Page last modified 19 August 2023
213) Switzerland
Community
Area 41,277 square kilometres (land area 39,997 square kilometres)
Population,
1,687,900 (1817)
2,190,000 (1837)
2,392,740 (1850)
2,510,494 (1860)
2,655,000 (1870)
2,831,787 (1880)
2,934,057 (1888)
3,325,023 (1900)
4,066,400 (1930)
4,265,703 (1941)
4,714,992 (1950)
5,328,000 (1960)
6,181,000 (1970)
6,319,000 (1980)
6,716,000 (1990)
7,184,000 (2000)
7,825,000 (2010)
8,282,000 (2015)
8,517,000 (2018)
Ethnicity
Foreign nationals,
3.0% (1850)
11.6% (1900)
8.7% (1930)
20.7% (2006)
23.3% (2012)*
*Of these, Italian 15.6%; German
15.2%; Portugal 12,7%; France 5.6%; Tamil 6.3%; Serbia 5.3%; Turkey 3.8%; Spain
3.7%; Austria 2.0%
Religion, %
|
|
Christian Protestant |
Christian R C |
Jewish |
Muslim |
None |
|
1850 |
59.3 |
40.6 |
1.0 |
|
|
|
1900 |
57.6 |
41.5 |
4.0 |
|
|
|
1930 |
57.0 |
41.0 |
1.5 |
|
|
|
1950 |
57.6 |
41.1 |
0.5 |
|
|
|
1960 |
52.7 |
45.5 |
|
|
|
|
1990 |
43.0 |
47.0 |
|
|
|
|
2000 |
35.3 |
41.8 |
0.2 |
4.3 |
11.8 |
|
2015 |
30.7 |
37.3 |
|
5.1 |
23.9 |
Birth and death rates Below replacement rate = 2.1
|
|
Fertility Rate |
Birth Rate |
Infant Mortality |
Death Rate |
% Aged Under 15 |
% Aged Over 65 |
% Urban |
|
1800 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
4.3 |
|
1850 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
7.3 |
|
1890 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
16.5 |
|
1911 |
|
23.8 (+9.0) |
|
14.8 |
|
|
|
|
1933 |
|
16.4 (+4.6) |
48.0 |
11.8 |
|
|
|
|
1944 |
|
|
42.0 |
|
|
|
|
|
1950 |
|
17.0 (+7.0) |
29.0 |
10.0 |
23.5 |
9.6 |
48.2 |
|
1960 |
2.4 |
19.0 (+9.2) |
22.0 |
9.8 |
24.1 |
10.1 |
51.0 |
|
1970 |
2.1 |
14.0 (+4.8) |
15.0 |
9.2 |
23.8 |
11.2 |
57.4 |
|
1980 |
1.6 |
12.0 (+3.6) |
8.0 |
9.4 |
20.0 |
13.8 |
57.1 |
|
1990 |
1.6 |
12.5 (+3.0) |
7.0 |
9.5 |
17.0 |
14.6 |
73.2 |
|
2000 |
1.5 |
10.5 (+1.8) |
5.0 |
8.7 |
17.5 |
15.3 |
73.3 |
|
2010 |
1.5 |
9.8 (+1.8) |
4.0 |
8.0 |
15.1 |
16.9 |
73.7 |
|
2015 |
1.5 |
10.2 (+2.1) |
3.8 |
8.1 |
14.8 |
18.0 |
73.9 |
|
2016 |
|
|
3.8 |
|
14.8 |
18.2 |
74.0 |
|
2017 |
1.5 |
10.3 (+2.4) |
3.7 |
7.9 |
|
|
|
|
2018 |
|
|
3.7 |
|
14.9 |
18.6 |
|
Life expectancy,
52.3 (1910); 50.7 (M), 53.9 (F)
62.7 (1935); 60.7 (M), 64.6 (F)
69.2 (1952); 67.0 (M), 72.0 (F)
71.3 (1960); 68.7 (M), 74.1 (F)
73.0 (1970); 70.0 (M), 76.2 (F)
75.5 (1980); 72.2 (M), 78.9 (F)
77.2 (1990); 73.9 (M), 80.7 (F)
79.7 (2000); 76.9 (M), 82.6 (F)
82.2 (2010); 80.1 (M), 84.5 (F)
83.8 (2020); 81.9 (M), 85.7 (F)
