The Apennines or Apennine Mountains (AP-ə-nyne; Ancient Greek: Ἀπέννινα ὄρη or Ἀπέννινον ὄρος; Latin: Appenninus or Apenninus Mons – a singular with plural meaning; Italian: Appennini) are a mountain range consisting of parallel smaller chains extending c.the length of peninsular Italy. In the northwest they join the Ligurian Alps at Altare. In the southwest they end at Reggio di Calabria, the coastal city at the tip of the peninsula. Since 2000 the Environment Ministry of Italy, following the recommendations of the Apennines Park of Europe Project, has defined the Apennines System to include the mountains of north Sicily, a total distance of 1,500 kilometres (930 mi). The system forms an arc enclosing the east of the Ligurian and Tyrrhenian seas.