Birwinken
Encyclopedia
Birwinken is a municipality
in the district of Weinfelden
in the canton
of Thurgau
in Switzerland
.
In the 14th Century, Birwinken and Dotnacht formed a distant part of the Herrschaft
of Spiegelberg
near Weingarten
. Due to its location away from the rest of the Herrschaft it was sold to a number of other owners, before it was sold by the Muntprat family of Constance
, in 1640, to the city of Zurich. The low court
of Birrwinken became part of the property of the Vogt
of Weinfelden
in 1649. Through the court, the village remained tied to Weinfelden until 1798. Between 1803 and 1816 it was a district capital.
The village church is mentioned no later than the 12th Century. By 1400, the parish
was under the Augustinian monastery in Constance, and until the Protestant Reformation
in 1529, was overseen by a monk. The church became a Reformed parish which included the village of Andwil. The parish remained independent until 1578, when it became a filial church
of Langrickenbach. The Catholics in the village belonged to the parish of Berg
after 1869.
In the 19th Century the village economy add animal husbandry to the traditional agriculture and fruit growing. In 1878 a weaving and three embroidery factories provided 165 jobs. However, the decline of the textile industry in the 20th Century and village's remoteness led to high levels of emigration. Due to the emigration, the village never developed much industry and has remained a mostly agricultural village. In 1990, 63% of the population worked in agriculture.
Of the built up area, industrial buildings made up 3.5% of the total area while housing and buildings made up less than 0.1% and transportation infrastructure made up 0.2%. Parks, green belts and sports fields made up 3.0%. Out of the forested land, 14.3% of the total land area is heavily forested and 2.0% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 63.3% is used for growing crops, while 12.7% is used for orchards or vine crops. All the water in the municipality is flowing water.
The municipality is located in the Weinfelden district, on the southern slope of the Bodenseerücken mountains about 2 km (1.2 mi) east of Berg
. It consists of the villages of Birwinken, Andwil, Happerswil-Buch, Klarsreuti and Mattwil.
(96.9%), with Albanian
being second most common ( 0.8%) and Italian
being third ( 0.4%).
, the gender distribution of the population was 51.0% male and 49.0% female. The population was made up of 614 Swiss men (47.1% of the population), and 51 (3.9%) non-Swiss men. There were 595 Swiss women (45.6%), and 44 (3.4%) non-Swiss women.
In there were 11 live births to Swiss citizens and births to non-Swiss citizens, and in same time span there were 9 deaths of Swiss citizens. Ignoring immigration and emigration, the population of Swiss citizens increased by 2 while the foreign population remained the same. There were 2 Swiss men who emigrated from Switzerland to another country, 4 Swiss women who emigrated from Switzerland to another countryand 4 non-Swiss men who emigrated from Switzerland to another country. The total Swiss population change in 2008 (from all sources) was an increase of 28 and the non-Swiss population change was an increase of 5 people. This represents a population growth rate of 2.6%.
The age distribution, , in Birwinken is; 161 children or 12.4% of the population are between 0 and 9 years old and 199 teenagers or 15.4% are between 10 and 19. Of the adult population, 130 people or 10.0% of the population are between 20 and 29 years old. 138 people or 10.6% are between 30 and 39, 228 people or 17.6% are between 40 and 49, and 190 people or 14.7% are between 50 and 59. The senior population distribution is 114 people or 8.8% of the population are between 60 and 69 years old, 77 people or 5.9% are between 70 and 79, there are 54 people or 4.2% who are between 80 and 89, and there are 5 people or 0.4% who are 90 and older.
the average number of residents per living room was 0.55 which is about equal to the cantonal average of 0.56 per room. In this case, a room is defined as space of a housing unit of at least 4 m² (43.1 sq ft) as normal bedrooms, dining rooms, living rooms, kitchens and habitable cellars and attics. About 59.3% of the total households were owner occupied, or in other words did not pay rent (though they may have a mortgage
or a rent-to-own agreement).
