<P> This may be consistent with the theory that in Greek Alpes is a name of non-Indo - European origin (which is common for prominent mountains and mountain ranges in the Mediterranean region). According to the Oxford English Dictionary, the Latin Alpes might possibly derive from a pre-Indo - European word * alb "hill"; "Albania" is a related derivation . Albania, a name not native to the region known as the country of Albania, has been used as a name for a number of mountainous areas across Europe . In Roman times, "Albania" was a name for the eastern Caucasus, while in the English languages "Albania" (or "Albany") was occasionally used as a name for Scotland, although many scholars point out this is more likely derived from the Latin albus, the color white . </P> <P> In modern languages the term alp, alm, albe or alpe refers to a grazing pastures in the alpine regions below the glaciers, not the peaks . An alp refers to a high mountain pasture where cows are taken to be grazed during the summer months and where hay barns can be found, and the term "the Alps", referring to the mountains, is a misnomer . The term for the mountain peaks varies by nation and language: words such as Horn, Kogel, Kopf, Gipfel, Spitze, Stock, and Berg are used in German speaking regions; Mont, Pic, Tête, Pointe, Dent, Roche, and Aiguille in French speaking regions; and Monte, Picco, Corno, Punta, Pizzo, or Cima in Italian speaking regions . </P> <P> The Alps are a crescent shaped geographic feature of central Europe that ranges in a 800 km (500 mi) arc from east to west and is 200 km (120 mi) in width . The mean height of the mountain peaks is 2.5 km (1.6 mi). The range stretches from the Mediterranean Sea north above the Po basin, extending through France from Grenoble, and stretching eastward through mid and southern Switzerland . The range continues onward toward Vienna, Austria, and east to the Adriatic Sea and Slovenia . To the south it dips into northern Italy and to the north extends to the southern border of Bavaria in Germany . In areas like Chiasso, Switzerland, and Allgäu, Bavaria, the demarcation between the mountain range and the flatlands are clear; in other places such as Geneva, the demarcation is less clear . The countries with the greatest alpine territory are Switzerland, France (21.4%), Austria (28.7% of the total area) and Italy (27.2%). </P> <P> The highest portion of the range is divided by the glacial trough of the Rhône valley, from Mont Blanc to the Matterhorn and Monte Rosa on the southern side, and the Bernese Alps on the northern . The peaks in the easterly portion of the range, in Austria and Slovenia, are smaller than those in the central and western portions . </P>

Where are the italian alps located in italy