Relating to or belonging to a canton; characteristic of a canton or its government, especially in Switzerland.
From canton plus the adjective suffix -al. Canton comes from Italian cantone (corner, region), ultimately from Latin cantus. In Switzerland, cantons are semi-independent territorial divisions.
Switzerland's genius was dividing itself into cantons—semi-independent regions with their own laws and governments. The word 'cantonal' perfectly captures this federal-yet-distinct political arrangement that influenced later democracies.
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