Switzerland at a glance · Size, neighbours and population
Extent and largest cantons
Topic
Switzerland is a small country. Its area is just over 41'000 square kilometres. From north to south it measures about 220 kilometres. From west to east it is longer, about 350 kilometres. By car you can cross the country in a few hours, unless mountains are in the way.
The 26 cantons vary greatly in size. The largest canton is Graubünden in the east. It is a mountain canton and covers about one sixth of Switzerland. But only about 200'000 people live there. The smallest canton is Basel-Stadt. Zurich has the most inhabitants, but it is not the largest canton by area.
Memory aid: Switzerland lies sideways: about 350 km wide, but only 220 km high.
Key terms
- Ausdehnung
- Extent: the greatest length of a country in one direction, for example from north to south.
- Graubünden
- Graubünden: the largest canton of Switzerland by area.
Exam questions on this topic
- The extent of Switzerland from north to south is ...Correct answer: B, 220 km.
- The extent of Switzerland from east to west is ...Correct answer: C, 350 km.
- Which canton has the largest area?Correct answer: B, Graubünden