Gerra (Gambarogno)
Encyclopedia
Gerra is a former municipality
in the district of Locarno
in the canton
of Ticino
in Switzerland
.
On 25 April 2010, the former municipalities of Caviano
, Contone
, Gerra Gambarogno, Indemini
, Magadino
, Piazzogna
, San Nazzaro
, Sant'Abbondio and Vira Gambarogno
merged in the new municipality of Gambarogno
.
and the shores of Lake Maggiore
.
Gerra was part of the old Vicinanza
of Gambarogno. In the 16th Century, Ronco de Martignoni, Ronco di Sopra and Scimiana joined together to form an independent municipality. This municipality is listed in the register of lands of the parish
of S. Abbondio from 1596. In 1744, the St. Rochus and Sebastian parish church
was built.
Of the three inhabited settlement cores, Scimiana has remained nearly unchanged. The network of narrow streets and typical Gambarogno style alleys have been preserved, while most of the wooden balconies are gone and the fishermen's houses have disappeared. At the beginning of the 21st Century more than half the working population is employed in the services sector, and most work outside of the municipality.
Of the built up area, housing and buildings made up 6.7% and transportation infrastructure made up 1.9%. Out of the forested land, 80.6% of the total land area is heavily forested and 3.5% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 2.2% is used for growing crops and 6.7% is used for alpine pastures. Of the water in the village, 1.3% is in lakes and 0.6% is in rivers and streams. Of the unproductive areas, 1.6% is unproductive vegetation.
The village is located in the Locarno district. It consists of the villages of Ronco, Riva and Scimiana.
of the municipal coat of arms
is Gules a crossbow or and in a chief of the last an eagle displayed sable langued, beaked and membered of the first. The coat of arms come from the arms of the Balestra family. This is an example of canting
as Balestra, means arbalest or crossbow.
Most of the population speaks Italian
(67.3%), with German
being second most common (28.3%) and French
being third (1.6%). Of the Swiss national languages , 72 speak German
, 4 people speak French
, 171 people speak Italian
, and 1 person speaks Romansh. The remainder (6 people) speak another language.
, the gender distribution of the population was 49.5% male and 50.5% female. The population was made up of 123 Swiss men (40.3% of the population), and 28 (9.2%) non-Swiss men. There were 134 Swiss women (43.9%), and 20 (6.6%) non-Swiss women.
In there were 4 live births to Swiss citizens and were 5 deaths of Swiss citizens. Ignoring immigration and emigration, the population of Swiss citizens decreased by 1 while the foreign population remained the same. There was 1 non-Swiss man and 1 non-Swiss woman who immigrated from another country to Switzerland. The total Swiss population change in 2008 (from all sources, including moves across municipal borders) was an increase of 1 and there was no non-Swiss population change. This represents a population growth rate of 0.3%.
The age distribution, , in Gerra is; 28 children or 9.2% of the population are between 0 and 9 years old and 28 teenagers or 9.2% are between 10 and 19. Of the adult population, 17 people or 5.6% of the population are between 20 and 29 years old. 33 people or 10.8% are between 30 and 39, 47 people or 15.4% are between 40 and 49, and 46 people or 15.1% are between 50 and 59. The senior population distribution is 53 people or 17.4% of the population are between 60 and 69 years old, 31 people or 10.2% are between 70 and 79, there are 22 people or 7.2% who are over 80.
the average number of residents per living room was 0.54 which is less people per room than the cantonal average of 0.6 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 50.4% 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 127 private households in the village, and an average of 2. persons per household. there were 241 single family homes (or 75.8% of the total) out of a total of 318 inhabited buildings. There were 32 two family buildings (10.1%) and 31 multi-family buildings (9.7%). There were also 14 buildings in the village that were multipurpose buildings (used for both housing and commercial or another purpose).
The vacancy rate for the village, , was 0%. there were 475 apartments in the village. The most common apartment size was the 3 room apartment of which there were 126. There were 39 single room apartments and 76 apartments with five or more rooms. Of these apartments, a total of 123 apartments (25.9% of the total) were permanently occupied, while 349 apartments (73.5%) were seasonally occupied and 3 apartments (0.6%) were empty. , the construction rate of new housing units was 0 new units per 1000 residents.
The historical population is given in the following table:
the most popular party was the FDP
which received 33.16% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SP
(23.37%), the CVP
(18.8%) and the SVP
(11.1%). In the federal election, a total of 101 votes were cast, and the voter turnout
was 42.6%.
