Italian Ticino (tee-CHEE-no), German Tessin (TES-in), French Tessin (teh-SENG)
Named after the river of the same name, Ticino is the southernmost canton of Switzerland, and almost entirely Italian-speaking (except the German-speaking Commune of Bosco/Gurin.) Together with areas of Canton Grisons (Graubünden) it makes up the so-called Svizzera Italiana (Italian-speaking Switzerland.)
Its area is 2,811 sq. km, its capital Bellinzona[?].
Most populous city: Lugano[?]. Other towns: Locarno[?], Mendrisio[?], Airolo[?], Chiasso[?].
Ticino is governed by a Grand Council (Gran Consiglio.) It sends two deputies to the Swiss Ständerat, and eight deputies to the Nationalrat.
In the Middle Ages the area of today's Ticino was ruled by the Dukes of Milan. In the 15th century the Swiss Confederates conquered the valleys south of the Alps. The upper valley of the Ticino River, from the St. Gotthard[?] to the town of Biasca (Val Leventina[?]) was part of Canton Uri. The remaining territory (Baliaggi Ultramontani, Ennetbergische Vogteien, the Bailiwicks Beyond the Mountains) was administered by all cantons.
Ticino became a canton in 1803.
