Got more UNESCO sites than they know what to do with, still mostly cares about nonna's ragù.
Fun fact: Home to the University of Bologna, the world's oldest continuously operating university, founded in 1088.
Persia had one of the greatest empires in history and then did a full rebrand, which seems like a waste.
Fun fact: The Persian Empire under Cyrus the Great once held an estimated 44% of the world's entire population.