Switzerland Wikipedia. Swiss Confederation. Schweizerische Eidgenossenschaft  GermanConfdration suisse  FrenchConfederazione Svizzera  ItalianConfederaziun svizra  RomanshConfoederatio Helvetica  LatinLocation of  Switzerland  greenin Europe  green dark greyCapital. None de jureBernde factonote 1124. N72. 7E 4. 6. N 7. E 4. Largest city. Zrich. Official languages. German. French. Italian. Romansh. Demonym. English Swiss,German Schweizerin,French Suissesse,Italian svizzerosvizzera, or elveticoelvetica,Romansh SvizzerSvizra. Government. Federal semi direct democracy under multi partyparliamentarydirectorial republic. Walter Thurnherr. Legislature. Federal Assembly. Council of States. National Council. Historyc.  1. 30. August 1. October 1. August 1. September 1. Area Total. Water 4. Population 2. Density. GDP PPP2. 01. 6 estimate Total5. Per capita6. 1,0. GDP nominal2. 01. Total6. 59 billion6 1. Per capita7. 8,2. Gini 2. 01. 5 2. HDI 2. Currency. Swiss franc CHFTime zone. CETUTC1CEST UTC2Date formatdd. Serial Web Utility 3Com Phone. ADDrives on theright. Calling code4. 1Patron saint. St Nicholas of Fle. ISO 3. 16. 6 code. CHInternet TLD. ch. Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a federal republic in Europe. It consists of 2. Bern is the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Central Europe,note 4 and is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland is a landlocked country geographically divided between the Alps, the Swiss Plateau and the Jura, spanning an area of 4. While the Alps occupy the greater part of the territory, the Swiss population of approximately eight million people is concentrated mostly on the plateau, where the largest cities are to be found among them are the two global cities and economic centres Zrich and Geneva. The establishment of the Old Swiss Confederacy dates to the late medieval period, resulting from a series of military successes against Austria and Burgundy. Swiss independence from the Holy Roman Empire was formally recognized in the Peace of Westphalia in 1. Switzerland s w t s r l n d, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a federal republic in Europe. It consists of 26 cantons, and the city of Bern is. The country has a history of armed neutrality going back to the Reformation it has not been in a state of war internationally since 1. United Nations until 2. Nevertheless, it pursues an active foreign policy and is frequently involved in peace building processes around the world. In addition to being the birthplace of the Red Cross, Switzerland is home to numerous international organisations, including the second largest UN office. On the European level, it is a founding member of the European Free Trade Association, but notably not part of the European Union or the European Economic Area. However, it participates in the Schengen Area and the European Single Market through bilateral treaties. Spanning the intersection of Germanic and Romance Europe, Switzerland comprises four main linguistic and cultural regions German, French, Italian and Romansh. Although the majority of the population are German speaking, Swiss national identity is rooted in a common historical background, shared values such as federalism and direct democracy,1. Alpine symbolism. Due to its linguistic diversity, Switzerland is known by a variety of native names Schweizvats German note 5Suissesis French Svizzerazvittsera Italian and Svizravitsr or vits Romansh. On coins and stamps, Latin frequently shortened to Helvetia is used instead of the four living languages. Switzerland is one of the most developed countries in the world, with the highest nominal wealth per adult and the eighth highestper capitagross domestic product according to the IMF. Switzerland ranks at or near the top globally in several metrics of national performance, including government transparency, civil liberties, quality of life, economic competitiveness, and human development. Zrich and Geneva have each been ranked among the top cities in the world in terms of quality of life, with the former ranked second globally, according to Mercer. Archives and past articles from the Philadelphia Inquirer, Philadelphia Daily News, and Philly. Get up to the minute entertainment news, celebrity interviews, celeb videos, photos, movies, TV, music news and pop culture on ABCNews. We would like to show you a description here but the site wont allow us. Retrouvez toutes les discothque Marseille et se retrouver dans les plus grandes soires en discothque Marseille. Etymology The English name Switzerland is a compound containing Switzer, an obsolete term for the Swiss, which was in use during the 1. The English adjective Swiss is a loan from French Suisse, also in use since the 1. The name Switzer is from the Alemannic. Schwiizer, in origin an inhabitant of Schwyz and its associated territory, one of the Waldsttten cantons which formed the nucleus of the Old Swiss Confederacy. The Swiss began to adopt the name for themselves after the Swabian War of 1. Confederates, Eidgenossen literally comrades by oath, used since the 1. The data code for Switzerland, CH, is derived from Latin. Confoederatio Helvetica English Helvetic Confederation. The toponym Schwyz itself was first attested in 9. Old High German. Suittes, ultimately perhaps related to swedan to burn cf. Old Norsesva to singe, burn, referring to the area of forest that was burned and cleared to build. The name was extended to the area dominated by the canton, and after the Swabian War of 1. Confederation. 1. The Swiss German name of the country, Schwiiz, is homophonous to that of the canton and the settlement, but distinguished by the use of the definite article dSchwiiz for the Confederation,2. Schwyz for the canton and the town. The Latin name Confoederatio Helvetica was neologized and introduced gradually after the formation of the federal state in 1. Napoleonic Helvetic Republic, appearing on coins from 1. Federal Palace in 1. Gallup Racer 2006 Pc Full Download' title='Gallup Racer 2006 Pc Full Download' />The ISO banking code, CHF for the Swiss franc, is taken from the states Latin name. Helvetica is derived from the Helvetii, a Gaulish tribe living on the Swiss plateau before the Roman era. Helvetia appears as a national personification of the Swiss confederacy in the 1. Johann Caspar Weissenbach. History. Switzerland has existed as a state in its present form since the adoption of the Swiss Federal Constitution in 1. The precursors of Switzerland established a protective alliance at the end of the 1. Early history. The oldest traces of hominid existence in Switzerland date back about 1. The oldest known farming settlements in Switzerland, which were found at Gchlingen, have been dated to around 5. BC. 2. 4The earliest known cultural tribes of the area were members of the Hallstatt and La Tne cultures, named after the archaeological site of La Tne on the north side of Lake Neuchtel. La Tne culture developed and flourished during the late Iron Age from around 4. BC,2. 4 possibly under some influence from the Greek and Etruscan civilisations. One of the most important tribal groups in the Swiss region was the Helvetii. Steadily harassed by the Germanic tribes, in 5. BC the Helvetii decided to abandon the Swiss plateau and migrate to western Gallia, but Julius Caesars armies pursued and defeated them at the Battle of Bibracte, in todays eastern France, forcing the tribe to move back to its original homeland. In 1. 5 BC, Tiberius, who was destined to be the second Roman emperor and his brother, Drusus, conquered the Alps, integrating them into the Roman Empire. The area occupied by the Helvetiithe namesakes of the later Confoederatio Helveticafirst became part of Romes Gallia Belgica province and then of its Germania Superior province, while the eastern portion of modern Switzerland was integrated into the Roman province of Raetia. Sometime around the start of the Common Era, the Romans maintained a large legionary camp called Vindonissa, now a ruin at the confluence of the Aare and Reuss rivers, near the town of Windisch, an outskirt of Brugg. The first and second century AD were an age of prosperity for the population living on the Swiss plateau. 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