The NUTS 3 units correspond with the cantones and half-cantones. Quick, Michael Since urban development has claimed as much of the Swiss landscape as it did during the previous 2, years. This urban sprawl does not only affect the plateau but also the Jura and the Alpine foothills and there are growing concerns about land use. However from the beginning of the 21st century, the population growth in urban areas is higher than in the countryside. Switzerland has a dense network of cities, where large, medium and small cities are complementary.
The plateau is very densely populated with about people per km 2 and the landscape continually shows signs of man's presence. The weight of the largest metropolitan areas, which are Zurich, Geneva—Lausanne, Basel and Bern tend to increase. In international comparison the importance of these urban areas is stronger than their number of inhabitants suggests. In addition the two main centers of Zurich and Geneva are recognized for their particular great quality of life.
These churches, and in some cantons also the Old Catholic Church and Jewish congregations, are financed by official taxation of adherents. As of the census Christianity is the predominant religion of Switzerland, divided between the Catholic Church Geneva converted to Protestantism in , just before John Calvin arrived there. Immigration has brought Islam 4. As of the census other Christian minority communities include Neo-Pietism 0.
Minor non-Christian minority groups are Hinduism 0. The country is historically about evenly balanced between Catholic and Protestant, with a complex patchwork of majorities over most of the country. One canton, Appenzell, was officially divided into Catholic and Protestant sections in Central Switzerland, as well as Ticino, is traditionally Catholic.
The Swiss Constitution of , under the recent impression of the clashes of Catholic vs. Protestant cantons that culminated in the Sonderbundskrieg, consciously defines a consociational state, allowing the peaceful co-existence of Catholics and Protestants. A initiative calling for the complete separation of church and state was rejected by Three of Europe's major languages are official in Switzerland.
Swiss culture is characterised by diversity, which is reflected in a wide range of traditional customs. A region may be in some ways strongly culturally connected to the neighbouring country that shares its language, the country itself being rooted in western European culture.
Switzerland is home to many notable contributors to literature, art, architecture, music and sciences. In addition the country attracted a number of creative persons during time of unrest or war in Europe.
Some museums are distributed through the country; the number has more than tripled since Alpine symbolism has played an essential role in shaping the history of the country and the Swiss national identity. Nowadays some concentrated mountain areas have a strong highly energetic ski resort culture in winter, and a hiking wandering or Mountain biking culture in summer.
Other areas throughout the year have a recreational culture that caters to tourism, yet the quieter seasons are spring and autumn when there are fewer visitors. A traditional farmer and herder culture also predominates in many areas and small farms are omnipresent outside the cities. Folk art is kept alive in organisations all over the country. In Switzerland it is mostly expressed in music, dance, poetry, wood carving and embroidery. The alphorn, a trumpet-like musical instrument made of wood, has become alongside yodeling and the accordion an epitome of traditional Swiss music.
As the Confederation, from its foundation in , was almost exclusively composed of German-speaking regions, the earliest forms of literature are in German. In the 18th century French became the fashionable language in Bern and elsewhere, while the influence of the French-speaking allies and subject lands was more marked than before.
Also Italian and Romansh-speaking authors contributed but in more modest way given their small number. Probably the most famous Swiss literary creation, Heidi , the story of an orphan girl who lives with her grandfather in the Alps, is one of the most popular children's books ever and has come to be a symbol of Switzerland. Her creator, Johanna Spyri — , wrote a number of other books around similar themes.
The freedom of the press and the right to free expression is guaranteed in the federal constitution of Switzerland. The Swiss News Agency SNA broadcasts information around-the-clock in three of the four national languages—on politics, economics, society and culture. The SNA supplies almost all Swiss media and a couple dozen foreign media services with its news. Switzerland has historically boasted the greatest number of newspaper titles published in proportion to its population and size.
The cultural diversity accounts for a large number of newspapers. The government exerts greater control over broadcast media than print media, especially due to finance and licensing. Radio content is produced in six central and four regional studios while the television programs are produced in Geneva, Zurich and Lugano. An extensive cable network also allows most Swiss to access the programs from neighboring countries.
Skiing, snowboarding and mountaineering are among the most popular sports in Switzerland, the nature of the country being particularly suited for such activities. Winter sports are practiced by the natives and tourists since the second half of the 19th century with the invention of bobsleigh in St.
Moritz The latter town hosted the second Winter Olympic Games in and the fifth edition in Among the most successful skiers and world champions are Pirmin Zurbriggen and Didier Cuche. Many Swiss are fans of football and the national team or 'Nati' is widely supported. Switzerland was the joint host, with Austria, of the Euro tournament.
Many Swiss also follow ice hockey and support one of the 12 clubs in the League A. The National League A is the most attended league in Europe. The numerous lakes make Switzerland an attractive place for sailing.
