Schweizer

Schweizer is a German-language demonym and adjective referring to a person or thing from Switzerland. As a noun, it commonly appears as der Schweizer for a male individual, die Schweizerin for a female, and die Schweizerinnen for a group of women. As an adjective, it describes things related to Switzerland, such as Schweizer Kultur (Swiss culture) or Schweizer Berge (Swiss mountains).

The term derives from the country name Schweiz, with the English equivalent Swiss. It has been used in German-language sources since the Middle Ages to denote people from the Swiss Confederation, and it remains the standard demonym in contemporary usage. The word also appears in various compound forms and place names within Swiss and German-speaking contexts.

Schweizer is also a common surname in German-speaking regions and in diaspora communities. As a surname, it is typically ethnonymic or toponymic, originally indicating Swiss origin or association with Switzerland. Today it is distributed across Germany, Austria, Switzerland, and other countries, and may be found among individuals in a wide range of professions. Variant spellings are uncommon but may occur due to regional spelling practices.

In modern usage, Schweizer appears in everyday language, in media, and in historical texts. It also features in related terms such as Schweizerdeutsch, the Swiss German language variety, and Schweizerisches (Swiss, as in Schweizerisches Zivilgesetzbuch, the Swiss Civil Code). The term remains a straightforward, neutral designation for Swiss identity in German-language contexts.