In the Gran Consiglio election, there were a total of 224 registered voters in Gerra , of which 121 or 54.0% voted. The most popular party was the PLRT
which received 41 or 33.9% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were; the SSI (with 22 or 18.2%), the PS
(with 21 or 17.4%) and the LEGA
(with 17 or 14.0%).
In the Consiglio di Stato election, 2 blank ballots were cast, leaving 119 valid ballots in the election. The most popular party was the PLRT which received 36 or 30.3% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were; the LEGA (with 22 or 18.5%), the LEGA (with 22 or 18.5%) and the PS (with 21 or 17.6%).
, there were 22 workers who commuted into the village and 70 workers who commuted away. The village is a net exporter of workers, with about 3.2 workers leaving the village for every one entering. About 31.8% of the workforce coming into Gerra are coming from outside Switzerland. Of the working population, 6.6% used public transportation to get to work, and 61.3% used a private car. , there were 2 hotels in Gerra.
. There are 33 individuals (or about 12.99% of the population) who belong to another church (not listed on the census), and 5 individuals (or about 1.97% of the population) did not answer the question.
).
In Gerra there were a total of 43 students . The Ticino education system
provides up to three years of non-mandatory kindergarten
and in Gerra there were 3 children in kindergarten. The primary school program lasts for five years and includes both a standard school and a special school. In the village, 17 students attended the standard primary schools and 1 student attended the special school. In the lower secondary school system, students either attend a two year middle school followed by a two year pre-apprenticeship or they attend a four year program to prepare for higher education. There were 10 students in the two year middle school, while 6 students were in the four year advanced program.
The upper secondary school includes several options, but at the end of the upper secondary program, a student will be prepared to enter a trade or to continue on to a university or college. In Ticino, vocational students may either attend school while working on their internship or apprenticeship (which takes three or four years) or may attend school followed by an internship or apprenticeship (which takes one year as a full-time student or one and a half to two years as a part-time student). There were 2 vocational students who were attending school full-time and 4 who attend part-time.
, there were 24 students from Gerra who attended schools outside the village.
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 Locarno
Locarno (district)
The district of Locarno is a district of Canton Ticino, Switzerland. It has a population of .-Geography:...
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 Ticino
Ticino
Canton Ticino or Ticino is the southernmost canton of Switzerland. Named after the Ticino river, it is the only canton in which Italian is the sole official language...
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....
.
On 25 April 2010, the former municipalities of Caviano
Caviano
Caviano is a former municipality in the district of Locarno in the canton of Ticino in Switzerland.On 25 April 2010, the former municipalities of Caviano, Contone, Gerra Gambarogno, Indemini, Magadino, Piazzogna, San Nazzaro, Sant'Abbondio and Vira Gambarogno merged in the new municipality of...
, Contone
Contone
Contone is a former municipality in the district of Locarno in the canton of Ticino in Switzerland.On 25 April 2010, the former municipalities of Caviano, Contone, Gerra Gambarogno, Indemini, Magadino, Piazzogna, San Nazzaro, Sant'Abbondio and Vira Gambarogno merged in the new municipality of...
, Gerra Gambarogno, Indemini
Indemini
Indemini is a former municipality in the district of Locarno in the canton of Ticino in Switzerland.On 25 April 2010, the former municipalities of Caviano, Contone, Gerra Gambarogno, Indemini, Magadino, Piazzogna, San Nazzaro, Sant'Abbondio and Vira Gambarogno merged in the new municipality of...
, Magadino
Magadino
Magadino is a former municipality in the district of Locarno in the canton of Ticino in Switzerland.On 25 April 2010, the former municipalities of Caviano, Contone, Gerra Gambarogno, Indemini, Magadino, Piazzogna, San Nazzaro, Sant'Abbondio and Vira Gambarogno merged in the new municipality of...
, Piazzogna
Piazzogna
Piazzogna is a former municipality in the district of Locarno in the canton of Ticino in Switzerland.On 25 April 2010, the former municipalities of Caviano, Contone, Gerra Gambarogno, Indemini, Magadino, Piazzogna, San Nazzaro, Sant'Abbondio and Vira Gambarogno merged in the new municipality of...
