Poor title I know. Basically I wonder why whenever Switzerland is mentioned in English speaking media they always use the French and Latin terms.

Place names, I read an article about some criminal from Aargovia....AARGOVIA wtf! Its Aargau, one of the most German parts of Switzerland.

I assume its the same for Thurgau (Thurgovia), Luzern (Lucerne) etc.

And when Switzerland is abbreviated its always SUI and not SCZ like it is in German papers, even though I believe its should really be SCH.

Not only place names but even the currency, they say its Franc and Centimes and not Frank and Rappen.

When I see other countries mentioned It's always proper, but never Switzerland. It's a little annoying since It is dominantly German speaking/ancestry/culture.

Anyone know why this is?

I agree!!!! Aargovia indeed. English is a Germanic language, and thus they should use the proper, German place names!!! France will now be referred to by the BBC as "Frankreich", and the USA will be referred to as "die Vereinigte Staaten von Amerika!"

And welcome to the forum!

Lol I'm not into any dodgy Germanic-worshipping stuff (as it may sound like), I'm just a Swiss man whose a bit annoyed that official media groups cant get a simple thing right. It just doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me.

Of course there's Confoederatio Helvetica, but that doesn't make Switzerland a Latin country like France, Span and Italy. We use German names and the German Language, If we wanted Aargovia then we wouldn't say Aargau!

Oh and thanks, its great to be here =]

I don't really agree, it all depends which of the 4 national languages you're using when pronouncing the name of the city.

Lucerne is simply the French spelling.
I feel strange when our Swiss German compatriots say Genf, instead of Genève, but they're right too.

You don't have to be. I make up for it.

Well French and Italian places in Switzerland should be in those languages, but Aargau and Luzern are German Speaking, so please just use the German name. But Geneva, yeah we say Genf but then I'm talking about Media here, they should get it correct.

You will also notice that Switzerland only gets a mention in the British press when there is something negative to report (or fabricate).

"The Swiss franc rose again on news that Swiss GDP is the highest in Europe - oh and by the way there sun shone again..." doesn't sell papers.

Really ? well then Genève please.. no more of this Geneva, Ginevra and Genf stuff eh !

Lol you got me there monsieur

9 9 9 9 9!!!! It's Genf!!! Darnit! And it's easier to type, too.

Well, for us Swiss in this neck of the woods, it IS Argovia, Turgovia, Lucerna, Zurigo, etc.!

I don't think my girlfriend even knows the German names of those places (despite having an attinenza in ZH) , we certainly only use the Italian names at home!

Also, it's not just English media, but any non-German media will use the correct name for their language (I guarantee that all Italian and Ticinese newspapers, TV and radio always refer to Zurich as Zurigo, etc.)

Tom

I agree however I think in matters of the English Language it should be approached in the proper use of the native tongue. The reason is because English has pretty much become the International Language. This is why I'm making a point on it. The reason why the English Media are choosing these French and Latin terms is beyond me since it is mostly of German origin and as I say International.

Well picking the Latin term would be the fairest option of all
correct ?

Then why dont they do the same with Germany, Austria, Norway etc etc

Because these are the English names of these places, used for centuries!

Tom

This is no argument. It's always been the way of English papers calling German towns by their names, but not Switzerland.

It makes no logical sense, its just really weird. Ok then, from now on I'll call Glasgow = Los Glasglos. Oslo = Fish, Berlin = New York.

Not true, English speakers would never call Cologne "Köln", Vienna "Wien", Saxony "Sachsen", etc.

And why does everyone (German speakers included) refer to the Passo San Gottardo by anything except by the Italian name, as it is located 100% in Ticino! (the Uri border is several km north of the pass)

Tom

But Bayern München is always called Bayern Munich in the UK press, not Bavaria Munich. Anyway, I've never seen Argovia etc in the UK press. Remember, English also has a very strong French component.