Graubünden and its capital Chur can look back at over 11,000 years of settlement history, undoubtedly enough time for domestic traditions to emerge. Whether "Chalandamarz" in the Engadine or "Pschuuri" in Splügen, such recurrent, annual historical festivals have moulded the rugged race of men in the largest holiday region in Switzerland as much as the diversity of languages. Indeed, Graubünden is the only region of Switzerland under the influence of three cultures and languages, namely the German, Romansh, and Italian.
The Graubünden canton has nearly 192,000 inhabitants (Switzerland 7.8 million) and holds a sixth of Swiss territory. Moreover, its varied mountain scenery sets two country records. First, its 7,106 km² make Graubünden the largest canton in Switzerland (17.2% of the total land area) and second, its approx 26 inhabitants per km2, the most sparsely populated. In stark contrast lie the canton of Zurich with 736 inhabitants per km2 and Tyrol with 53. Chur, a 5,000-year settlement amongst the oldest in Switzerland, is home to around 33,000 people