Geneva ( /dʒɨˈniːvə/; French: Genève, IPA: [ʒənɛv]; Arpitan: Genèva, IPA: [ˈd͡zənɛva])^{[note 1]} is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland. Situated where the Rhoneexits Lake Geneva, it is the capital of the Republic and Canton of Geneva. While the municipality itself (downtown ville de Genève) has a population (as of December 2010) of 191,415, the canton of Geneva (République et Canton de Genève, which includes the city) has 464,677 residents (as of July 2011).^[2] The agglomeration has 1,240,000 residents.

Geneva is a global city, a financial centre, and a worldwide centre for diplomacy and the most important UN international co-operation centre with New York thanks to the presence of numerous international organizations, including the headquarters of many of the agencies of the United Nations^[3] and the Red Cross.^[4] It is also the place where the Geneva Conventions were signed, which chiefly concern the treatment of wartime non-combatants and prisoners of war.

Geneva has been described as the third European financial centre after London and Zurich,^[5] and the world’s eighth most importantfinancial centre by the Global Financial Centres Index, ahead of Frankfurt,^[6] and a 2009 survey by Mercer found Geneva to have the third-highest quality of life of any city in the world (narrowly outranked by Zürich).^[7] The city has been referred to as the world’s most compact metropolis and the « Peace Capital. »^[8] In 2009, Geneva was ranked as the fourth most expensive city in the world.^[9]