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___ SwitzerlandDestination Switzerland, a virtual travel guide to Helvetia, how the country was called in ancient times. This page aims to give you a broad overview of Switzerland's art, culture, people, environment, geography, history, economy and government.Beside a country profile with facts and figures, the page contains links to sources which provide you with all the information you need to know about this alpine nation, e.g.: official web sites of Switzerland, addresses of Swiss and foreign embassies, domestic airlines, city- and country guides providing extensive travel and tourism information on accommodation, tourist attractions, events and more like weather information, maps, statistics and local newspapers from Switzerland. |
 Clock Tower - Bern, the Swiss Capital © Bern Tourism | |
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Switzerland | Suisse | Schweiz | Svizzera | Suiza | Svizra |
Country Profile |
 Flag of Switzerland In the 13th century, the Gotthard Pass region in the heart of the Alps became negotiable and rapidly developed into an economically important north-south crossing point. As a result, the valleys of Uri, Schwyz, and Unterwalden at the north foot of the Gotthard massif suddenly became a focal point of European power politics, and this led their inhabitants to found the core of what was to become Switzerland with a pact of mutual assistance. Today Switzerland is a federal state in Central Europe. It is bordered by Germany, to the north, Austria and the Principality of Liechtenstein, to the east, Italy, to the south and France, to the west. Switzerland's independence and neutrality have long been honored by the major European powers and Switzerland was not involved in either of the two World Wars. The political and economic integration of Europe over the past half century, as well as Switzerland's role in many UN and international organizations, may be rendering obsolete the country's concern for neutrality. border countries: Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Liechtenstein |
 Official Name: Schweizerische Eidgenossenschaft (German) Confederation Suisse (French) Confederazione Svizzera (Italian) short form: Suisse, Schweiz, Svizzera int'l long form: Swiss Confederation int'l short form: Switzerland ISO Country Code: ch Time: Time Zone: Central European Time Local Time = UTC +1h Actual Time: Sun-May-11 00:14 Daylight Saving Time (DST) March - October (UTC +2) Capital City: Bern (Berne) Berne (pop. 123 000) The Municipality of Berne. Major Cities: Basel, Genève (Genf, Genève, Geneva), Luzern, Lausanne, Lugano, Zürich. Government: Type: Federal republic. Independence: The first Swiss Confederation was founded in August 1291 as a defensive alliance among three cantons. The Swiss Confederation established independence from the Holy Roman Empire in 1499. Constitution: 1848; extensively amended in 1874; fully revised in 2000 Federal Charter of 1291 Document of the Federal Charter. National Day (Bundesfeier/fête nationale/festa nazionale): 1. August (Celebrates the Oath of 1291, which is considered the start of the Swiss Confederation). Geography: Location: Central Europe, south of Germany, east of France and north of Italy. Area: 41 285 sq. km. (15 941 sq. mi.) Terrain: 60% mountains, the remainder hills and plateau. Switzerland straddles the central ranges of the Alps. Climate: From Central European in the north to Mediterranean in the south, varying with altitude and season. People: Nationality: Noun and adjective--Swiss. Population: 7.3 million. GNI per capita PPP: $ 33 168 Ethnic groups: Mixed European--German 65%, French 18%, Italian 10%, Romansch 1%, other. Religions: Roman Catholic 42%, Protestant 33%, Muslim 4.3%, others 5.4%, no religion 11%. Languages: German 63.7%, French 20.4%, Italian 6.5%, Romansch 0.5%, are official languages, other 9.4%. Literacy: 100%. Natural resources: Waterpower, timber, salt. Agricultural Products: Dairy, livestock, grains, fruit and vegetables, potatoes, wine. Industries: Wachinery, chemicals, watches, textiles, precision instruments. Exports partners: Germany 20.8%, USA 11.3%, France 8.7%, Italy 8.3%, UK 4.9%, Japan 4% (2003) Imports partners: Germany 32.3%, France 10.8%, Italy 10.7%, USA 5.5%, Netherlands 5%, Austria 4.2%, UK 4.1% (2003) Currency: Swiss Franc (CHF) |
