Switzerland is truly a unique country
especially in the context of Europe.
Switzerland has a fierce independence
straight to its personality and is not a
member of the EU and has maintained a
policy of official neutrality for longer
than anyone can remember.
These are just a few of the things that make
Switzerland so fascinating, so brace
yourself for even more because now we bring you the
10 things you didn't know about Switzerland.
One of the most interesting features of Switzerland's
political geography is its division into
26 cantons. Switzerland is rather unique
in that it is officially known as the
Swiss Confederacy and is the only state
in Europe that is officially recognized
as a confederacy of states.
Each Swiss canton is considered a member state
of the greater Swiss Confederation.
A canton can be described in the same manner
as a province, state or other
administrative subdivisions found in
most other countries. Each Swiss canton
has rather uniquely its own constitution,
legislature, government and courts
and each canton is a sovereign state
except with regards to matters of federal law.
Despite this minor limitation,
cantons are remarkably independent
and responsible for their
own healthcare, welfare, law enforcement,
education and even retain the power of taxation.
All of these areas of political life
are also decided by Swiss citizens
through a very robust direct democracy
where the Swiss vote directly on almost
all political matters. As with so many
other things in Switzerland, this system
seems very strange but the Swiss have
lived this way for hundreds of years and
take great pride in the liberty they enjoy.
Many people have heard about the
infamous Swiss banking system and by
extension Swiss bank accounts.
Swiss bank accounts have been portrayed in movies
as a safe haven for criminals and tax evaders
with Swiss bankers willing to go
to jail for their unscrupulous and
anonymous clients. While this isn't the case anymore
the Swiss banking system over the
centuries was a curious institution that
accomplished many impressive financial feeds.
In the past the Swiss banking law
of 1934 made it a criminal act for a
Swiss bank to reveal the name of an
account holder. The protections were bank
account holders afforded under Swiss law
are similar to confidentiality
protections between doctors and patients
or lawyers in their clients.
The Swiss banks in Geneva and Zurich served as
safe havens for the wealth of dictators and
despots, mobsters and arms dealers,
corrupt officials and tax cheats of all kinds
until 2015 when all this changed.
On the 27th of May 2015
Switzerland signed an agreement with the EU
that align Swiss bank practices with
those of EU countries and ended their
special secrecy that clients of Swiss
banks had enjoyed in the past.
Under the agreement, both Switzerland and
EU countries automatically exchange
information on the financial accounts of
each other's residents. Numbered accounts
where the owner of a bank account are
only identified by a secret number plus
protecting an individual's anonymity has
largely been done away with leaving the
criminal element of the world to seek
other countries such as Hong Kong and
Singapore to shelter their black money.
Singapore in particular has strengthened
penalties for violators of bank secrecy
and now impose a steeper fines and
longer jail sentences for offenders in
order to attract former Swiss banking clients.
It is likely that the importance
of the Swiss banking system in terms of
servicing the global criminal underground
will greatly decline in the coming century.
Many countries have more than
just one official language.
Canada, for example, has two. French and English.
But Switzerland has more than just two.
In fact, it has four official languages.
German, French, Italian and Romansh.
As might be expected the languages are
related to geographic areas so in most
of the east of Switzerland people speak
German and in the west most people speak
French. Italian is spoken in the south
near the border to Italy and Romansh
which is a unique Romance language is
spoken in the southeastern canton of Grisons.
Romansh in particular is
interesting because very few people know
anything about this unique language
and the ethnic minority that speaks it.
Romansh is descendant of the spoken Latin
language of the Roman Empire
pyar but over the centuries was heavily
influenced by linguistic contact with
the German language. As a result Romash
sounds like a unique yet nearly
incomprehensible blend of European languages.
You would think that with all these languages
the Swiss would be confused with their Canton
system and direct democracy but this is not the case.
If you take the time to ask any Swiss person.
Like Austrian German, Swiss German is very
very different from German German.
And the accent is unmistakable
so much so that it sounds like a
completely different language and it is.
Swiss German vocabulary is different,
pronunciation is different and
so is the grammar. And unlike Austrian German
it's usually not possible for Germans
to understand Swiss German.
One of the key characteristics of Swiss German,
called "Schwizerdütsch",
is the preservation of some
arcade features that are no longer
present in Standard German.
The best example of this is the sound [CH]
which is often found at the beginning of words
rather than just at the end and in the middle.
For example, in Swiss German
the word for kitchen is "Chüche"
but in Standard German it is "Küche".
And many other words that start with a K in German
start with a [CH].
Swiss German is the de facto
language of Swiss German speakers
within Switzerland but when
Swiss German speakers encounter Germans they
usually switch and they will always use "Hochdeutsch"
outside the context of Switzerland.
Interestingly enough Swiss German speakers
speakers have a bit of a complex concerning
their language because most Germans
just considered to be a barbaric dialect
that sounds terrible.
This in turn creates resentment towards
Germans and that's the cycle of dislike
and distrust is born.