, there were 433 private households in the municipality, and an average of 2.7 persons per household. there were 190 single family homes (or 82.3% of the total) out of a total of 231 inhabited buildings. There were 24 two family buildings (10.4%), 11 three family buildings (4.8%) and 6 multi-family buildings (or 2.6%). There were 254 (or 20.9%) persons who were part of a couple without children, and 766 (or 63.0%) who were part of a couple with children. There were 50 (or 4.1%) people who lived in single parent home, while there are 11 persons who were adult children living with one or both parents, 4 persons who lived in a household made up of relatives, 10 who lived in a household made up of unrelated persons, and 36 who are either institutionalized or live in another type of collective housing.
The vacancy rate for the municipality, , was 1.36%. , the construction rate of new housing units was 2.4 new units per 1000 residents. there were 483 apartments in the municipality. The most common apartment size was the 6 room apartment of which there were 142. There were 7 single room apartments and 142 apartments with six or more rooms. the average price to rent an average apartment in Birwinken was 1133.55 Swiss franc
s (CHF) per month (US$910, £510, €730 approx. exchange rate from 2000). The average rate for a one room apartment was 900.00 CHF (US$720, £410, €580), a two room apartment was about 743.00 CHF (US$590, £330, €480), a three room apartment was about 970.00 CHF (US$780, £440, €620) and a six or more room apartment cost an average of 1435.33 CHF (US$1150, £650, €920). The average apartment price in Birwinken was 101.6% of the national average of 1116 CHF.
In the 2007 federal election
the most popular party was the SVP
which received 56.36% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the Green Party
(11.74%), the CVP
(9.65%) and the SP
(8.6%). In the federal election, a total of 462 votes were cast, and the voter turnout
was 53.1%.
The historical population is given in the following table:
there were 852 workers who lived in the municipality. Of these, 424 or about 49.8% of the residents worked outside Birwinken while 69 people commuted into the municipality for work. There were a total of 497 jobs (of at least 6 hours per week) in the municipality. Of the working population, 4.4% used public transportation to get to work, and 52% used a private car.
. Of the rest of the population, there is 1 individual who belongs to the Orthodox Church, and there are 85 individuals (or about 6.99% of the population) who belong to another Christian church. There were 19 (or about 1.56% of the population) who are Islam
ic. 105 (or about 8.63% of the population) belong to no church, are agnostic
or atheist
, and 66 individuals (or about 5.43% of the population) did not answer the question.
).
Birwinken is home to the Berg-Birwinken primary and secondary school district
. In the 2008/2009 school year there were 471 students at either the primary or secondary levels. There were 102 children in the kindergarten
, and the average class size was 20.4 kindergartners. Of the children in kindergarten, 55 or 53.9% were female, 11 or 10.8% were not Swiss citizens and 6 or 5.9% did not speak German natively. The lower and upper primary levels begin at about age 5-6 and last for 6 years. There were 160 children in who were at the lower primary level and 152 children in the upper primary level. The average class size in the primary school was 21.29 students. At the lower primary level, there were 77 children or 48.1% of the total population who were female, 15 or 9.4% were not Swiss citizens and 10 or 6.3% did not speak German natively. In the upper primary level, there were 71 or 46.7% who were female, 13 or 8.6% were not Swiss citizens and 5 or 3.3% did not speak German natively.
At the secondary level, students are divided according to performance. The secondary level begins at about age 12 and usually lasts 3 years. There were 102 teenagers who were in the advanced school, of which 55 or 53.9% were female, 3 or 2.9% were not Swiss citizens. There were 57 teenagers who were in the standard school, of which 26 or 45.6% were female, 5 or 8.8% were not Swiss citizens and 4 or 7.0% did not speak German natively. The average class size for all classes at the secondary level was 17.67 students.
