Valdinievole or Val di Nievole (; "Valley of the Nievole (River)") is an area in the south-western part of the

province of Pistoia The province of Pistoia ( it, provincia di Pistoia) is a province in the Tuscany region of central Italy. Its capital is the city of Pistoia and the province is landlocked. It has an area of and a total population of 291,788 inhabitants (as of 2 ...

Tuscany it, Toscano (man) it, Toscana (woman) , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = Citizenship , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = Italian , demogra ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

Geography

The area is made up of 11

comuni The (; plural: ) is a local administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions ('' regioni'') and provinces (''province''). The can also ...

Buggiano Buggiano is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Pistoia in the Italian region Tuscany, located about northwest of Florence and about southwest of Pistoia. Main sights *Sanctuary of the Holy Crucifix (18th century) * Pieve di Sant'And ...

Chiesina Uzzanese Chiesina Uzzanese is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Pistoia in the Italian region Tuscany, located about west of Florence and about southwest of Pistoia. Chiesina Uzzanese borders the following municipalities: Altopascio, Bug ...

Larciano Larciano is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Pistoia in the Italian region of Tuscany. The town hall is located in San Rocco. Larciano is about 50 kilometers west of Florence and about 15 kilometers south of Pistoia. Larciano borde ...

Lamporecchio Lamporecchio () is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Pistoia in the Italian region Tuscany, located about west of Florence and about south of Pistoia, east of Montecatini Terme, and west of Vinci. Lamporecchio is the birthplace ...

, Massa e Cozzile,

Monsummano Terme Monsummano Terme is an ''comune'' located in the Province of Pistoia, Tuscany, central Italy. It is located in the Valdinievole, and is a popular spa resort. It is composed of two separate nuclei: Monsummano Alto, of Etruscan origins and with a c ...

Montecatini Terme Montecatini Terme is an Italian municipality (''comune'') of c. 20,000 inhabitants in the province of Pistoia, Tuscany, central Italy. It is the most important center in Valdinievole. The town is located at the eastern end of Piana di Lucca ...

Pescia Pescia () is an Italian city in the province of Pistoia, Tuscany, central Italy. It is located in a central zone between the cities Lucca and Florence, on the banks of the river of the same name. History Archaeological excavations have suggest ...

, Pieve a Nievole,

Ponte Buggianese Ponte Buggianese () is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Pistoia in the Italian region Tuscany, located about west of Florence and about southwest of Pistoia. Ponte Buggianese borders the following municipalities: Buggiano, Chi ...

, and Uzzano, and has a population of almost 120,000. Parts of the comuni of

Altopascio Altopascio is a ''comune'' in the Province of Lucca in the Tuscany region of Italy with a population of 15,572. History Already inhabited in Roman times, Altopascio gained in importance due to its ''Spedale'' (hostel, first mentioned in 1084) for ...

Montecarlo Monte Carlo (; ; french: Monte-Carlo , or colloquially ''Monte-Carl'' ; lij, Munte Carlu ; ) is officially an administrative area of the Principality of Monaco, specifically the ward of Monte Carlo/Spélugues, where the Monte Carlo Casino is ...

, Marliana, and Serravalle Pistoiese are as well geographically part of the valley. The main settlements are Montecatini and Monsummano, greatly developed in the last part of the 20th century, besides

, the historical capital, which has the only hospital and is the Catholic Bishop's seat. The name of the valley refers to the Nievole ''(Nièvole'' , from

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

''nebula'', that means fog), a river that flows in the eastern part of the valley, whose main river is however the Pescia Maggiore or Pescia di Pescia which, as the Pescia Minore or di Collodi, flows in the western part of Valdinievole. All the streams and rivers of Valdinievole flow into the marsh called Padule di Fucecchio, the southern border between Valdinievole and the

Arno The Arno is a river in the Tuscany region of Italy. It is the most important river of central Italy after the Tiber. Source and route The river originates on Monte Falterona in the Casentino area of the Apennines, and initially takes a ...

valley in the

province of Florence The province of Florence ( it, provincia di Firenze) was a province in the northeast of Tuscany region of Italy. The city or ''comune'' of Florence was both the capital of the Province of Florence, and of the Region of Tuscany. It had an area of ...

. On the northern and eastern sides of the valley there are hills, part of the lower Apennines and of the Montalbano.

Notable people

* Allucio of Campigliano (1070–1134), a saint born to a wealthy, landed family in the Valdinievole and he ministered to the poor and travellers there.

External links

APT Montecatini-Valdinevole
- Tourist office
Informazioni sulla Valdinievole
- Unofficial website
Museums in ValdinievoleSocial Network of Valdinievole
{{Authority control Valleys of Tuscany