The
Swiss Confederation, also known as the Confoederatio
Helvetica, is a small landlocked country in Western
Europe. The country is divided into 26 cantons or states.
The population of Switzerland is approximately 7.5 million
and it is 15,940 square miles, about twice the size of
New Jersey.
There are three basic topographical areas: the Alps, the Swiss plateau and the Jura mountains. Several major European rivers such as the Rhine, Rhone, Inn, Aare and Ticino flow into some of the largest Swiss lakes such as Lake Geneva, Lake Zurich, Lake Neuchatel and Lake Constance. The Matterhorn, located in the Swiss Alps bordering Italy is perhaps the most well known mountain in the Alps.
Switzerland is a small alpine country that has four national languages: German, French, Italian, and Romansch. The capital of Switzerland is Bern. Switzerland dates its independence to 1291 and it has a long and strong tradition of political and military neutrality. Switzerland has no country-wide state religion but Christianity is the predominant religion.
Switzerland has no natural resources, so education and knowledge have become very important resources. Most children go to public schools. The Swiss economy is based on finance and banking. The Swiss currency is the Swiss Franc.
Web Sites
Catalog
Search the library's catalog for Switzerland.
Databases
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