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| Note: External links will open in a new browser window. Official Sites of SwitzerlandConfoederatio HelveticaThe Federal Authorities of the Swiss Confederation, with access to the Internet Sites of the Parliament, the Chancellery and the federal Departments. The Swiss Parliament Official site of Switzerland's parliament. Swiss Government Online Register of the official Internet sites of the Helvetic Administration and Public Services. www.ch.ch www.ch.ch will guide you to Swiss administrative services at the federal level and in the cantons and communes. Eidgenössisches Departement für auswärtige Angelegenheiten (EDA) Federal Department of Foreign Affairs. Diplomatic Missions Permanent Mission of Switzerland to the United Nations The website introduces Switzerland's positions on important UN related issues. Embassy of Switzerland Washington D.C. Swiss Embassies, Consulates and other Missions abroad Address list of Swiss representations worldwide. Foreign Representations in Switzerland Address list of Foreign Representations in Switzerland. Statistics Statistik Schweiz - Bundesamt für Statistik Swiss Statistics. Weather MeteoSwiss Swiss Meteorological Institute. Maps Map of Switzerland Political Map of Switzerland.  Google
Map SwitzerlandZoomable satellite view and map of Switzerland. Google
Map BernZoomable satellite view of Switzerland's capital city. Google
Map GenevaZoomable satellite view of Geneva. Google
Map Zurich Zoomable satellite view of Zurich. Map
of EuropePolitical map of Europe. |
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| Switzerland News Le Matin National and international news (in French). Neue Zürcher Zeitung A leading Swiss newspaper with an international reputation.  SwissinfoNational and international news in 8 languages by Swiss Radio International. Tribune de Genève National and international news (in French, has an English corner). Die Weltwoche Another well-known Swiss Newspaper. |
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Arts & CultureVisual ArtsArt Brut Dubuffet's collection of "Art Brut". Kunstmuseum Basel Museum for contemporary art. Museum Jean Tinguely Méta-Matics and more. swissart Network Portal for art lovers and art professionals in Switzerland and around the world. Museums International Red Cross and Red Crescent Museum History of the world's first humanitarian organisation. Schweizerisches Landesmuseum The Swiss national museum. Technorama An interactive science museum (German). Verkehrshaus The Swiss Museum of Transport and Communication. Museums of Switzerland A guide to Swiss museums (in German, French, and Italian). Literatur Friedrich Dürrenmatt About the Swiss playwright and essayist - Books from Friedrich Dürrenmatt Music Montreux Jazz Festival International Festival of Jazz since 1967. music.ch A guide to popular Swiss music. Paléo Festival Biggest open-air music event in Switzerland, includes rock, French chanson, world music, reggae, hip hop, classical music and street theatre. Yello Contemporary Swiss music - Music of Yello Theater Schauspielhaus Zürich One of the most renowned theaters in Switzerland.
cl culturelinksAccess to all culture websites in Switzerland as well as to Swiss culture websites abroad. |
 Books
about Art and Culture of SwitzerlandContemporary Art in Switzerland |
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Business & EconomySwiss National BankCentral Bank of Switzerland. SWX Swiss Exchange The Swiss Stock Exchange. Die schweizerischen Industrie- und Handelskammern Chambers of commerce and industry of Switzerland. Swiss Products Lindt Swiss chocolate. Nestlé Home of Nescafé. Swiss Alpine Cheese Choose your Switzerland cheese. Swiss Red Cross Henry Dunant's dream come true in 1866, the foundation of the Red Cross in Switzerland. Victorinox The Swiss Army Knive. Swiss Watches Audemars Piguet The master of watchmaking since 1875. Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry All the Swiss watch makers. F.P. Journe Chronometer - Invenit et Fecit. Swatch Modern times Swiss watches for collectors. Swisstime The Wonderful World of Swiss Watches. __Transportation Airline Edelweiss Air Edelweiss Air serves various destinations in the Mediterranean, in the Caribbean, Kenya and the Maldives. Helvetic Airways Focuses on non-stop flights from Zurich to attractive destinations in Northern Africa and Southern Europe. Swiss International Air Lines The Swiss Flag Carrier - its site provides intercontinental flights schedules, time tables, special offers and frequent flyer program. Railroad AlpTransit Gotthard The new Gotthard railway. Matterhorn Gotthard Bahn Glacier Express Famous Swiss mountain railways from St.Moritz to Zermatt and the slowest express train in the world. Gornergrat Bahn The Gornergrat Bahn takes you from Zermatt up the 3089 m high Gornergrat. Rhätische Bahn Arosa Railway, Bernina Express and other railways. Schweizer Bundesbahnen - SBB Swiss Federal Railways. |
Books
about Clocks and Watches from Switzerland Swiss watches |
