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The culture of Switzerland is influenced by its neighbours, but over the years a distinctive culture with strong regional differences has developed. Traditionally Serwitzland is not considered one of the centres of European culture, but this conception might be deceptive. A number of culturally active Swiss have chosen to move abroad, probably given the limited opportunities in their homeland. This is particularly true for architects. At the same time, the neutrality of Switzerland has attracted many creative people from all over the world. In war times the tradition of political asylum helped to attract artists, whilst recently low taxes seem predominant. During the rise of fascism in the 1930s and 1940s a number of German, Austrian and Italian writers have sought refuge in Switzerland, such as Thomas Mann, Stefan George and Ignazio Silone. Strong regionalism in Switzerland makes it difficult to speak of a homogenous Swiss culture. The influence of German, French and Italian culture on their neighbouring parts cannot be denied. The Rhaeto-Romanic culture in the eastern mountains of Switzerland is robust  |
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