Switzerland – country information

Country name	Switzerland
Official name	The Swiss Confederation
Capital	Bern
Continent	Europe
Area	41,284 km2
Population	8,112,200 (2013)
Foundation of a state	1. 8. 1291
The highest mountains	Dufourspitze (Monte Rosa) 4634 m
Longest rivers	Rhein (in the country 375 km)
The largest lakes	Lac Léman (Geneva region) 581 km 2
State system	a pluralistic federal republic with a bicameral parliament
The biggest cities	Zürich 855,000, Geneva 405,000, Basel 365,000, Bern (capital) 310,000
Official language	German, French, Italian, Romansh
Ethnicity/National Composition	population speaking German 63.5%, French 19.5%, Italian 7.5%, Yugoslav languages ​​2.7%, Spanish 1.6%, Romansh 0.5%, other 4.7%
Religious affiliation	Roman Catholics 46%, Protestants 40%, Muslims 1.5%, Jews 0.3%, other and no religion 12.2%
Currency	1 Swiss Franc (Sw F) = 100 centimes
gross domestic product (GDP)	US$44,864 (2012)
Average life expectancy of the population	80.51 years (2006)
Structure of GDP	agriculture and fishing 3%, mining and industry 26%, construction 8.5%, services 62.5%

Switzerland – neighboring states

State	Capital	Area	Population
France	Paris	551,500 km2	65,844,000
Italy	Rome	301,318 km2	59,943,933
Lichtenstein	Vaduz	160 km2	37 132
Germany	Berlin	357,022 km2	80,619,000
Austria	Vienna	83,858 km2	8,504,850

Country overview

According to Abbreviationfinder, Switzerland is a landlocked country in the southwestern part of Central Europe. Politically, Switzerland is a federal republic made up of 26 historical cantons. The population speaks four languages, yet the Swiss nation retains an admirable sense of unity.

Country data

Location: Europe

Time zone: CET

Total area: 41,277 km²

Land area: 39,997 km²

Water area: 1,280 km²

Length of the state border: 1,852 km

Bordering countries:
Germany: 334 km
France: 573 km
Italy: 740 km
Liechtenstein: 41 km
Austria: 164 km

Coastline: 0 km

Capital: Bern

Cantons: 26
Aargau, Ausser-Rhoden, Basel-Landschaft, Basel-Stadt, Bern, Friborg, Geneve, Glarus, Graubunden, Inner-Rhoden, Jura, Lucerne, Neuchatel, Nidwalden, Obwalden, Sankt Gallen, Schaffhausen, Schwyz, Solothurn, Thurgau, Ticino, Uri, Valais, Vaud, Zug, Zurich

Electric current: 220 V / 50 Hz

Telephone code: 00 41 (Source: Allcitycodes)

Highest point: Dufourspitze 4,634 m

Population

Population: approx. 8.1 million residents (Countryaah, 2021)

Population growth: 0.8% per year

Population density (residents per km²): 196

Life expectancy: 80 (male), 85 (female)

Official language: German, French, Italian, Romansh

Religions:

• 38% Roman Catholic
• 27% Protestants
• 5% Muslim
• 30% other

Climate

Since the altitudes show strong climatic differences, the climate in Switzerland is regionally different.

North and West:
The climate is temperate. The daytime temperatures are on average 15-20 ° C. In winter the temperature drops to 0 to -5 ° C.

South:
Due to the closer location to the Mediterranean Sea, it is always a bit warmer here than in the rest of Switzerland. During the day the thermometer rises to around 18-25 ° C. In winter, the temperature occasionally drops to 3 ° C.

Inland:
In the highlands of the Alps, there is daily sun almost all year round. However, due to the altitude, it is a few degrees Celsius colder than in the surrounding regions.

Currency / finance

Currency unit: Swiss franc (CHF)

Division: 1 franc = 100 cents

ATMs: Available in many cities, with credit / debit card and pin number.

International credit cards: These are accepted by many hotels and shops.

Regulations: Foreign and national currencies can be imported and exported in unlimited amounts.

Customs regulations

The following may be carried duty-free:

• 200 cigarettes or 50 cigars or 250 g of tobacco
• 1 liter of alcoholic beverages (max. 15% alcohol volume)
• small amounts of perfume

(Information applies to people aged 18 and over)

Tourists and people in transit can bring items of personal use with them duty-free.

Travel advice

There is currently no country-specific safety notice for Switzerland.

Economy

Thanks to industrial development, Switzerland has become an important industrial nation.

Although there are virtually no raw materials in the country, around a quarter of all working people are employed in industry.

Switzerland is best known for the high quality of its precision instruments. Watches are among the most popular and well-known export items.

Industries: chemistry, mechanical engineering, precision measuring instruments, textiles, tourism, clocks

Natural resources: wood, salt, hydropower

Land use:

• Usable land: 10%
• Grain cultivation: 2%
• Pasture area: 28%
• Forests: 32%
• other: 28%