Municipalities of Switzerland
Communes , also known as municipalities, are the smallest government division in Switzerland, numbering 2,596 . While many have a population of a few hundred citizens, the largest cities such as Zürich or Geneva also have the legal status of municipalities...
in the district of Weinfelden
Weinfelden (district)
Weinfelden District is one of the five districts of the canton of Thurgau, Switzerland. It has a population of . Its capital is the town of Weinfelden.The district contains the following municipalities:...
in the canton
Cantons of Switzerland
The 26 cantons of Switzerland are the member states of the federal state of Switzerland. Each canton was a fully sovereign state with its own borders, army and currency from the Treaty of Westphalia until the establishment of the Swiss federal state in 1848...
of Thurgau
Thurgau
Thurgau is a northeast canton of Switzerland. The population, , is . In 2007, there were a total of 47,390 who were resident foreigners. The capital is Frauenfeld.-History:...
in Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
.
History
Birwinken is probably first mentioned in 822 as Wirinchova. In 1275 it was mentioned as Birbichon.In the 14th Century, Birwinken and Dotnacht formed a distant part of the Herrschaft
Herrschaft (territory)
In the German feudal system, a Herrschaft or Herrlichkeit was the fiefdom of a lord, who in this area exercised his full feudal rights...
of Spiegelberg
Spiegelberg
Spiegelberg is a town in the district of Rems-Murr in Baden-Württemberg in Germany.The name of the town refers to 18th century glass production on the hills, with mirror polishing being done in the valley of the Lauter river....
near Weingarten
Weingarten (Baden)
Weingarten is a municipality in the district of Karlsruhe in southwestern Germany, situated at the transition from the Kraichgau to the Rhine valley. Its name means vine garden in German...
. Due to its location away from the rest of the Herrschaft it was sold to a number of other owners, before it was sold by the Muntprat family of Constance
Constance
Constance is a female given name that derives from Latin and means "constant." Variations of the name include Connie, Constancia, Constanze, Constanza, Stanzy, and Konstanze.Constance may refer to:-People:*Constance Bennett , American actress...
, in 1640, to the city of Zurich. The low court
High, middle and low justice
High, middle and low justices are notions dating from Western feudalism to indicate descending degrees of judiciary power to administer justice by the maximal punishment the holders could inflict upon their subjects and other dependents....
of Birrwinken became part of the property of the Vogt
Vogt
A Vogt ; plural Vögte; Dutch voogd; Danish foged; ; ultimately from Latin [ad]vocatus) in the Holy Roman Empire was the German title of a reeve or advocate, an overlord exerting guardianship or military protection as well as secular justice...
of Weinfelden
Weinfelden
Weinfelden is a municipality in the canton of Thurgau in Switzerland. It is the capital of the district of the same name.Weinfelden is an old town, which was known during Roman times as Quivelda .-History:...
in 1649. Through the court, the village remained tied to Weinfelden until 1798. Between 1803 and 1816 it was a district capital.
The village church is mentioned no later than the 12th Century. By 1400, the parish
Parish
A parish is a territorial unit historically under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of one parish priest, who might be assisted in his pastoral duties by a curate or curates - also priests but not the parish priest - from a more or less central parish church with its associated organization...
was under the Augustinian monastery in Constance, and until the Protestant Reformation
Protestant Reformation
The Protestant Reformation was a 16th-century split within Western Christianity initiated by Martin Luther, John Calvin and other early Protestants. The efforts of the self-described "reformers", who objected to the doctrines, rituals and ecclesiastical structure of the Roman Catholic Church, led...
in 1529, was overseen by a monk. The church became a Reformed parish which included the village of Andwil. The parish remained independent until 1578, when it became a filial church
Filial church
A filial church, in the Roman Catholic Church, is a church to which is annexed the cure of souls, but which remains dependent on another church. The term comes from the Latin filialis, from filia, daughter....
of Langrickenbach. The Catholics in the village belonged to the parish of Berg
Berg, Thurgau
Berg is a municipality in the district of Weinfelden in the canton of Thurgau in Switzerland.-History:The earliest traces of human settlement come from the Stone Age and there are scattered Bronze Age items around Berg. The modern village of Berg is first mentioned in 796 as Berga...
after 1869.
