ABSTRACT
The study of the forms and degrees of the internationalisation of cities allows to analyse the connections between the phenomena on a local scale and those on a supra-local one (i.e. global) in the framework of urban networks. Studies of the phenomena of internationalisation in Italy have so far been rather limited from the geographical standpoint: in particular, no systematic studies exist on the internationalisation of the national urban system. Some information concerning the upper tiers of the urban hierarchy can be drawn from studies carried out at the European scale, such as those by Bonneville et al and FERE. The Italian urban system from the point of view of the presence of international functions is fairly differentiated. The geography of the international functions in Italy appears to be characterised by the simultaneous presence of two different models of integration in the European context.
