Canton of Uri

The canton of Uri is a canton in Central Switzerland and a founding member of the Swiss Confederation. Its territory covers the valley of the Reuss between the St. Gotthard Pass and Lake Lucerne, and its capital is Altdorf. The official language is Swiss Standard German, while the main spoken dialect is the Alemannic Swiss German known as Urner German. Uri was once the only canton whose schoolchildren learned Italian as their first foreign language, until English replaced it in the 2005 and 2006 school year. The legendary William Tell is said to have come from Uri, and the historical landmark Rütli lies within the canton. It covers about 1,077 square kilometres and had an estimated 38,600 residents at the end of 2025.