“There is a tree”
“There are some people”

We can express these statements in Italian by using c’è  [there is] and ci sono [there are].

One of the meanings of the pronoun ci  is “there”.
We can pair CI with the verb essere – to be [è =  is   /  sono = are]      
​And we get...

 ci + è = c’è                ci + sono = ci sono

Why does c’è look different?  Well, it is technically ci è but to avoid pronouncing the double vowel  (which takes longer to say!), we drop the ‘i’ and add an apostrophe, so it becomes c’è.

Esempi / Examples:

C’è una penna sul tavolo.  
​There is a pen on the table.

Non c’è problema. 
​(there is) No problem.   

-Scusi, c’è Anna? 
​ -No, non c’è. 
- Excuse me, is Anna there?
- No, she’s not.    
​  
Non c’è il professore oggi.  
The professor is not here today.
​
Ci sono due libri nello zaino.
There are two books in the backpack.     
​  
Quanti bicchieri ci sono sul tavolo?
​How many glasses are (there) on the table?

Pratica!