Data at glance of Switzerland - average on period

History

The Swiss Confederation was founded in 1291 as a defensive alliance among three cantons. In succeeding years, other localities joined the original three. The Swiss Confederation secured its independence from the Holy Roman Empire in 1499. A constitution of 1848, which was modified in 1874 to allow voters to introduce referenda on proposed laws, replaced the confederation with a centralized federal government. The major European powers have long honored Switzerland's sovereignty and neutrality, and the country was not involved in either World War. The political and economic integration of Europe over the past half-century, as well as Switzerland's role in many UN and international organizations, has strengthened Switzerland's ties with its neighbors. However, the country did not officially become a UN member until 2002. Switzerland remains active in many UN and international organizations but retains a strong commitment to neutrality.  

Environment

Area: 41,277 km2

Climate: temperate, but varies with altitude; cold, cloudy, rainy/snowy winters; cool to warm, cloudy, humid summers with occasional showers

Natural resources: hydropower potential, timber, salt

Ethnic characteristics

Groups: Swiss 69.2%, German 4.2%, Italian 3.2%, Portuguese 2.5%, French 2.1%, Kosovan 1.1%, Turkish 1%, other 16.7% (2020 est.)note: data represent permanent and non-permanent resident population by country of birth

Languages: German (or Swiss German) (official) 62.1%, French (official) 22.8%, Italian (official) 8%, English 5.7%, Portuguese 3.5%, Albanian 3.3%, Serbo-Croatian 2.3%, Spanish 2.3%, Romansh (official) 0.5%, other 7.9% (2019 est.)major-language sample(s): Das World Factbook, die unverzichtbare Quelle für grundlegende Informationen. (German)The World Factbook, une source indispensable d'informations de base. (French)L'Almanacco dei fatti del mondo, l'indispensabile fonte per le informazioni di base. (Italian)The World Factbook, the indispensable source for basic information.note: shares sum to more than 100% because respondents could indicate more than one main language

Religions: Roman Catholic 34.4%, Protestant 22.5%, other Christian 5.7%, Muslim 5.4%, other 1.5%, none 29.4%, unspecified 1.1% (2020 est.)

Government

Capital: Bern

Government type: federal republic (formally a confederation)

Executive branch

Chief of state: President of the Swiss Confederation Karin KELLER-SUTTER (since 1 January 2025)

Head of government: President of the Swiss Confederation Karin KELLER-SUTTER (since 1 January 2025)cabinet: Federal Council or Bundesrat (in German), Conseil Federal (in French), Consiglio Federale (in Italian) indirectly elected by the Federal Assembly for a 4-year termelection/appointment process: president and vice president elected by the Federal Assembly from among members of the Federal Council for a 1-year, non-consecutive termmost recent election date: 11 December 2024election results: 2024: Karin KELLER-SUTTER elected president for 2025; Federal Assembly vote - Karin KELLER-SUTTER (FDP.The Liberals) 168 of 203; Guy PARLEMIN (SVP) elected vice president for 2025; Federal Assembly vote - 196 of 2192023:  Viola AMHERD elected president for 2024; Federal Assembly vote - Viola AMHERD (The Center) 158 of 204; Karin KELLER-SUTTER (FDP.The Liberals) elected vice president for 2024; Federal Assembly vote - 138 of 1962022:  Alain BERSET elected president for 2023; Federal Assembly vote - Alain BERSET (SP) 140 OF 181; Viola AMHERD elected vice president; Federal assembly vote - 207 of 223expected date of next election: December 2025note: the Federal Council, composed of 7 federal councilors, constitutes the federal government of Switzerland; council members rotate the 1-year term of federal president

Legislative branch

Description: legislature name: Federal Assembly (Bundesversammlung - Assemblée fédérale - Assemblea federale)legislative structure: bicameral