Search results
Feb 24, 2021 · Physical map of Switzerland showing major cities, terrain, national parks, rivers, and surrounding countries with international borders and outline maps. Key facts about Switzerland.
- Overview
- Land
Switzerland, federated country of central Europe. Switzerland’s administrative capital is Bern, while Lausanne serves as its judicial centre. Switzerland’s small size—its total area is about half that of Scotland—and its modest population give little indication of its international significance.
A landlocked country of towering mountains, deep Alpine lakes, grassy valleys dotted with neat farms and small villages, and thriving cities that blend the old and the new, Switzerland is the nexus of the diverse physical and cultural geography of western Europe, renowned for both its natural beauty and its way of life. Aspects of both have become bywords for the country, whose very name conjures images of the glacier-carved Alps beloved of writers, artists, photographers, and outdoor sports enthusiasts from around the world.
For many outsiders, Switzerland also evokes a prosperous if rather staid and unexciting society, an image that is now dated. Switzerland remains wealthy and orderly, but its mountain-walled valleys are far more likely to echo the music of a local rock band than a yodel or an alphorn. Most Swiss live in towns and cities, not in the idyllic rural landscapes that captivated the world through Johanna Spyri’s Heidi (1880–81), the country’s best-known literary work. Switzerland’s cities have emerged as international centres of industry and commerce connected to the larger world, a very different tenor from Switzerland’s isolated, more inward-looking past. As a consequence of its remarkably long-lived stability and carefully guarded neutrality, Switzerland—Geneva, in particular—has been selected as headquarters for a wide array of governmental and nongovernmental organizations, including many associated with the United Nations (UN)—an organization the Swiss resisted joining until the early 21st century.
Switzerland’s rugged topography and multicultural milieu have tended to emphasize difference. People living in close proximity may speak markedly distinct, sometimes nearly mutually unintelligible dialects of their first language, if not a different language altogether. German, French, Italian, and Romansh all enjoy national status, and English is spoken widely. Invisible lines separate historically Protestant from historically Roman Catholic districts, while the tall mountains of the St. Gotthard Pass separate northern from southern Europe and their diverse sensibilities and habits. Yet, Switzerland has forged strength from all these differences, creating a peaceful society in which individual rights are carefully balanced against community and national interests.
Britannica Quiz
Which Country Is Larger By Area? Quiz
Switzerland is bordered to the west by France, to the north by Germany, to the east by Austria and Liechtenstein, and to the south by Italy. It extends about 135 miles (220 km) from north to south and 220 miles (350 km) at its widest extent from west to east. Switzerland’s landscape is among the world’s most unusual, and it has long had to contend ...
Jul 17, 2019 · What is the Capital of Switzerland? Bern is referred to within Switzerland as the federal city. Although Switzerland is without an official capital, the city of Bern is the de-facto seat of government in the country.
Physical map of Switzerland (in German) Extending across the north and south side of the Alps in west -central Europe, Switzerland encompasses diverse landscapes and climates across its 41,285 square kilometres (15,940 sq mi).
Nov 15, 2023 · Find detailed maps of Switzerland, including political, physical, railway, canton and language maps. See the capital city of each canton and the location of Switzerland in Europe.
- 15,940 sq mi (41,285 sq km)
- German, French, Italian, Romansh
- Bern
- ~ 8,950,000
Bern (Swiss Standard German: ⓘ, German:), or Berne (French: ⓘ), is the de facto capital of Switzerland, referred to as the "federal city". With a population of about 133,000 (as of 2022), Bern is the fifth-most populous city in Switzerland, behind Zürich, Geneva, Basel and Lausanne.
People also ask
What is the capital of Switzerland?
What is the largest city in Switzerland?
Where is the old city in Switzerland?
Where is Switzerland located?
Bern is the capital of Switzerland. Bern, Switzerland's fourth-largest city by population, is a pivotal hub for politics, economy, and education.
