COUNTRY PROFILE

Switzerland Flag, Capital and Country Facts

Switzerland combines the Alps, the Swiss Plateau and the Jura with considerable linguistic and political diversity. This landlocked country in the heart of Europe has many large lakes but no coastline. Bern is the answer in the quiz: officially the federal city, it performs the functions of a capital in practice.

Test your knowledge →

Switzerland Flag: Meaning & Country Facts · supplied learning collection

Switzerland at a glance

Federal city: Bern
Quiz continent: Europe
Languages in reference record: National languages: German, French, Italian and Romansh
Currency: Swiss Franc (CHF)
Population: 9,092,436 (2025, World Bank)
Area: 41,284 km²
Coastal setting: Landlocked
ISO codes: CH / CHE
Internet country suffix: .ch

Cantons: 26
Highest point: Dufourspitze, 4,634 m
Federal holiday: 1 August
Capital river: Aerials
Northwestern Mountains: Jura
UNESCO City: Old Town of Bern

Switzerland Flag: Design, Meaning and History

Bern is the federal city and the seat of the government and parliament.

The Swiss flag is square and carries a white, freestanding cross on a red background. Its four arms are of equal length; the cross does not touch the edges. Both the square and the free cross shape clearly distinguish the motif from the rectangular Nordic cross flags, whose cross extends to the edges.

The white cross marking dates back to the history of Swiss troops. The Red Cross later used the reverse color position as a protective and organizational sign. This relationship helps to remember: the state flag has the white cross on red, the humanitarian sign a red cross on white.

Federal city: Bern

Bern has been the seat of the federal government and parliament since 1848. Its official designation as the federal city (Bundesstadt) reflects the fact that Switzerland has not established a capital in the narrower legal sense. Bern is therefore the appropriate quiz answer; Zurich is not an alternative capital despite its size and economic importance.

The old town of Bern is located in a location characterized by the river Aare. Its historical core belongs to the UNESCO World Heritage. This brings together two levels in Bern: the medieval urban structure and the function as the center of the modern federal state. The Bundeshaus stands for the political level, the old town for the longer urban development.

Practise this capital →

Switzerland: Geography, History and Culture

The Alps occupy the southern part of the country, the Jura is in the northwest. In between, the Mittelland stretches with many cities, transport routes and agricultural land. This threefold division explains why Switzerland is also considered a mountainous country and yet has large densely populated areas outside the High Alps.

The four national languages are distributed regionally differently. German or Swiss German characterizes large parts of the country, French the West, Italian especially the Ticino and southern valleys of Graubünden. Romanesque is especially part of Graubünden. Language borders and cantonal borders do not coincide everywhere, which makes the federal organization particularly clear.

The 26 cantons have their own political responsibilities. The municipality, the canton and the federal government form three state levels; direct democratic participation complements parliamentary representation. This order is related to the historical diversity of the country. Economic centres such as Zurich, international institutions in Geneva and federal functions in Berne allocate important roles to several cities.

Name Bern precisely

The name Bundesstadt is not a second city name, but describes Bern's political position. The official Swiss information portal explicitly explains the difference between a formally established capital and Bern as an actual seat of government.

Alpine Highest Point

The Dufourspitze in the Monte Rosa massif reaches 4,634 meters. It shows the high alpine part of the country, while the deepest part of the country lies on Lake Maggiore. Large height differences thus occur at comparatively short distances.

Water over land borders

Many Swiss lakes are located in border areas or are connected to international river systems. The landlocked state is thus closely linked to its neighbours; lakes and passports are as important for its spatial orientation as cantons and linguistic regions.