In the 19th Century the village economy add animal husbandry to the traditional agriculture and fruit growing. In 1878 a weaving and three embroidery factories provided 165 jobs. However, the decline of the textile industry in the 20th Century and village's remoteness led to high levels of emigration. Due to the emigration, the village never developed much industry and has remained a mostly agricultural village. In 1990, 63% of the population worked in agriculture.
Geography
Birwinken has an area, , of 12.35 square kilometres (4.8 sq mi). Of this area, 9.39 km² (3.6 sq mi) or 76.0% is used for agricultural purposes, while 2.01 km² (0.776065338770995 sq mi) or 16.3% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 0.85 km² (0.328186834803655 sq mi) or 6.9% is settled (buildings or roads), 0.05 km² (12.4 acre) or 0.4% is either rivers or lakes.Of the built up area, industrial buildings made up 3.5% of the total area while housing and buildings made up less than 0.1% and transportation infrastructure made up 0.2%. Parks, green belts and sports fields made up 3.0%. Out of the forested land, 14.3% of the total land area is heavily forested and 2.0% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 63.3% is used for growing crops, while 12.7% is used for orchards or vine crops. All the water in the municipality is flowing water.
The municipality is located in the Weinfelden district, on the southern slope of the Bodenseerücken mountains about 2 km (1.2 mi) east of Berg
Berg, Thurgau
Berg is a municipality in the district of Weinfelden in the canton of Thurgau in Switzerland.-History:The earliest traces of human settlement come from the Stone Age and there are scattered Bronze Age items around Berg. The modern village of Berg is first mentioned in 796 as Berga...
. It consists of the villages of Birwinken, Andwil, Happerswil-Buch, Klarsreuti and Mattwil.
Demographics
Birwinken has a population of , 7.3% of the population are foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years (1997–2007) the population has changed at a rate of 8.1%. Most of the population speaks GermanGerman language
German is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
(96.9%), with Albanian
Albanian language
Albanian is an Indo-European language spoken by approximately 7.6 million people, primarily in Albania and Kosovo but also in other areas of the Balkans in which there is an Albanian population, including western Macedonia, southern Montenegro, southern Serbia and northwestern Greece...
being second most common ( 0.8%) and Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
being third ( 0.4%).
, the gender distribution of the population was 51.0% male and 49.0% female. The population was made up of 614 Swiss men (47.1% of the population), and 51 (3.9%) non-Swiss men. There were 595 Swiss women (45.6%), and 44 (3.4%) non-Swiss women.
In there were 11 live births to Swiss citizens and births to non-Swiss citizens, and in same time span there were 9 deaths of Swiss citizens. Ignoring immigration and emigration, the population of Swiss citizens increased by 2 while the foreign population remained the same. There were 2 Swiss men who emigrated from Switzerland to another country, 4 Swiss women who emigrated from Switzerland to another countryand 4 non-Swiss men who emigrated from Switzerland to another country. The total Swiss population change in 2008 (from all sources) was an increase of 28 and the non-Swiss population change was an increase of 5 people. This represents a population growth rate of 2.6%.
