The Roman Forum, or Forum Romanum in Latin, is a rectangular plaza surrounded by the ruins of several important ancient government buildings at the center of the city of Rome. For centuries the Forum was the center of day-to-day life in Rome: the site of triumphal processions and elections; the venue for public speeches, criminal trials, and gladiatorial matches; and the nucleus of commercial affairs. The teeming heart of ancient Rome, it has been called the most celebrated meeting place in the world, and in all history. Located in the small valley between the Palatine and Capitoline Hills, the Forum today is a sprawling ruin of architectural fragments and intermittent archaeological excavations attracting over 4.5 million sightseers a year.