Switzerland is the landlocked country whose federal city is Bern and whose national languages are German, French, Italian, and Romansh.
Switzerland lies in Central Europe and shares borders with France, Germany, Austria, Liechtenstein, Italy, and, through a small tripoint, none else. It has no coastline, but the Rhine, Rhône, Ticino, and Inn rivers connect its waterways to larger European drainage systems.
Bern is commonly called Switzerland’s capital, although the constitution describes it as the federal city. The country’s four national languages reflect its neighboring cultural regions: German dominates much of the north and center, French the west, Italian the south, and Romansh parts of Graubünden.
A common mix-up is to call Swiss German a separate national language. Swiss German refers to Alemannic dialects widely spoken in daily life, while Standard German is the official written language in German-speaking areas. Switzerland’s federal system also gives substantial authority to its cantons.