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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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| Switzerland: Flag and Anthem |
 Expand |
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| People |
| Population |
7,604,467 (2009 estimate) |
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| Population growth |
| Population growth rate |
0.28 percent (2009 estimate) |
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| Projected population in 2025 |
7,774,334 (2009 estimate) |
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| Projected population in 2050 |
7,296,092 (2009 estimate) |
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| Population density |
191 persons per sq km (2009 estimate) |
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495 persons per sq mi (2009 estimate) |
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| Urban/rural distribution |
| Share urban |
68 percent (2005 estimate) |
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| Share rural |
32 percent (2005 estimate) |
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| Largest cities, with population |
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| Zürich |
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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| Ethnic groups |
| Total population: |
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| German |
65 percent |
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| French |
18 percent |
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| Italian |
10 percent |
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| Romansch |
1 percent |
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| Other |
6 percent |
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| Swiss nationals: |
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| German |
74 percent |
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| French |
20 percent |
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| Italian |
4 percent |
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| Romansch |
1 percent |
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| Other |
1 percent |
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| Languages |
| German (official), French (official), Italian (official), Romansch, English, and others |
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| NOTE: Romansch, a Romance language, is spoken by less than 1 percent of the Swiss population, chiefly in the canton of Graubünden. |
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| Religious affiliations |
| Roman Catholic |
44 percent |
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| Protestant |
41 percent |
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| Muslim |
3 percent |
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| Nonreligious |
7 percent |
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| Other |
5 percent |
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| Health and Education |
| Life expectancy |
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| Total |
80.8 years (2009 estimate) |
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| Female |
83.8 years (2009 estimate) |
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| Male |
78 years (2009 estimate) |
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| Infant mortality rate |
4 deaths per 1,000 live births (2009 estimate) |
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| Literacy rate |
| Total |
99 percent (1995) |
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| Female |
Not available |
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| Male |
Not available |
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| Economy |
| Gross domestic product (GDP, in U.S.$) |
$424.4 billion (2007) |
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| GDP per capita (U.S.$) |
$56,207 (2007) |
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| GDP by economic sector |
| Agriculture, forestry, fishing |
1.3 percent (2003) |
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| Industry |
28.3 percent (2003) |
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| Services |
70.4 percent (2003) |
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| Monetary unit |
| 1 Swiss franc, Franke, or franco (SwF), consisting of 100 centimes, Rappen, or centesimi |
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| Agriculture |
| Potatoes, apples, wheat, sugar beets, grapes, barley, dairy products |
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| Mining |
| Rock salt |
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| Manufacturing |
| Clocks, watches, and other precision engineering products; heavy engineering and machine building equipment; food products, including chocolate and cheese; textiles; chemicals; pharmaceuticals |
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| Major exports |
| Machinery, pharmaceuticals, clocks and watches, precision instruments, textiles and clothing, chemicals, pigments, transportation equipment |
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| Major imports |
| Machinery, automobiles, clothing, chemicals, precision instruments, pharmaceuticals |
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| Major trade partners for exports |
| Germany, United States, France, Italy, and United Kingdom |
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| Major trade partners for imports |
| Germany, France, Italy, United States, and United Kingdom |
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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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| 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 statistical bureaus of individual countries, latest Europa World Yearbook, and various United Nations and International Monetary Fund (IMF) publications. |
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| Note |
| Figures may not total 100 percent due to rounding. |
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