Latinised form of the Greek ), () and (). Geography Sardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea (after Sicily and before Cyprus), with an area of . It is situated between 38° 51' and 41° 18' latitude north (respectively Isola del Toro and Isola La Presa) and 8° 8' and 9° 50' east longitude (respectively Capo dell'Argentiera and Capo Comino). To the west of Sardinia is the Sea of Sardinia, a unit of the Mediterranean Sea; to Sardinia's east is the Tyrrhenian Sea, which is also an element of the Mediterranean Sea. The nearest land masses are (clockwise from north) the island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Tunisia, the Balearic Islands, and Provence. The Tyrrhenian Sea portion of the Mediterranean Sea is directly to the east of Sardinia between the Sardinian east coast and the west coast of the Italian mainland peninsula. The Strait of Bonifacio is directly north of Sardinia and separates Sardinia from the French island of Corsica. The coasts of Sardinia are long. They are generally high and rocky, with long, relatively straight stretches of coastline, many outstanding headlands, a few wide, deep bays, rias, many inlets and with various smaller islands off the coast. The island has an ancient geoformation and, unlike Sicily and mainland Italy, is not earthquake-prone. Its rocks date in fact from the Palaeozoic Era (up to 500 million years old). Due to long erosion processes, the island's highlands, formed of granite, schist, trachyte, basalt (called jaras or gollei), sandstone and dolomite limestone (called tonneri or 'heels'), average at between . The highest peak is Punta La Marmora ( in Sardinian language) (), part of the Gennargentu Ranges in the centre of the island. Other mountain chains are Monte Limbara () in the northeast, the Chain of Marghine and Goceano () running crosswise for towards the north, the Monte Albo (), the Sette Fratelli Range in the southeast, and the Sulcis Mountains and the Monte Linas (). The island's ranges and plateaux are separated by wide alluvial valleys and flatlands, the main ones being the Campidano in the southwest between Oristano and Cagliari and the Nurra in the northwest. Sardinia has few major rivers, the largest being the Tirso, long, which flows into the Sea of Sardinia, the Coghinas () and the Flumendosa (). There are 54 artificial lakes and dams that supply water and electricity. The main ones are