The Röstigraben, (ˈrøːstiˌɡraːbən), literally ‘Rösti ditch’, also transcribed Röschtigraben in order to reflect the Swiss German

Swiss German

Swiss German is any of the Alemannic dialects spoken in Switzerland and in some Alpine communities in Northern Italy. Occasionally, the Alemannic dialects spoken in other countries are grouped together with Swiss German as well, especially the dialects of Liechtenstein and Austrian Vorarlberg...

 pronunciation ˈrøːʃtiˌɡrabə, is a humorous term describing the dividing line between the German-speaking and the French-speaking Romands parts of Switzerland

Switzerland

Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....

 with their respecitve cultural differences. The first part of the term is derived from the Swiss-German name for hashed potatoes, Rösti

Rösti

Rösti is a Swiss dish consisting mainly of potatoes. It was originally a common breakfast eaten by farmers in the canton of Bern, but today is eaten all over Switzerland and also in many restaurants in the Western World. Many Swiss people consider rösti a national dish...

, which originated in the Canton of Bern and is considered typically of German cuisine.

"Graben" has both the concrete and abstract meaning of rift, with the Saane

Saâne

The Saâne is a river of Normandy, France, in length, flowing through the department of Seine-Maritime.- Geography :The Saâne has its source in the Pays de Caux in the territory of the hamlet of Varvannes, in the commune of Val-de-Saâne...

 river valley in the bilingual Canton of Fribourg

Canton of Fribourg

The Canton of Fribourg is a canton of Switzerland. It is located in the west of the country. The capital of the canton is Fribourg. The name Fribourg is French, whereas is the German name for both the canton and the town.-History:...

 separating the linguistic areas. The Swiss-French use a similar expression: barrière de Rös(ch)ti, literally "Rösti barrier" or Rideau de rös(ch)ti ("Rösti curtain"). Just like Röstigraben it has become a familiar facetious expression used whenever differences arise, e.g. the different voting results.

• In social and foreign policy, the Romands tend to favour government regulation and an active foreign policy (somewhat discarding Switzerland's neutrality
  Neutrality (international relations)
  A neutral power in a particular war is a sovereign state which declares itself to be neutral towards the belligerents. A non-belligerent state does not need to be neutral. The rights and duties of a neutral power are defined in Sections 5 and 13 of the Hague Convention of 1907...
  
  ) (influenced by the centralistic political mentality prevailing in France
  France
  The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
  
  )
• In transportation, environmental protection, and drug control, the difference is not as marked,

In recent years, however, the differences in politics seem to be weakening as the urban areas of German-speaking Switzerland vote similarly to French-speaking Western Switzerland.

See also

• Weißwurstäquator
  Weißwurstäquator
  The is a humorous term describing the very different culture and dialect of the southern part of Germany, especially Bavaria, and the rest of the country...
  
  , which, similar to the Röstigraben, represents the Bavarian-German Kulturgrenze (Culture Border).
• Brünig-Napf-Reuss-Linie

Further reading

• Büchi Christophe: Röstigraben. Buchverlag NZZ. Zürich, 2001. ISBN 3-85823-940-2.