Liechtenstein

• continental;
• cold, cloudy winters with frequent snow or rain;
• cool to moderately warm, cloudy, humid summers

lowest point:

Ruggeller Riet 430 m

highest point:

Vorder-Grauspitz 2,599 m

agricultural land:

37.6% (2011 est.)

arable land:

18.8% (2011 est.) / permanent crops: 0% (2011 est.) / permanent pasture: 18.8% (2011 est.)

forest:

43.1% (2011 est.)

other:

19.3% (2011 est.)

party to:

Air Pollution, Air Pollution-Nitrogen Oxides, Air Pollution-Persistent Organic Pollutants, Air Pollution-Sulfur 85, Air Pollution-Sulfur 94, Air Pollution-Volatile Organic Compounds, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Hazardous Wastes, Ozone Layer Protection, Wetlands

signed, but not ratified:

Law of the Sea

noun:

Liechtensteiner(s)

adjective:

Liechtenstein

at birth:

1.26 male(s)/female

0-14 years:

1.21 male(s)/female

15-24 years:

1.03 male(s)/female

25-54 years:

1 male(s)/female

55-64 years:

0.93 male(s)/female

65 years and over:

0.85 male(s)/female

total population:

0.99 male(s)/female (2020 est.)

improved:

total: 100% of population

unimproved:

total: 0% of population (2017 est.)

improved:

total: 98% of population

unimproved:

total: 0% of population (2017)

conventional long form:

Principality of Liechtenstein

conventional short form:

Liechtenstein

local long form:

Fuerstentum Liechtenstein

local short form:

Liechtenstein

etymology:

• named after the Liechtenstein dynasty that purchased and united the counties of Schellenburg and Vaduz and that was allowed by the Holy Roman Emperor in 1719 to rename the new property after their family;
• the name in German means "light (bright) stone"

name:

Vaduz

geographic coordinates:

47 08 N, 9 31 E

time difference:

UTC+1 (6 hours ahead of Washington, DC, during Standard Time)

daylight saving time:

+1hr, begins last Sunday in March; ends last Sunday in October

etymology:

may be a conflation from the Latin "vallis" (valley) and the High German "diutisk" (meaning "German") to produce "Valdutsch" (German valley), which over time simplified and came to refer specifically to Vaduz, the town

• 23 January 1719 (Principality of Liechtenstein established);
• 12 July 1806 (independence from the Holy Roman Empire);
• 24 August 1866 (independence from the German Confederation)

• National Day, 15 August (1940);
• note - a National Day was originally established in 1940 to combine celebrations for the Feast of the Assumption (15 August) with those honoring the birthday of former Prince FRANZ JOSEF II (1906-1989) whose birth fell on 16 August;
• after the prince's death, National Day became the official national holiday by law in 1990

history:

previous 1862; latest adopted 5 October 1921

amendments:

• proposed by Parliament, by the reigning prince (in the form of "Government" proposals), by petition of at least 1,500 qualified voters, or by at least four communes;
• passage requires unanimous approval of Parliament members in one sitting or three-quarters majority vote in two successive sittings;
• referendum required only if petitioned by at least 1,500 voters or by at least four communes;
• passage by referendum requires absolute majority of votes cast;
• amended many times, last in 2018(2019)

citizenship by birth:

no

citizenship by descent only:

the father must be a citizen of Liechtenstein; in the case of a child born out of wedlock, the mother must be a citizen

dual citizenship recognized:

no

residency requirement for naturalization:

5 years

chief of state:

• Prince HANS-ADAM II (since 13 November 1989, assumed executive powers on 26 August 1984);
• Heir Apparent and Regent of Liechtenstein Prince ALOIS (son of the monarch, born 11 June 1968);
• note - 15 August 2004, HANS-ADAM II transferred the official duties of the ruling prince to ALOIS, but HANS-ADAM II retains status of chief of state

head of government:

Prime Minister Adrian HASLER (since 27 March 2013)

cabinet:

Cabinet elected by the Parliament, confirmed by the monarch

elections/appointments:

the monarchy is hereditary; following legislative elections, the leader of the majority party in the Parliament usually appointed the head of government by the monarch, and the leader of the largest minority party in the Landtag usually appointed the deputy head of government by the monarch if there is a coalition government

description:

unicameral Parliament or Landtag (25 seats; members directly elected in 2 multi-seat constituencies by proportional representation vote to serve 4-year terms)

elections:

last held on 5 February 2017 (next to be held on 7 February 2021)

election results:

• percent of vote by party - FBP 35.2%, VU 33.7%, DU 18.4% FL 12.6%;
• seats by party - FBP 9, VU 8, DU 5, FL 3;
• composition - men 22, women 3, percent of women 12%

highest courts:

Supreme Court or Oberster Gerichtshof (consists of 5 judges); Constitutional Court or Verfassungsgericht (consists of 5 judges and 5 alternates)

judge selection and term of office:

• judges of both courts elected by the Landtag and appointed by the monarch;
• Supreme Court judges serve 4-year renewable terms;
• Constitutional Court judges appointed for renewable 5-year terms

subordinate courts:

Court of Appeal or Obergericht (second instance), Court of Justice (first instance), Administrative Court, county courts

• Fatherland Union (Vaterlaendische Union) or VU [Guenther FRITZ]
• Progressive Citizens' Party (Fortschrittliche Buergerpartei) or FBP [Thomas BANZER]
• The Free List (Die Freie Liste) or FL [Pepo FRICK and Conny BUECHEL BRUEHWILER]
• The Independents (Die Unabhaengigen) or DU [Harry QUADERER]

chief of mission:

Ambassador Kurt JAEGER (since 16 September 2016)

chancery:

2900 K Street NW, Suite 602B, Washington, DC 20007

telephone:

[1] (202) 331-0590

FAX:

[1] (202) 331-3221

• two equal horizontal bands of blue (top) and red with a gold crown on the hoist side of the blue band;
• the colors may derive from the blue and red livery design used in the principality's household in the 18th century;
• the prince's crown was introduced in 1937 to distinguish the flag from that of Haiti

name:

"Oben am jungen Rhein" (High Above the Young Rhine)

lyrics/music:

Jakob Joseph JAUCH/Josef FROMMELT

note: adopted 1850, revised 1963; uses the tune of "God Save the Queen"

agriculture:

0.8%

industry:

36.9%

services:

62.3% (2015)

lowest 10%:

NA

highest 10%:

NA

• relies on foreign terrestrial and satellite broadcasters for most broadcast media services;
• first Liechtenstein-based TV station established August 2008;
• Radio Liechtenstein operates multiple radio stations;
• a Swiss-based broadcaster operates one radio station in Liechtenstein

total:

9 km (2018)

standard gauge:

9 km 1.435-m gauge (electrified) (2018)

note: belongs to the Austrian Railway System connecting Austria and Switzerland