The age distribution, , in Birwinken is; 161 children or 12.4% of the population are between 0 and 9 years old and 199 teenagers or 15.4% are between 10 and 19. Of the adult population, 130 people or 10.0% of the population are between 20 and 29 years old. 138 people or 10.6% are between 30 and 39, 228 people or 17.6% are between 40 and 49, and 190 people or 14.7% are between 50 and 59. The senior population distribution is 114 people or 8.8% of the population are between 60 and 69 years old, 77 people or 5.9% are between 70 and 79, there are 54 people or 4.2% who are between 80 and 89, and there are 5 people or 0.4% who are 90 and older.
the average number of residents per living room was 0.55 which is about equal to the cantonal average of 0.56 per room. In this case, a room is defined as space of a housing unit of at least 4 m² (43.1 sq ft) as normal bedrooms, dining rooms, living rooms, kitchens and habitable cellars and attics. About 59.3% of the total households were owner occupied, or in other words did not pay rent (though they may have a mortgage
Mortgage loan
A mortgage loan is a loan secured by real property through the use of a mortgage note which evidences the existence of the loan and the encumbrance of that realty through the granting of a mortgage which secures the loan...
or a rent-to-own agreement).
, there were 433 private households in the municipality, and an average of 2.7 persons per household. there were 190 single family homes (or 82.3% of the total) out of a total of 231 inhabited buildings. There were 24 two family buildings (10.4%), 11 three family buildings (4.8%) and 6 multi-family buildings (or 2.6%). There were 254 (or 20.9%) persons who were part of a couple without children, and 766 (or 63.0%) who were part of a couple with children. There were 50 (or 4.1%) people who lived in single parent home, while there are 11 persons who were adult children living with one or both parents, 4 persons who lived in a household made up of relatives, 10 who lived in a household made up of unrelated persons, and 36 who are either institutionalized or live in another type of collective housing.
The vacancy rate for the municipality, , was 1.36%. , the construction rate of new housing units was 2.4 new units per 1000 residents. there were 483 apartments in the municipality. The most common apartment size was the 6 room apartment of which there were 142. There were 7 single room apartments and 142 apartments with six or more rooms. the average price to rent an average apartment in Birwinken was 1133.55 Swiss franc
Swiss franc
The franc is the currency and legal tender of Switzerland and Liechtenstein; it is also legal tender in the Italian exclave Campione d'Italia. Although not formally legal tender in the German exclave Büsingen , it is in wide daily use there...
s (CHF) per month (US$910, £510, €730 approx. exchange rate from 2000). The average rate for a one room apartment was 900.00 CHF (US$720, £410, €580), a two room apartment was about 743.00 CHF (US$590, £330, €480), a three room apartment was about 970.00 CHF (US$780, £440, €620) and a six or more room apartment cost an average of 1435.33 CHF (US$1150, £650, €920). The average apartment price in Birwinken was 101.6% of the national average of 1116 CHF.
In the 2007 federal election
Swiss federal election, 2007
Elections to the Swiss Federal Assembly, the federal parliament of Switzerland, were held on Sunday, 21 October 2007. In a few cantons, a second round of the elections to the Council of States was held on 11 November, 18 November, and 25 November 2007...
the most popular party was the SVP
Swiss People's Party
The Swiss People's Party , also known as the Democratic Union of the Centre , is a conservative political party in Switzerland. Chaired by Toni Brunner, but spearheaded by Christoph Blocher, the party is the largest party in the Federal Assembly, with 58 members of the National Council and 6 of...
which received 56.36% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the Green Party
Green Party of Switzerland
The Green Party of Switzerland is the fifth-largest party in the National Council of Switzerland, and the largest party that is not represented on the Federal Council.-History:...
(11.74%), the CVP
Christian Democratic People's Party of Switzerland
The Christian Democratic People's Party of Switzerland is a Christian democratic political party in Switzerland. It is the fourth-largest party in the National Council, with 31 seats, and the largest in the Council of States, with 15 seats. It has one seat, that of Doris Leuthard, on the Swiss...
(9.65%) and the SP
Social Democratic Party of Switzerland
The Social Democratic Party of Switzerland is the largest centre-left political party in Switzerland....
(8.6%). In the federal election, a total of 462 votes were cast, and the voter turnout
Voter turnout
Voter turnout is the percentage of eligible voters who cast a ballot in an election . After increasing for many decades, there has been a trend of decreasing voter turnout in most established democracies since the 1960s...
was 53.1%.