, San Nazzaro
San Nazzaro, Switzerland
San Nazzaro is a former municipality in the district of Locarno in the canton of Ticino in Switzerland.On 25 April 2010, the former municipalities of Caviano, Contone, Gerra Gambarogno, Indemini, Magadino, Piazzogna, San Nazzaro, Sant'Abbondio and Vira Gambarogno merged in the new municipality of...
, Sant'Abbondio and Vira Gambarogno
Vira (Gambarogno)
Vira is a former municipality in the district of Locarno in the canton of Ticino in Switzerland.On 25 April 2010, the former municipalities of Caviano, Contone, Gerra Gambarogno, Indemini, Magadino, Piazzogna, San Nazzaro, Sant'Abbondio and Vira Gambarogno merged in the new municipality of...
merged in the new municipality of Gambarogno
Gambarogno
Gambarogno is a municipality in the district of Locarno in the canton of Ticino in Switzerland. It was created on 25 April 2010 through the merger of the municipalities of Caviano, Contone, Gerra Gambarogno, Indemini, Magadino, Piazzogna, San Nazzaro, Sant'Abbondio and Vira...
.
History
The name Gerra is probably from the 18th Century, when the village of Ronco de Martignoni (which was first mentioned in 1591) expanded into the Gerra river deltaRiver delta
A delta is a landform that is formed at the mouth of a river where that river flows into an ocean, sea, estuary, lake, reservoir, flat arid area, or another river. Deltas are formed from the deposition of the sediment carried by the river as the flow leaves the mouth of the river...
and the shores of Lake Maggiore
Lake Maggiore
Lake Maggiore is a large lake located on the south side of the Alps. It is the second largest of Italy and largest of southern Switzerland. Lake Maggiore is the most westerly of the three great prealpine lakes of Italy, it extends for about 70 km between Locarno and Arona.The climate is mild...
.
Gerra was part of the old Vicinanza
Bürgergemeinde
The Bürgergemeinde is a statutory corporation in public law in Switzerland...
of Gambarogno. In the 16th Century, Ronco de Martignoni, Ronco di Sopra and Scimiana joined together to form an independent municipality. This municipality is listed in the register of lands of 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...
of S. Abbondio from 1596. In 1744, the St. Rochus and Sebastian parish church
Parish church
A parish church , in Christianity, is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish, the basic administrative unit of episcopal churches....
was built.
Of the three inhabited settlement cores, Scimiana has remained nearly unchanged. The network of narrow streets and typical Gambarogno style alleys have been preserved, while most of the wooden balconies are gone and the fishermen's houses have disappeared. At the beginning of the 21st Century more than half the working population is employed in the services sector, and most work outside of the municipality.
Geography
Gerra has an area, , of 3.14 square kilometres (1.2 sq mi). Of this area, 0.31 km² (0.119691669163686 sq mi) or 9.9% is used for agricultural purposes, while 2.64 km² (1 sq mi) or 84.1% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 0.28 km² (0.10810860440591 sq mi) or 8.9% is settled (buildings or roads), 0.06 km² (14.8 acre) or 1.9% is either rivers or lakes and 0.07 km² (17.3 acre) or 2.2% is unproductive land.Of the built up area, housing and buildings made up 6.7% and transportation infrastructure made up 1.9%. Out of the forested land, 80.6% of the total land area is heavily forested and 3.5% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 2.2% is used for growing crops and 6.7% is used for alpine pastures. Of the water in the village, 1.3% is in lakes and 0.6% is in rivers and streams. Of the unproductive areas, 1.6% is unproductive vegetation.
The village is located in the Locarno district. It consists of the villages of Ronco, Riva and Scimiana.
Coat of arms
The blazonBlazon
In heraldry and heraldic vexillology, a blazon is a formal description of a coat of arms, flag or similar emblem, from which the reader can reconstruct the appropriate image...
of the municipal coat of arms
Coat of arms
A coat of arms is a unique heraldic design on a shield or escutcheon or on a surcoat or tabard used to cover and protect armour and to identify the wearer. Thus the term is often stated as "coat-armour", because it was anciently displayed on the front of a coat of cloth...
is Gules a crossbow or and in a chief of the last an eagle displayed sable langued, beaked and membered of the first. The coat of arms come from the arms of the Balestra family. This is an example of canting
Canting arms
Canting arms are heraldic bearings that represent the bearer's name in a visual pun or rebus. The term cant came into the English language from Anglo-Norman cant, meaning song or singing, from Latin cantāre, and English cognates include canticle, chant, accent, incantation and recant.Canting arms –...
as Balestra, means arbalest or crossbow.
