Claim: The Italian language is spoken in at least one country.

Switzerland -LRB- -LSB- ˈswɪtsɚlənd -RSB- -RRB- , officially the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic in Europe . It consists of 26 cantons , and the city of Bern is the seat of the federal authorities .  The country is situated in western-Central Europe , There are several definitions . See Geography of Switzerland #Western or Central Europe ? . and is bordered by Italy to the south , France to the west , Germany to the north , and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east . Switzerland is a landlocked country geographically divided between the Alps , the Swiss Plateau and the Jura , spanning an area of 41285 km2 . While the Alps occupy the greater part of the territory , the Swiss population of approximately eight million people is concentrated mostly on the plateau , where the largest cities are to be found : among them are the two global cities and economic centres Zürich and Geneva .   The establishment of the Old Swiss Confederacy dates to the late medieval period , resulting from a series of military successes against Austria and Burgundy . Swiss independence from the Holy Roman Empire was formally recognized in the Peace of Westphalia in 1648 . The country has a history of armed neutrality going back to the Reformation ; it has not been in a state of war internationally since 1815 and did not join the United Nations until 2002 . Nevertheless , it pursues an active foreign policy and is frequently involved in peace-building processes around the world . In addition to being the birthplace of the Red Cross , Switzerland is home to numerous international organisations , including the second largest UN office . On the European level , it is a founding member of the European Free Trade Association , but notably not part of the European Union or the European Economic Area . However , it participates in the Schengen Area and the European Single Market through bilateral treaties .   Spanning the intersection of Germanic and Romance Europe , Switzerland comprises four main linguistic and cultural regions : German , French , Italian and Romansh . Although the majority of the population are German speaking , Swiss national identity is rooted in a common historical background , shared values such as federalism and direct democracy , and Alpine symbolism . Due to its linguistic diversity , Switzerland is known by a variety of native names : Schweiz -LSB- ˈʃvaɪts -RSB- -LRB- German -RRB- ; Swiss Standard German spelling and pronunciation . The Swiss German name is sometimes spelled as Schwyz or Schwiiz -LSB- - gswˈʃʋiːt͡s -RSB- . Schwyz is also the standard German -LRB- and international -RRB- name of one of the Swiss cantons . Suisse -LSB- sɥis -RSB- -LRB- French -RRB- ; Svizzera -LSB- ˈzvittsera -RSB- -LRB- Italian -RRB- ; and Svizra -LSB- ˈʒviːtsrɐ -RSB- or -LSB- ˈʒviːtsʁːɐ -RSB- -LRB- Romansh -RRB- . The latter is the common Sursilvan pronunciation . On coins and stamps , Latin -LRB- frequently shortened to `` Helvetia '' -RRB- is used instead of the four living languages .   Switzerland is one of the most developed countries in the world , with the highest nominal wealth per adult and the eighth-highest per capita gross domestic product according to the IMF . Switzerland ranks at or near the top globally in several metrics of national performance , including government transparency , civil liberties , quality of life , economic competitiveness , and human development . Zürich and Geneva have each been ranked among the top cities in the world in terms of quality of life , with the former ranked second globally , according to Mercer .