Facts and Figures

The Canton of Zurich is situated in the north of Switzerland, where the river Limmat issues from the north-western end of Lake Zurich  about 30 km north of the Alps. Zurich is surrounded by wooded hills. The geographic (and historic) centre of the city is the Lindenhof, a small natural hill on the west bank of the Limmat, about 700 meters north of where the river issues from Lake Zurich. Today the incorporated city stretches beyond the hills to neighbourhoods to the northeast in the Glatt Valley and to the north in the Limmat Valley.

The expat community particularly appreciates Zurich's central location, with a short trip to both France and Germany and only a three-hour car drive to Milan, Italy’s fashion capital.

Zurich in figures:
 
Area:         approx 91.88 km2

Districts:        Zurich is divided into twelve districts numbered 1 to 12, each one of which may contain anywhere between 1 and 4 neighbourhoods. There are a total of 34 neighbourhoods. Zurich is also divided into 25 postal areas, roughly corresponding to small districts and neighbourhoods of larger districts.

Population:        1.4 million
Capital:                Zurich / Cantonal Website

Languages: The official language used by the government and in most publications is German, while the main language is Zurich German (Züritüütsch or Zurichdeutsch in German), which is a dialect of Alemannic As of 2000, German/Alemannic is the mother-tongue of 77.7% of the population.

Religion:        Since the reformation led by Huldrych Zwingli, Zurich has remained the center and stronghold of protestantism in Switzerland. In the course of the 20th century, this has changed as Catholics now make up the largest religious group in the city, with 33.3%. An increasing number of residents, about 16.8% of the population in 2000, declare themselves as being without religion.

Economy:        Zurich is a leading financial center, and is often considered a global city. UBS, Credit Suisse, Swiss Re, Zurich Financial Services, and many other financial institutions have their headquarters in Zurich, the commercial center of Switzerland. Zurich is one of the world's largest centers for offshore banking.The Swiss Stock Exchange is located in Zurich .

The Greater Zurich Area is Switzerland's economic center and home to a vast number of international companies.