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Destination Switzerland - Travel and Tour GuidesDiscover Switzerland: St. Moritz, Davos, Lausanne, Zermatt, Lugano, Geneva, the Matterhorn, thew Swiss cantons.Find hotel, accommodation, attractions, festivals, events, tourist boards, the alps, wellness, health resorts and spas skiing, climbing, tours and much more by following the links below. Switzerland Tourism Information for the travel destination Switzerland. swissworld.org Switzerland's official portal. Comprehensive information about Switzerland in its diversity: geography, economy, science, people, culture, government and history. Switzerland: a brief guide A brief guide to Switzerland. traveling.ch Commercial Swiss portal with extensive travel and tourism information. Cantons and Regions Graubünden Tourism guide to the largest and easternmost canton of Switzerland. Grindelwald Tourism Travel and tourism in the Grindelwald region. Lake Geneva Region The Lake Geneva Region offers Alpine panorama and an almost Mediterranean climate. Montreux-Vevey Tourisme The official tourist guide for the Pearl of the "Swiss Riviera". Neuchâtel Official tourism website of the canton Neuchâtel. Watch Valley Site about the Swiss watch makers. Ticino Tourismus Official tourism guide of Ticino canton in the southernmost corner of Switzerland. Thurgau Tourism in the canton at Lake of Constance. Valais Canton Wallis Tourism. City Guides Arosa Tourismus Tourism site of the city of Arosa, the "generation holidays place" up on 1 800 meter height. Basel The cultural and economic region of Basel. Bern Tourism Visit Switzerlands' unknown capital. Davos Official site of the largest mountain resort of Europe. Genève (Genf, Genève, Geneva) The official Site of the International Swiss City. Luzern The official site of the City of Luzern. Lausanne The City of Lausanne. Lugano City of Lugano, the official website. St. Moritz Official site of the world-famous village in the Engadine valley. Zermatt The city in the Matterhorn region (Valais) Zürich Official portal of Zürich tourism. Hotels Beau-Rivage Hotels have their anecdotes, grand hotels sometimes a history, but only certain palatial establishments can claim to embody a legend. Swiss Deluxe Hotels Leading hotels in Switzerland. |
 Grindelwald Glacier © swiss-image.ch/Photo: Walter Storto  Lake Thun © swiss-image.ch/Photo: Stephan Engler |
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| Education & Research Uni Basel The University of Basel (in German). Universität Bern Université de Genéve University of Geneva, founded in 1559. Université de Lausanne Foundation of the Academy in 1537. Universität Zürich University of Zurich, founded in 1833. Science European Laboratory for Particle Physics "Conseil Européen pour la Recherche Nucléaire" - Some of the experiments of CERN leads to a communication tool called the internet Swiss
Meteorite LaboratoryReal visitors from outer space. |
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Environment - Environmental organizations SwitzerlandGovernmental OrganizationsSwiss Agency for the Environment, Forests and Landscape (SAEFL) SAEFL is the federal government's centre of environmental expertise. Swisstopo Federal Office of Topography. NGOs Greenpeace Switzerland Swiss section of Greenpeace. Pro Natura - Friends of the Earth Switzerland Pro Natura is a private non-profit organization founded in 1909. It's the largest conservation organization in Switzerland. WWF Schweiz The Swiss section of WWF (in German, French, and Italian.) Nature biosphaere.ch UNESCO Biosphäre Entlebuch. |
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HistoryMapMap of the Swiss Confederation, 1291-1513 The Origin of the Swiss Flag Historical Dictionary of Switzerland Includes the most important topics and objects of Swiss history from prehistory up to the present. (in German, French, and Italian). History of Switzerland Overview of Swiss History. History of Switzerland: Primary Documents List of links to Primary Documents of Switzerland's history. Political System & Foreign Policy History of Switzerland. Schweizerische Landesbibliothek The Swiss National Library. Swiss Archives of Contemporary History The Archives promotes historical research in Switzerland and is part of the Institut für Geschichte The Swiss Institute for History. Swiss History Comprehensive site about Swiss history from Prehistory to the 20th Century by swissworld.org. |
Books
about the History of Switzerland History of Switzerland |
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Searchsear.chSwiss search engine (German). ToplinksDirectory of Swiss websites by Swissinfo. Additional Information on SwitzerlandBBC News Country Profile: SwitzerlandGovernments on the WWW: Switzerland Open Directory Project: Switzerland Wikipedia: Switzerland The World Factbook -- Switzerland |
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| The Switzerland page was last modified on: Wednesday, 17-Oct-2007 04:19:09 CEST |
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