Learn Italian: Dov'è la polizia? - Where are the police?

In English, "police" is treated as a plural noun ("the police are"). However, in Italian, la polizia is a singular feminine noun referring to the police force as a single unit. Therefore, it uses the singular verb è (is).

What does the apostrophe in "Dov'è" mean?

Dov'è is a contraction of the question word dove (where) and the verb è (is). Because dove ends with a vowel and è starts with one, the "e" on dove is dropped and replaced with an apostrophe to make it flow better when spoken.

Why is the subject "la polizia" at the end of the sentence?

This is the standard word order for Italian questions. The question word (dove) opens the sentence, and the verb (è) follows immediately. The subject (la polizia) comes after the verb. Notice that Italian doesn't use extra helper verbs or change the word order like English does!

Could I just say "Dov'è polizia" without the "la"?

No, you need the definite article la. In Italian, broad concepts and specific institutions like the police generally require the definite article, so it must be la polizia.