Sutri sits in northern Lazio, in the Tuscia area of the Viterbo province, about 40 miles north of Rome along the Via Cassia. The historic core occupies a narrow ridge of volcanic tuff above ravines, which helps explain both its long settlement and its compact layout. Sutri is on the Via Francigena pilgrim route and has been recognized among Italy’s “most beautiful villages.” 

The name comes from Latin Sutrium, itself from an older Etruscan form often rendered as Suthri. Ancient sources placed the town on the southern Etruscan frontier; Livy called Sutrium, together with nearby Nepi, a “key” to Etruria, underscoring its position on the road that later became the Via Cassia.