Still, things aren't too bad and the Swiss will tolerate
the Germans with their strange language
for the most part if only because they have to.
One of the most iconic symbols
of Switzerland is almost certainly the Alps.
The towering and circular range of
mountains is home to the tallest single
peaks in Europe some of the most famous
peaks are the Matterhorn
and the Monte Rosa which rise up to respectively
14,692 and 15,023 feet above sea level.
The Alps offer a natural protective barrier against
outsiders for Switzerland which is why
it has been theorized that the country
has been able to maintain his position
of neutrality for so long.
Even before this, the Alps were known for halting
the progress of the Carthaginian general
Hannibal in his attempt to take Rome
resulting in catastrophic losses for him,
simply because of the sheer massiveness
of this impressive mountain range.
From a geological perspective the Alps are a
medium age mountain range
being neither young nor old when compared
to such mountain ranges as the
Appalachians or the Andes and of course
people love to come to Switzerland to go
skiing in the Alps which is probably
what they're most famous for. It's quite
possible that no other mountain range in
the world conjures up the same images of
history, romance and recreation as do the
Alps which largely lie in and around Switzerland.
Most people don't realize that some of the best
and most delicious food comes from Switzerland.
What are some of these tasty morsels?
Well, muesli for one which is world famous
as a mixture of oats and other grains
combined with nuts, seeds, fruit and with
so much variety that it would be
impossible to do all the types of
muesli justest here. To suffice to say
muesli is known and appreciated
well beyond the borders of Switzerland
for its delicious and natural taste as
well as its appeal to healthy living and
it doesn't just stop there.
Fondue is a Swiss dish composed of
melted cheese in a large pot that is
heated under particular conditions and
is beyond delicious with people
typically dipping bread into the mix for
incredible awesome taste.
And then there's the world famous Swiss chocolate
which often covers entire aisles and
Swiss supermarkets and has an
international reputation for high quality and taste.
One of Switzerland's best-kept secrets
is its food, so fly on over and give it a taste,
you won't regret it.
When most people think of gun freaks
most people think of Americans
or "Muricans" as they're sometimes called.
As the first online in terms of gun
ownership and use but this might not be
the most accurate view of things.
Part of Swiss gun ownership goes back to
traditions as far back as the post-
Napoleonic restoration after the Swiss
expelled their French conquers.
Tradition and patriotism has kept gun ownership
alive and well in Switzerland.
As a consequence most Swiss citizens have
extensive firearms training and most
Swiss households also house multiple guns.
What is striking, however, is the
difference in crime when comparing
Swiss gun culture to American gun
culture where injuries and fatalities
are much higher.
No one really knows the reasons for this
whether it is Switzerland smaller-sized,
careful regulation of firearms,
different style of governance or something else entirely
but regardless of the cause, Switzerland
is held up as a role model of safe gun
culture in the world and it remains so to this day.
In a not too similar way
to how Austrians and Germans don't
really get along
Swiss people particularly Swiss German speakers
tend not to like Germans very much.
Germans are viewed as rude,
intrusive and ignorant of Swiss culture
and in recent decades there has been a
huge influx of Germans entering the
Swiss labor market, sucking up jobs and
making their presence known.
This coupled by Germans ignorance of
Swiss history and politics but
conversely Swiss people's
better-than-average knowledge of German
history and politics makes for a
difficult situation. Then of course there
is the language issue. High German isn't
really the de facto official language in
Switzerland and Germans sends a waltz
into the country demanding that
Swiss German speak their German which breeds
resentment and distrust and with
Germany's increasingly liberal policies
and talking down to Switzerland it's
unlikely that relations will improve
anytime soon.
Even though Switzerland has always
officially maintain a policy of
neutrality particularly during World War II,
the issue is actually more complicated
than one has led to believe.
All Switzerland did not actively participate
in National Socialism, it wasn't entirely
neutral either. A great deal of property
and gold that had been confiscated by
the National Socialist from their
victims ended up in Switzerland where
much of it remains today.
During World War II some of the more
financially able victims of the National
Socialist attempted to flee to
Switzerland and were rejected and turned
away and in some cases Swiss officials
actively aided and abetted and carrying
out National Socialist objectives.
So, while officially neutral not everything
in Switzerland has done has turned out this way.
The greatest folk hero of the
Swiss is surely William Tell
or in German "Wilhelm Tell".
He is venerated as a human symbol of bravery against
tyranny and it is claimed he was a
brilliant marksman to boot.
The story or so it goes says that he was able to
cleanly shoot an apple off the head of a
child with either a bow or crossbow
depending on which version you read.
He is credited either with actively resisting,
encouraging rebellion against or even
assassinating some members of the Habsburgs
as they sought to encroach on Swiss territory.
Although no exact date is known for when
he lived and that's as is often the case with folk heros
he transposes the centuries,
allowing them to conveniently fit
whatever narrative people wanted to fit into.
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