The canton of Schwyz (German: Kanton Schwyz [ʃviːts] ; Romansh: Chantun Sviz; French: Canton de Schwytz; Italian: Canton Svitto) is a canton in central Switzerland between the Alps in the south, Lake Lucerne to the west and Lake Zürich in the north, centred on and named after the town of Schwyz.
It is one of the founding cantons of Switzerland; Switzerland's name is derived from the name of the canton, and the flag of Switzerland from its coat of arms. For the history of the name, see Schwyz. The Swiss Federal Charter is on display in Schwyz. Northeast of the town of Schwyz is Einsiedeln Abbey.
History
Prehistory to the Roman era
The earliest traces of humans in Schwyz are from the Upper Paleolithic and Early Mesolithic, or about 12,500 BC. An excavation of the karst caves in the valley of the Muota river (Muotatal) revealed numerous sites, some dating to the Younger Dryas period (c. 10,000 BC).