Is French or German more widely spoken in Switzerland?
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Is French or German more widely spoken in Switzerland?
German is by far the most widely spoken language in Switzerland: 19 of the country’s 26 cantons are predominantly (Swiss) German-speaking. French is spoken in the western part of the country, the “Suisse Romande.” Four cantons are French-speaking: Geneva, Jura, Neuchâtel and Vaud.
What is the most commonly spoken language in Geneva?
French is the predominant language spoken in Geneva, but most citizens speak at least one other language. English is spoken by about a quarter of the local population and majority of foreigners.
What percentage of Switzerland speaks German?
The two most widely spoken non-national languages are English and Portuguese. Multilingualism is an essential part of Switzerland’s identity. Over 60\% of the Swiss population speak German as their main language. They do not speak standard German but rather various Alemmanic dialects collectively called Swiss German.
Do French Swiss speak German?
There remains a small Romansh-speaking native population in Grisons in the east. The cantons of Fribourg, Bern and Valais are officially bilingual; Grisons is officially trilingual….
| Languages of Switzerland | |
|---|---|
| National | German 62.6\% French 22.9\% Italian 8.2\% Romansh 0.5\% |
Which German is spoken in Zurich?
Swiss German
Zurich lies in the German-speaking part of Switzerland but, in everyday life, people in Zurich speak Swiss German, a German dialect. If you can understand and speak even a little of the local language, you will feel integrated much faster. A huge range of German language courses and translations is available to you.
Do the people of Zurich speak French?
The people of Zurich speak better french than the people of Geneva speak german in general, but there are more german speakers in Geneva due to many of them coming to work at the CERN, the UN or other international organisations where french is irrelevant. More French speakers in Zurich than German speakers in Geneva.
What is the Germanophone population in Geneva?
Taking a total population of Geneva canton (490,578 in 2015), gives a Germanophone population in Geneva of 5.88\%. Note: I lumped in Valais as Francophone on the wild assumption that it was majority Francophone.
What is the difference between French and English in Switzerland?
Another thing is that English is probably less of a Swiss-on-Swiss intercultural hot potato than French. French is the second-most widely spoken national language in Switzerland, and all German-speaking people are required to learn French at school, and vice-versa.