The Swiss Confederation or Switzerland is a landlocked federal state in Europe , with neighbours Germany , France , Italy , Austria and Liechtenstein . The country has a strong tradition of political and military neutrality , but also of international co-operation, and is home to many international organisations.

Geography

With an area of 41,000 square kilometers, Switzerland is a small country. The population is around 7.4 million, resulting in a population density of 184 people per km² (roughly comparable to the U. S. state of Maryland ).

The Swiss landscape is characterised by the Alps , a high mountain range running across the central-south of the country. Amongst the high peaks of the Swiss Alps , the highest of which is the Dufour Peak at 4,634 m , are found countless valleys, some with glaciers . From these the headwaters of several major European rivers such as the Rhine , the Rhône , the Inn , the Aare or the Ticino , flow down into lakes such as Lake Geneva , Lake Zürich , Lake Neuchâtel , and Lake Constance and farther down.

Switzerland is made up of the Swiss Alps, Mittelland, and Jura.

The northern, more populous part of the country is more open, but can still be fairly mountainous such as with the Jura Mountains , a smaller range in the northwest. The Swiss climate is generally temperate , but it can vary greatly locally, from the harsh conditions on the high mountains to the pleasant Mediterranean climate at Switzerland's southern tip.

Economy

Switzerland is a prosperous and stable modern market economy with a per capita GDP higher than that of the big western European economies. The Swiss in recent years have brought their economic practices largely into conformity with the European Union 's to enhance their international competitiveness. Full EU membership is a long-term objective of the Swiss government. To this end, it has established an Integration Office   under the Department of Foreign and Economic Affairs. In order to minimise the negative consequences of Switzerland's isolation from the rest of Europe, Bern and Brussels signed agreements to further liberalise trade ties in 1999 . They continue to discuss further areas for cooperation. Switzerland voted against membership in the European Economic Area in December 1992 and has since maintained and developed its relationships with other European countries via bilateral agreements.

Demographics

he languages of Switzerland:
German (63.7%; yellow),
French (19.2%; purple),
Italian (7.6%; green),
Romansh (0.6%; red)

Switzerland sits at the crossroads of several major European cultures, which have heavily influenced the country's languages and cultural practices. Switzerland has four official languages: German (64%; yellow) in the north and centre, French (19%; purple) to the west, Italian (8%; green) in the south, and finally Romansh , a Romance language spoken by a small minority (<1%; red) in the southeastern canton of Graubünden . The German spoken here is predominantly a Swiss dialect known as Swiss German , but newspapers and some broadcasts use High German . Most Swiss speak two or more languages and resident foreigners and temporary foreign workers make up about 20% of the population.

The largest religion in Switzerland is Roman Catholicism , to which some 43% of the population adhere. Various Protestant faiths number some 35% of the population, and immigration has established Islam (4%) and Eastern Orthodoxy (2%) as sizable minority religions. The remainder belongs to very small minorities or is unaffiliated. The stability and prosperity of Switzerland, combined with a linguistically and religiously diverse population has led some to describe the country as a consensus state or a consociational state .