Population of principal cities, 1,000s MA = Metropolitan Area
|
|
Basel |
BERN |
Geneva |
Lausanne |
Luzern1 |
Zurich2 |
|
1356 |
|
|
5.8 |
|
|
|
|
1400 |
|
|
6.5 |
|
|
|
|
1550 |
|
|
12 |
|
|
|
|
1700 |
|
|
18 |
|
|
|
|
1800 |
|
|
26 |
|
|
11 |
|
1850 |
22 |
27 |
38 |
17 |
10 |
|
|
1860 |
|
|
42 |
|
|
|
|
1870 |
|
|
|
26 |
14 |
57 |
|
1890 |
97 |
48 |
80 |
35 |
21 |
149 |
|
1900 |
113 |
65 |
105 |
56 |
30 |
151 |
|
1941 |
162 |
130 |
124 |
93 |
55 |
336 |
|
1950 |
184 |
147 |
145 |
107 |
61 |
390 |
|
1960 |
208 |
164 |
169 |
127 |
67 |
431 |
|
1970 |
205 |
170 |
170 |
|
|
|
|
1980 |
364 MA |
282 MA |
327 MA |
225 MA |
156 MA |
707 MA |
|
1990 |
360 MA |
300 MA |
395 MA |
263 MA |
160 MA |
841 MA |
|
2000 |
410 MA |
325 MA |
465 MA |
295 MA |
185 MA |
950 MA |
|
2008 |
494 MA |
348 MA |
513 MA |
324 MA |
205 MA |
1,154 MA |
|
2015 |
537 MA |
410 MA |
490 MA |
420 MA |
250 MA |
1,315 MA |
1Grew
around a Benedictine monastery, established ca. 750.� Tourism was boosted by the opening of the St
Gotthard railway tunnel in 1982.
2Known to the Romans as Turicum, the city was invaded by the Alemanni
in the 5th century.� Zurich
joined the Swiss Confederation in 1351.
Wealth; Gross Domestic Product (nominal values)
|
|
GDP, US$ million |
Total GDP, % of USA |
GDP per capita, US$ |
GDP per capita % of USA |
|
1948 |
4,365 |
1.95 |
950 |
62.30 |
|
1956 |
5,975 |
1.67 |
|
|
|
1960 |
9,520 |
1.75 |
1,790 |
59.53 |
|
1965 |
11,460 |
1.54 |
2,620 |
68.44 |
|
1970 |
21,350 |
2.05 |
3,449 |
65.73 |
|
1975 |
55,900 |
3.42 |
8,721 |
111.52 |
|
1980 |
107,470 |
3.84 |
18,800 |
149.23 |
|
1985 |
96,450 |
2.29 |
16,600 |
90.86 |
|
1990 |
228,410 |
3.94 |
38,300 |
159.88 |
|
1995 |
307,260 |
4.15 |
48,500 |
161.30 |
|
2000 |
242,030 |
2.43 |
37,800 |
103.70 |
|
2005 |
365,900 |
2.79 |
54,800 |
123.68 |
|
2010 |
581,000 |
3.88 |
74,275 |
153.54 |
|
2015 |
671,000 |
3.72 |
81,000 |
144.11 |
|
2016 |
660,000 |
3.55 |
78,800 |
137.12 |
GDP by primary sector
|
|
Agriculture % GDP |
Agriculture % employed |
Industry % GDP |
Industry % employed |
Services % GDP |
Services % employed |
|
1960 |
|
11.0 |
|
50.0 |
|
38.0 |
|
1980 |
|
5.0 |
|
46.0 |
|
49.0 |
|
1990 |
3.5 |
6.4 |
34.5 |
37.4 |
62.0 |
55.4 |
|
2000 |
2.0 |
5.0 |
34.0 |
26.0 |
64.0 |
69.0 |
|
2010 |
1.2 |
3.4 |
27.5 |
23.4 |
71.3 |
73.2 |
|
2016 |
0.7 |
3.3 |
25.5 |
19.8 |
73.8 |
76.9 |
Communications
Language %, Official, German, French, Italian
|
|
French |
German |
Italian |
