Zurich

Zurich (German: Zürich; Alemannic German: Züri; see below) is the largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich. As of the end of 2024, the municipality had a population of 436,551, while the urban area was home to 1.45 million people (2020), while the Zurich metropolitan area had a total population of 2.1 million (2020). Zurich is a hub for railways, roads, and air traffic. Both Zurich Airport and Zurich's main railway station are the largest and busiest in the country. Evidence of early, sparse settlements in the area dates back more than 6,400 years, indicating human presence prior to the establishment of the town. Permanently settled for over 2,000 years, Zurich was eventually founded by the Romans, who called it Turicum. During the Middle Ages, Zurich gained the independent and privileged status of imperial immediacy and, in 1519, became a primary centre of the Protestant Reformation in Europe under the leadership of Huldrych Zwingli. The official language of Zurich is German, but the main spoken language is Zurich German, the local variant of the Alemannic Swiss German dialect. As one of Switzerland's primary financial centres, Zurich is home to many financial institutions and banking companies.