| Also on Encarta |
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| Basic Facts |
| Official name |
Swiss Confederation |
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| Capital |
Bern |
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| Area |
41,285 sq km |
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15,940 sq mi |
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| Administrative divisions (population) |
| Aargau |
565,122 (2004 estimate) |
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| Appenzell Inner-Rhoden |
15,029 (2004 estimate) |
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| Appenzell Outer-Rhoden |
52,841 (2004 estimate) |
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| Basel-Country |
265,305 (2004 estimate) |
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| Basel-Town |
186,753 (2004 estimate) |
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| Bern |
955,378 (2004 estimate) |
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| Fribourg |
250,377 (2004 estimate) |
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| Geneva |
427,396 (2004 estimate) |
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| Glarus |
38,317 (2004 estimate) |
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| Graubünden |
187,812 (2004 estimate) |
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| Jura |
69,091 (2004 estimate) |
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| Lucerne |
354,731 (2004 estimate) |
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| Neuchâtel |
167,910 (2004 estimate) |
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| Nidwalden |
39,497 (2004 estimate) |
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| Obwalden |
31,300 (1998 estimate) |
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| St Gallen |
458,821 (2004 estimate) |
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| Schaffhausen |
73,788 (2004 estimate) |
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| Schwyz |
135,989 (2004 estimate) |
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| Solothurn |
247,379 (2004 estimate) |
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| Thurgau |
232,978 (2004 estimate) |
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| Ticino |
319,931 (2004 estimate) |
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| Uri |
35,083 (2004 estimate) |
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| Valais |
287,976 (2004 estimate) |
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| Vaud |
647,382 (2004 estimate) |
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| Zug |
105,244 (2004 estimate) |
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| Zurich |
1,261,810 (2004 estimate) |
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| Largest cities (population) |
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| Zurich |
347,517 (2005 estimate) |
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| Geneva |
178,722 (2005 estimate) |
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| Basel |
163,930 (2005 estimate) |
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| Bern |
122,178 (2005 estimate) |
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| Lausanne |
117,388 (2005 estimate) |
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| Winterthur |
93,546 (2005 estimate) |
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| St Gallen |
70,316 (2005 estimate) |
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| Lucerne |
57,533 (2005 estimate) |
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| Biel |
48,735 (2005 estimate) |
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| Thun |
41,138 (2005 estimate) |
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| Köniz |
37,250 (2005 estimate) |
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| La Chaux-de-Fonds |
36,809 (2005 estimate) |
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| Schaffhausen |
33,569 (2005 estimate) |
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| Fribourg |
33,008 (2005 estimate) |
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| Chur |
32,409 (2005 estimate) |
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| Neuchâtel |
32,117 (2005 estimate) |
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| People |
| Population |
7,581,520 (2008 estimate) |
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| Population growth rate |
0.33 per cent (2008 estimate) |
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| Population density |
191 persons per sq km (2008 estimate) |
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494 persons per sq mi (2008 estimate) |
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| Urbanization |
| Per cent urban |
68 per cent (2005 estimate) |
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| Per cent rural |
32 per cent (2005 estimate) |
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| Life expectancy |
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| Total |
80.7 years (2008 estimate) |
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| Female |
83.7 years (2008 estimate) |
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| Male |
77.9 years (2008 estimate) |
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| Infant mortality rate |
| 4 deaths per 1,000 live births (2008 estimate) |
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| Literacy rate |
| Total |
99 per cent (1995) |
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| Female |
Not available |
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| Male |
Not available |
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| Ethnic divisions |
| Total population: |
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| German |
65 per cent |
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| French |
18 per cent |
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| Italian |
10 per cent |
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| Romansh |
1 per cent |
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| Other |
6 per cent |
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| Swiss nationals: |
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| German |
74 per cent |
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| French |
