Subdivisions of Switzerland difficulties maintaining the civil services they need to perform the duties they are required to do. In an effort to reduce expenses, many municipalities are combining together (through mergers or the creation of special-purpose districts). This restructuring is generally encouraged by the cantonal governments and the rate of these unions is increasing. "Cities" ("villes" or "Städte") are the municipalities with more than 10'000 inhabitants or smaller places which had medieval town rights. There is no specific designation for smaller communities such as "village" or "town". Some subdivisions that exist are: Subdivisions of Switzerland The Swiss Confederation comprises the 26 cantons
Cantons of Switzerland that remains in popular use, the 1999 revision and official terminology since then use the appellation "cantons with half of a cantonal vote". The reasons for the existence of the three pairs of half-cantons are varied: With their original circumstances of partition now a historical matter, the half-cantons are since 1848 equal to the other cantons in all but two respects: Between 1831 and 1833 the canton of Schwyz divided into half-cantons: (Inner) Schwyz and the break-away Outer Schwyz; in this instance the half-cantons were forced by the Confederation to settle their disputes and re-unite. In the 20th century, some