Swiss Culture – The Mentality and The Traditions of Switzerland
Our neighbouring countries, France, Germany, Liechtenstein, Austria and Italy have influenced the Swiss culture since centuries. But over the years, we developed into a distinct culture. In general, Switzerland is not necessarily considered as one of the cultural centres of Europe. However, this view is mistaken.
Folkloric Arts in The Swiss Culture The folkloric art is kept alive in many different organizations all over the country. Many Swiss customs are expressed in music, dance, embroidery, poetry and wood carving. So has every town its concert series, its own orchestra, library and an attractive collection in a chic art house. Even today, the Switzerland culture is strongly integrated into the villages and towns and all have their own music brass or folkloric band. Even some small villages with less than 1,500 inhabitants may have two music bands, two singing choirs and many other culturally active clubs. Of course, the traditions of Switzerland vary greatly from region to region. Embroidery is common on traditional clothing, particularly women’s clothing. It is often limited to prominent points, such as scarves, hats and cuffs. Decades ago, embroidery was a home industry especially in the Cantons or St. Gallen and Thurgau. Today, embroidery is mostly used for the decoration of fabrics. It is also confined to tourism, as traditional clothes are no longer in use. Chip carving is the most common form of woodcarving. It is used for the decoration of everyday objects, such as wooden spoons, milk stools and neckband for cowbells or walking sticks. Also common is figure carving, particularly of nativity figures. In some areas, woodcarving is applied for decorating the facades of houses. However, this is more common in Protestant Cantons and especially in the Bernese Oberland. It is far less common in the Roman Catholic Cantons. Switzerland also possesses one of the most comprehensive art support systems in the world. 384 pages with more than 2000 addresses record the handbook of the public and private art funding. In any case, the word circulates that a writer can keep himself over water without ever publishing a book. Many culturally active Swiss people have moved abroad, often because their options were limited here. On the other hand, the neutrality of Switzerland has attracted creative minds from around the world. In times of war, artists were granted political asylum. Nowadays it is more of the low taxes, political stability and security, which attracts also many celebrities to Switzerland. Museums and The Media There are 1000 museums in Switzerland, one for every 7300 inhabitants. Once a month, the Swiss go to the museum, which is four times more frequently than the French. And some of these museums concentrate especially on the Swiss culture. Newspapers have a strong regional character and some are renowned for their thorough coverage of international news. To mention are the German-speaking "Neue Zürcher Zeitung" and the French-speaking "Le Temps of Geneva". Like everywhere else, television plays a great role in the Swiss culture. There are three national public broadcasters, SRG TSR and TSI, each for the German-, French- and Italian-speaking part of Switzerland. In the German-speaking part, television from Germany is popular. The same is true for television from France in the French-speaking part and television from Italy in the Italian-speaking part. American movies and television series are influential in all regions. But in compare to other industrial countries, the Swiss people are watching less TV. Punctuality and Precision in the Swiss Society In most of Western Europe, punctuality and precision are really highly valued. But there is little doubt that the Swiss are models in these disciplines. However, Perfectionism as the major ingredient to celebrated Swiss quality may convert into impatience or sometimes laboriousness. The Thriftiness in The Swiss Culture Switzerland has the highest saving rate of any country on earth. Decades ago, every child was introduced quite early to the piggybank. The efforts to cut public spending are still relatively popular. Today however, on an individual level, the attitudes towards spending and saving money are converging more to European average values. And since this is not good enough for the Swiss government, they want to integrate economics to every primary and secondary school in Switzerland. Business Negotiations in The Swiss Culture The business culture of Switzerland is traditional and formal. At first, the Swiss are a bit reserved and private to establish a business relationship. However, it will not take very long before a business partner becomes more open. Therefore, you should try to arrange introductions through an existing contact. The correct business greeting is a firm handshake but first names are rarely used. Therefore, you should address people by their professional or personal title as well as their family name. The Swiss Germans usually avoid small talk and get straight to business. Not so the Swiss French and the Swiss Italians, they have a more relaxed approach and will talk informally before starting negotiations. The Swiss like to keep their business and private lives separate, so avoid asking any personal questions. Swiss people are organized and systematic and meetings will generally follow a strict agenda. Many consider us as conservative in business and it may indeed take much persuasion to adapt new approaches. However, we are also renowned for being skilful but non-aggressive negotiators. Leisure in The Culture of Switzerland The close proximity to the mountains has greatly influenced the leisure of Swiss people. The growth of the ski resorts have caused the Swiss to become very sports conscious. Besides alpine and cross-country skiing, mountaineering and soccer (football), Swiss-style wrestling (Schwingen) is also very popular. Shooting, especially on Sunday morning and Hornussen (a kind of alpine baseball) are two other traditional sports. Tennis, ice hockey, handball, paragliding, golf, swimming, volleyball, biking and hiking are all popular pastimes. Many people in also like fishing in the many lakes and rivers. During the wintertime, many lakes and rivers freeze over. They can then be used for curling, horse and dog racing, particularly on Lake St. Moritz. So whether you intend to spend your holidays in Switzerland, study at a Swiss university, to do business with a local company or think about immigrating, the Swiss culture offers a great lifestyle that is very inviting. Return from Swiss Culture to Facts About Switzerland Return from Swiss Culture to High End Travel Switzerland Home Page |
Yodelling, despite being stereotypical for Switzerland, is not widely spread and limited mostly to the mountain areas. The same is also true for the accordion (Schwiizerörgeli), which is a typical Swiss instrument. The alphorn is a trumpet-like musical instrument made of wood and seen mostly in some mountainous regions. Like the accordion and yodelling, the alphorn has become an epitome of traditional Swiss music.