20 per cent |
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| Italian |
4 per cent |
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| Romansh |
1 per cent |
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| Other |
1 per cent |
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| Languages |
| German (official), French (official), Italian (official), Romansh (official), Schwyzerdütsch (Swiss German, Alsatian), Lombard, other languages |
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| NOTE: Romansh, a Romance language, is spoken by less than 1 per cent of the Swiss population, chiefly in the canton of Graubünden. |
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| Religions |
| Roman Catholic, Protestant, other |
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| Government |
| Type of government |
Federal republic |
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| Independence |
August 1, 1291 |
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| Constitution |
May 29, 1874; amended in April 1999; fully revised in 2000; amended in 2001 and 2002 |
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| Voting rights |
Universal at age 18 |
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| Economy |
| Gross domestic product (GDP) (US$) |
| 380,412 million (2006) |
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| GDP per capita (US$) |
50,781.20 (2006) |
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| GDP by economic sector |
| GDP, agriculture |
1.3 per cent (2003) |
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| GDP, industry |
28.3 per cent (2003) |
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| GDP, services |
70.4 per cent (2003) |
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| National budget (US$) |
| Total revenue |
52,916 million (2002) |
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| Total expenditure |
53,532 million (2002) |
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| Monetary unit |
| 1 Swiss franc, Franke, or franco (SwF), consisting of 100 centimes, Rappen, or centesimi |
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| Exports |
| Machinery and equipment, precision instruments (notably wristwatches), metal products, cheese, chocolate, and other foodstuffs, textiles and clothing, pharmaceuticals, chemicals, jewellery |
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| Imports |
| Agricultural products, machinery, transport equipment, chemicals, textiles, clothing, building materials, energy, metal products, fuels, paper products, plastics |
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| Major trading partners for exports |
| Germany, France, United States, Italy, Japan, United Kingdom |
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| Major trading partners for imports |
| Germany, France, Italy, United States, United Kingdom, Japan |
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| Industries |
| Banking, insurance, machinery, chemicals, wristwatches, textiles, precision instruments, cheese, chocolate, pharmaceuticals, cement, tobacco, footwear |
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| Agriculture |
| Principal crops: sugar beet, potatoes, wheat, barley, grapes; dairy products, eggs |
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| Natural resources |
| Hydroelectric power potential, timber, salt, building materials, iron ore, manganese |
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| Sources |
| Basic Facts and People sections |
| Area data are from the statistical bureaus of individual countries. Population, population growth rate, and population projections are from the United States Census Bureau, International Programs Center, International Data Base (IDB) (www.census.gov). Urban and rural population data are from the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of the United Nations (UN), FAOSTAT database (www.fao.org). Largest cities population data and political divisions data are from the statistical bureaus of individual countries. Ethnic divisions and religion data are largely from the latest Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) World Factbook and from various country censuses and reports. Language data are largely from the Ethnologue, Languages of the World, Summer Institute of Linguistics International (www.sil.org). |
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| Health and Education section |
| Life expectancy and infant mortality data are from the United States Census Bureau, International Programs Center, International database (IDB) (www.census.gov). Population per physician and population per hospital bed data are from the World Health Organization (WHO) (www.who.int). Education data are from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) database (www.unesco.org). |
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| Government section |
| Government, independence, legislature, constitution, highest court, and voting qualifications data are largely from various government Web sites, the latest Europa World Yearbook, and the latest Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) World Factbook. The armed forces data are from Military Balance. |
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| Economy section |
| Gross domestic product (GDP), GDP per capita, GDP by economic sectors, employment, and national budget data are from the World Bank database (www.worldbank.org). Monetary unit, agriculture, mining, manufacturing, exports, imports, and major trade partner information is from the latest Europa World Yearbook and various International Monetary Fund (IMF) publications. |
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| Energy, Communication, and Transportation section |
| Electricity information is from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) database (www.eia.doe.gov). Radio, telephone, television, and newspaper information is from the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) database (www.unesco.org). Internet hosts, motor vehicles, and road data are from the World Bank database (www.worldbank.org). |
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| Note |
| Figures may not total 100 per cent due to rounding. |
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