The largest, Lake Geneva, is the home of the sailing team Alinghi which was the first European team to win the America's Cup in and which successfully defended the title in Tennis has become an increasingly popular sport, and Swiss players such as Martina Hingis and Roger Federer have won multiple Grand Slams. Motorsport racecourses and events were banned in Switzerland following the Le Mans disaster with exception to events such as Hillclimbing.
However, this ban was overturned in June Traditional sports include Swiss wrestling or "Schwingen". It is an old tradition from the rural central cantons and considered the national sport by some.
Hornussen is another indigenous Swiss sport, which is like a cross between baseball and golf. Steinstossen is the Swiss variant of stone put, a competition in throwing a heavy stone. Practiced only among the alpine population since prehistoric times, it is recorded to have taken place in Basel in the 13th century. It is also central to the Unspunnenfest, first held in , with its symbol th. This entry has been automagically sourced from Wikipedia, the user-contributed encyclopedia.
Visit Switzerland on Wikipedia to correct or update this entry. Reserve Tickets. Plan Your Visit. Getting Here. Upcoming Programs. Interaction Lab. National Design Awards. Corporate Support. Explore the Collection. Research Library. Study Centers. School Programs. Emerging Designers.
Professional Development. Smithsonian Learning Lab. Design Camp at Home. National Design Month. You Create an account Sign in. OK Cancel. Name The English name Switzerland is a compound containing Switzer , an obsolete term for the Swiss, which was in use during the 16th to 19th centuries.
History Switzerland has existed as a state in its present form since the adoption of the Swiss Federal Constitution in Early history The oldest traces of hominid existence in Switzerland date back about , years. Napoleonic era In , the revolutionary French government conquered Switzerland and imposed a new unified constitution.
Federal state The restoration of the power to the patriciate was only temporary. Modern history Switzerland was not invaded during either of the world wars. Geography Extending across the north and south side of the Alps in west-central Europe, Switzerland encompasses a great diversity of landscapes and climates on a limited area of 41, square kilometres 15, sq mi.
Climate The Swiss climate is generally temperate, but can vary greatly between the localities, from glacial conditions on the mountaintops to the often pleasant near Mediterranean climate at Switzerland's southern tip. Environment Switzerland's ecosystems can be particularly fragile, because of the many delicate valleys separated by high mountains, often forming unique ecologies. Politics The Federal Constitution adopted in is the legal foundation of the modern federal state.
Direct democracy Swiss citizens are subject to three legal jurisdictions: the commune, canton and federal levels. Foreign relations and international institutions Traditionally, Switzerland avoids alliances that might entail military, political, or direct economic action and had been neutral since the end of its expansion in Economy Switzerland has a stable, prosperous and high-tech economy.
Education and science Education in Switzerland is very diverse because the constitution of Switzerland delegates the authority for the school system to the cantons. Switzerland and the European Union Switzerland voted against membership in the European Economic Area in a referendum in December and has since maintained and developed its relationships with the European Union EU and European countries through bilateral agreements.
Marcella Kosse. Jun 25, PM. Edie Koller. I knew that as I have been to Switzerland 3 times. May 17, PM. Joy Desreaux. May 11, AM. Richard G Schwartz.
May 9, PM. Humberto Carrasco. Sep 17, PM. Hey genius! Time to save your score! Sign up and get 50 welcome coins 9, players are online. In this paradoxical country, the diversity of structures actually hides a centralised system — while on the contrary, in French-influenced continental countries, centralisation was imposed through homogenisation. This was implemented in Poland through the territorial reforms of , and The introduction of new devolved funding channels for local authorities was in some cases conditional to mergers between local entities, as illustrated by Saxony.
Paradoxically, while in Central Eastern Europe municipalities had lost their autonomy during the Communist period, local divisions had remained relatively stable. Politicians sometimes overstate the real impact of territorial reorganisation on the evolution of space. Outside of Europe, the emergence of new capitals built straight out of the ground never posed a threat to large metropolises, which had been historical capitals and remained the main economic centres.
Nevertheless, territories do not intrinsically hold such abilities: they are subjected to circumstances such as the inertia of inherited structures and to multiple decisions from stakeholders whose motives are often far from political.
Vanier M. Elisabeth Bonnet Pineau, danieloster wanadoo. Christian Vandermotten cvdmotte ulb. Voir la notice dans le catalogue OpenEdition. Navigation — Plan du site. Sur le Champ. Bibliographie Foucher M.
Fragments d'Europe. Notes 1 This idea can also be found, in a more modern and secular form, in pre-first world War Austro-Marxist projects to organise the Austro-Hungarian Empire into federations based on autonomous ethnic communities rather than territories. Haut de page. Suivez-nous Flux RSS.
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