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Switzerland (German: die Schweiz, French: la Suisse, Italian: Svizzera
and Romansh: Svizra), officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked
Alpine country in Central Europe. A male native of Switzerland is said to be
a Schweizer and a female is a Schweizerin in German; Suisse (male)
or Suissesse (female) in Swiss French and svizzero (male) or
svizzera (female) in Swiss Italian.
The country, which borders Germany to the north, France to the west, Italy to the
south, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east, was historically a confederation,
and has been a federation since 1848. Switzerland has a strong economy in finance
and banking, and a long and strong tradition of political and military neutrality.
This background allows Switzerland various international co-operations and organisations.
Confoederatio Helvetica, the country's official Latin name, means Helvetic Confederation.
The use of Latin avoids having to favour one of the four national languages. The
abbreviation (CH) is used for the same reason. The titles commonly used in French
(Confédération suisse), Italian (Confederazione Svizzera) and Romansh (Confederaziun
svizra) translate as "Swiss Confederation", while the German name of Schweizerische
Eidgenossenschaft translates literally as "Swiss Oath Fellowship" or "Swiss
Commonwealth of the Covenant".
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