The historical population is given in the following table:
| year | population |
|---|---|
| 1850 | 1,333 |
| 1888 | 1,604 |
| 1900 | 1,407 |
| 1941 | 1,202 |
| 1950 | 1,261 |
| 1990 | 1,213 |
| 2000 | 1,216 |
Economy
, Birwinken had an unemployment rate of 0.93%. , there were 171 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 56 businesses involved in this sector. 53 people are employed in the secondary sector and there are 15 businesses in this sector. 97 people are employed in the tertiary sector, with 32 businesses in this sector.there were 852 workers who lived in the municipality. Of these, 424 or about 49.8% of the residents worked outside Birwinken while 69 people commuted into the municipality for work. There were a total of 497 jobs (of at least 6 hours per week) in the municipality. Of the working population, 4.4% used public transportation to get to work, and 52% used a private car.
Religion
From the , 246 or 20.2% were Roman Catholic, while 694 or 57.1% belonged to the Swiss Reformed ChurchSwiss Reformed Church
The Reformed branch of Protestantism in Switzerland was started in Zürich by Huldrych Zwingli and spread within a few years to Basel , Bern , St...
. Of the rest of the population, there is 1 individual who belongs to the Orthodox Church, and there are 85 individuals (or about 6.99% of the population) who belong to another Christian church. There were 19 (or about 1.56% of the population) who are Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
ic. 105 (or about 8.63% of the population) belong to no church, are agnostic
Agnosticism
Agnosticism is the view that the truth value of certain claims—especially claims about the existence or non-existence of any deity, but also other religious and metaphysical claims—is unknown or unknowable....
or atheist
Atheism
Atheism is, in a broad sense, the rejection of belief in the existence of deities. In a narrower sense, atheism is specifically the position that there are no deities...
, and 66 individuals (or about 5.43% of the population) did not answer the question.
Education
The entire Swiss population is generally well educated. In Birwinken about 74.5% of the population (between age 25-64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either University or a FachhochschuleFachhochschule
A Fachhochschule or University of Applied Sciences is a German type of tertiary education institution, sometimes specialized in certain topical areas . Fachhochschulen were founded in Germany and later adopted by Austria, Liechtenstein, Switzerland and Greece...
).
Birwinken is home to the Berg-Birwinken primary and secondary school district
Education in Switzerland
The education system in Switzerland is very diverse, because the constitution of Switzerland delegates the authority for the school system mainly to the cantons...
. In the 2008/2009 school year there were 471 students at either the primary or secondary levels. There were 102 children in the kindergarten
Kindergarten
A kindergarten is a preschool educational institution for children. The term was created by Friedrich Fröbel for the play and activity institute that he created in 1837 in Bad Blankenburg as a social experience for children for their transition from home to school...
, and the average class size was 20.4 kindergartners. Of the children in kindergarten, 55 or 53.9% were female, 11 or 10.8% were not Swiss citizens and 6 or 5.9% did not speak German natively. The lower and upper primary levels begin at about age 5-6 and last for 6 years. There were 160 children in who were at the lower primary level and 152 children in the upper primary level. The average class size in the primary school was 21.29 students. At the lower primary level, there were 77 children or 48.1% of the total population who were female, 15 or 9.4% were not Swiss citizens and 10 or 6.3% did not speak German natively. In the upper primary level, there were 71 or 46.7% who were female, 13 or 8.6% were not Swiss citizens and 5 or 3.3% did not speak German natively.
At the secondary level, students are divided according to performance. The secondary level begins at about age 12 and usually lasts 3 years. There were 102 teenagers who were in the advanced school, of which 55 or 53.9% were female, 3 or 2.9% were not Swiss citizens. There were 57 teenagers who were in the standard school, of which 26 or 45.6% were female, 5 or 8.8% were not Swiss citizens and 4 or 7.0% did not speak German natively. The average class size for all classes at the secondary level was 17.67 students.