Romansch |
Other |
|
1880 |
21.4 |
71.3 |
5.7 |
|
|
|
1900 |
21.8 |
69.8 |
5.3 |
1.6 |
8.9 |
|
1950 |
20.8 |
72.6 |
5.2 |
1.1 |
|
|
1960 |
18.9 |
69.3 |
9.5 |
0.9 |
|
|
1990 |
19.2 |
65.0 |
7.6 |
0.6 |
|
|
2000 |
20.4 |
63.7 |
6.5 |
0.5 |
9.0 |
|
2017 |
22.5 |
63.5 |
8.1 |
0.5 |
|
Literacy
99.7% (1900)
99.9% (1980 and after)
Physical communications � roads
|
|
Roads (km) |
Motor vehicles |
Cars |
Commercial Vehicles |
|
1947 |
|
|
82,147 |
29,993 |
|
1949 |
|
|
147,000 |
41,500 |
|
1955 |
|
327,000 |
271,000 |
|
|
1960 |
49,000 |
810,000 |
500,000 |
75,000 |
|
1962 |
|
|
630,357 |
116,918 |
|
1968 |
|
1,887,657 |
1,060,768 |
215,078 |
|
1980 |
65,000 |
2,702,266 |
2,246,752 |
228,400 |
|
1985 |
70,000 |
3,222,000 |
2,617,000 |
|
|
1990 |
|
|
2,985,000 |
|
|
1997 |
71,200 |
|
3,323,000 |
264,000 |
|
2000 |
|
|
3,545,000 |
279,000 |
|
2004 |
|
4,300,000 |
3,811,000 |
298,000 |
|
2011 |
71,464 |
4,567,000 |
4,163,000 |
|
|
|
|
|
4,458,000 |
|
Railways; 1st railway in Switzerland, 1844
Length, kilometres
24 (1850)
1,053 (1860)
1,422 (1870)
2,500 (1880)
3,070 (1890)
3,600 (1900)
4,524 (1910)
5,139 (1920)
5,228 (1930)
5,224 (1940)
5,192 (1945) (49.9% e)
5,168 (1950)
5,112 (1963) (57.1% e)
5,034 (1988)
5,040 (1995)
5,057 (2000)
5,021 (2002)
4,876 (2010) (85.6% e)
Urban metro systems, (kilometres)
Lausanne (opened 2008)
15.0 (2010, 2015)
Electronic communications, 1,000s, First telephone installed 1880. TV broadcasts began 1950.
|
|
Telephones (landlines) |
Mobile Telephones |
Radios |
Televisions |
PCs |
Internet Users |
|
1938 |
450 |
|
458 |
|
|
|
|
1943 |
568 |
|
676 |
|
|
|
|
1947 |
|
|
923 |
|
|
|
|
1950 |
890 |
|
1,037 |
|
|
|
|
1950 |
|
|
1,445 |
|
|
|
|
1956 |
770 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
1962 |
1,875 |
|
1,538 |
274 |
|
|
|
1968 |
2,686 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
1980 |
2,839 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
1987 |
|
5 |
|
|
|
|
|
1988 |
|
|
|
|
350 |
|
|
1990 |
3,943 |
125 |
5,682 |
2,400 |
600 |
|
|
1995 |
|
447 |
6,100 |
3,000 |
2,000 |
|
|
1998 |
|
|
|
|
|
1,200 |
|
2000 |
5,236 |
4,639 |
7,200 |
3,900 |
4,700 |
|
|
2005 |
|
6,847 |
|
|
6,430 |
3,700 |
|
2010 |
4,378 |
9,527 |
|
|
|
6,430 |
|
2016 |
4,029 |
11,283 |
|
|
|
7,313 |
|
2017 |
|
|
|
|
|
7,560 |
Tourism: Visitors to Switzerland,
4,108,859 (1958)
4,574,453 (1959)
6,000,041 (1968)
7,963,000 (1990)
6,946,000 (1995)
7,821,000 (2000)
7,229,000 (2005)
8,628,000 (2010)
9,305,000 (2015)