districts: Celio (XIX) sprung from a part of Monti (I) and a part of Campitelli (X), while San Saba (XXI) sprung from Ripa (XII). Also Prati was declared rione, the only one located outside the ancient Aurelian's Walls, due to a great urban expansion which had taken place in the area adjoning Borgo during the last decades of the 19th century.

a district plaque and a 'no dumping' plaque (both 18th century)

old and new signs, side by side in Regola district

In spite of Rome's modern growth (since the 1920s the city has more than tripled its surface), no further district was given the qualification of rione: the ones surrounding the historical nucleus were divided into quartieri (quarters), whose number reached 35, suburbi (suburbs), now 6, and 51 zone (areas representing the city's outskirts, in constant expansion). This arrangement is the one shown below the clickable map of the rioni (click here to go back to the picture). In the past, the sense of belonging to one's own rione was strongly felt by the local inhabitants. The district used to be the context where the common people spent most of their life.

In each rione a certain hierarchy existed, at the top of which stood the caporione ("district master"); he was chosen by the noble families and, as of the second half of the 18th century, directly by the pope. Since Monti was considered the most important among the rioni, its own caporione had the privilege of being a member of the Magistrates, thus of the ruling establishment.
In the 19th century the "district master" charge was turned into "president of the district".