Switzerland

Switzerland (スイス, Suisu) is a character in the series Hetalia: Axis Powers. In 2007 and early 2008, Himaruya gave human names to some of the characters and he received the name Basch Zwingli (バッシュ・ツヴィンクリ, Basshu Tsuvinkuri).

Appearance
He is a short young man with blond hair (in a chin-length bob cut) and green eyes. He wears a green jacket, brown pants, and a white hat, and is often seen having a rifle slung over his shoulder. He also has a cross shaped scar on his left shoulder.

In an earlier design, his hair was drawn much shorter and he wore a green hat. However, in the earliest design known of him, he wore no hat and his jacket was blue, with his pants colored beige. This version can be seen (in color) in a set of counter icons that Hidekaz Himaruya made for his site (with Switzerland being the "0" icon).

Personality and Interests
Switzerland is seemingly eternally neutral and lives his life as a hermit/recluse, surrounded by the Alps. He maintains his cool air of complete indifference.

Though he appears to be peaceful, he actually is one of the biggest producers of guns in the world. He hates outsiders and, in the past, he was hired by the Vatican as a mercenary.

Most likely due to past hardships, he is also very frugal and cautious of spending; often preferring to purchase cheaper or more efficient things and rarely splurging. He is shown to have quite a temper and is snippy with others but has a soft spot for Liechtenstein and is extremely protective and doting of her. He will listen to those who want to consult to him with their situation at hand but don't expect any consolation from him, if he doesn't hang up on you is considered nice enough.

Due to Italy's habits of forgetting his pants and streaking, Switzerland becomes trigger-happy if he catches him running through his property. He is protective of his borders and is not afraid to shoot at someone who was not allowed to cross the border.

The Allied Nations

 * America: Switzerland seems to find America somewhat annoying as the younger nation is similar to Italy in getting too close/crossing his borders without permission or asking for sensitive information of people he feels are evil. During America's birthday, Switzerland gave him a shock watch to prevent him from entering his country.

The Axis

 * Germany: Austria said in a Christmas 2011 panel that Switzerland is unusually on good terms with Germany. Switzerland soon slightly blushed at this comment since he actually has a high degree of dependence on Germany for trade, electricity and other aspects.


 * Italy: Switzerland is annoyed by Italy's constant trespassing on his lands, as seen in a comic strip featuring Italy thinking about how much faster it is for him to go to Germany's house by passing through Switzerland.

Others

 * Austria: They were very close as children, though Switzerland expressed irritation at the fact that he taught Austria to be a fighter, only for him to keep failing and having to be bailed out when it came to wars. However, due to their bosses, the two friends eventually grew apart. In their adulthood, Switzerland does all he can to deny that he was ever friends with Austria or had any close connection to him.


 * Liechtenstein: He is a doting older brother to Liechtenstein, having found her during World War I and taken her into his care due to the heavy distress she's in. Since they adopted each other as siblings, Switzerland genuinely does what he can to make sure she is happy and well taken care of; even purchasing her trademark ribbon when she cut her hair, so she would stop being mistaken for a boy. The close relationship that he shares with her, however, reminds him of his childhood days with Austria, which he has tried to forget.

In the Anime
Switzerland first made two minor appearances in the first season; in Episode 01 where he yells at Japan for agreeing with America's plan on global warming, and in Episode 21 where he walks past Sealand, ignoring him.

He finally debuts in Episode 23 and the following episodes, which adapts Liechtenstein's Journal Of Swiss Dopiness from the webcomic strips and Hetalia: Axis Powers volume 2.

Name
Himaruya gave Switzerland the name of Basch Zwingli. Basch is a German nickname for Sebastian. His surname is believed to have been inspired by Huldrych Zwingli, the leader of the Swiss Protestant reformation.

An alternate name is Vash Zwingli''. ''However, the kana for Switzerland's human name uses "バ" (ba). However, in German, a "v" sounds close to an English "f", making Basch a more appropriate Romanization. Additionally, the character Basch from Final Fantasy XII shares the same katakana.

Early Japanese fanworks rendered his name in English as Bache Zwingli. Though proponents of the alternate "Vash" spelling theorize that it could be descended from the French word ' vache' , meaning ' cow'. As Switzerland is known for its domestic dairy industries and products, and French being one of its official languages, some believe in this spelling having basis.

Character Songs
Marukaite Chikyuu (Switzerland)

Gallery
Switzerland Image Gallery

Trivia

 * His birthday corresponds with the date that the Swiss Confederation was founded on August 1, 1291. Though he is technically older than America, he is only a year younger than him in physical appearance and "human age".


 * A production note by Hidekaz Himaruya states that he played around with the idea of making Switzerland a female character, and that Germany would be shocked when he saw her in woman's clothing.


 * Additional sketches reveal that Switzerland has three pet goats: Eiger, Jungfrau, and Mönch, named after Switzerland's famous mountains.


 * In the English dub of the fourth extra episode in Hetalia: The Beautiful World (Liechtenstein and the Hedgehog Country), Liechtenstein notes that Switzerland is barely 5'6".