Demographics
Gerra has a population of 305. , 16.5% of the population are resident foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years (1997–2007) the population has changed at a rate of 9%.Most of the population speaks 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...
(67.3%), with German
German 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....
being second most common (28.3%) and French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
being third (1.6%). Of the Swiss national languages , 72 speak German
German 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....
, 4 people speak French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
, 171 people speak 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...
, and 1 person speaks Romansh. The remainder (6 people) speak another language.
, the gender distribution of the population was 49.5% male and 50.5% female. The population was made up of 123 Swiss men (40.3% of the population), and 28 (9.2%) non-Swiss men. There were 134 Swiss women (43.9%), and 20 (6.6%) non-Swiss women.
In there were 4 live births to Swiss citizens and were 5 deaths of Swiss citizens. Ignoring immigration and emigration, the population of Swiss citizens decreased by 1 while the foreign population remained the same. There was 1 non-Swiss man and 1 non-Swiss woman who immigrated from another country to Switzerland. The total Swiss population change in 2008 (from all sources, including moves across municipal borders) was an increase of 1 and there was no non-Swiss population change. This represents a population growth rate of 0.3%.
The age distribution, , in Gerra is; 28 children or 9.2% of the population are between 0 and 9 years old and 28 teenagers or 9.2% are between 10 and 19. Of the adult population, 17 people or 5.6% of the population are between 20 and 29 years old. 33 people or 10.8% are between 30 and 39, 47 people or 15.4% are between 40 and 49, and 46 people or 15.1% are between 50 and 59. The senior population distribution is 53 people or 17.4% of the population are between 60 and 69 years old, 31 people or 10.2% are between 70 and 79, there are 22 people or 7.2% who are over 80.
the average number of residents per living room was 0.54 which is less people per room than the cantonal average of 0.6 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 50.4% 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 127 private households in the village, and an average of 2. persons per household. there were 241 single family homes (or 75.8% of the total) out of a total of 318 inhabited buildings. There were 32 two family buildings (10.1%) and 31 multi-family buildings (9.7%). There were also 14 buildings in the village that were multipurpose buildings (used for both housing and commercial or another purpose).
The vacancy rate for the village, , was 0%. there were 475 apartments in the village. The most common apartment size was the 3 room apartment of which there were 126. There were 39 single room apartments and 76 apartments with five or more rooms. Of these apartments, a total of 123 apartments (25.9% of the total) were permanently occupied, while 349 apartments (73.5%) were seasonally occupied and 3 apartments (0.6%) were empty. , the construction rate of new housing units was 0 new units per 1000 residents.
The historical population is given in the following table:
| year | population |
|---|---|
| 1591 | 27 Hearths |
| 1669 | 57 |
| 1801 | 405 |
| 1850 | 651 |
| 1900 | 451 |
| 1950 | 330 |
Politics
In the 2007 federal electionSwiss 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 FDP
FDP.The Liberals
FDP.The Liberals is a classical liberal political party in Switzerland. It is the joint-largest party in the Federal Council, third-largest party in the National Council, and second-largest in the Council of States....
which received 33.16% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SP
Social Democratic Party of Switzerland
The Social Democratic Party of Switzerland is the largest centre-left political party in Switzerland....
(23.37%), 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...
(18.8%) and 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...
(11.1%). In the federal election, a total of 101 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 42.6%.
In the Gran Consiglio election, there were a total of 224 registered voters in Gerra , of which 121 or 54.0% voted. The most popular party was the PLRT
FDP.The Liberals
FDP.The Liberals is a classical liberal political party in Switzerland. It is the joint-largest party in the Federal Council, third-largest party in the National Council, and second-largest in the Council of States....
which received 41 or 33.9% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were; the SSI (with 22 or 18.2%), the PS
Social Democratic Party of Switzerland
The Social Democratic Party of Switzerland is the largest centre-left political party in Switzerland....
(with 21 or 17.4%) and the LEGA
Ticino League
The Ticino League is an isolationist, national conservative political party in Switzerland active in the canton of Ticino.In 1991, after some public campaigning in the Sunday journal Mattino della Domenica against political power and use of public money, the editor Giuliano Bignasca and the...
(with 17 or 14.0%).
In the Consiglio di Stato election, 2 blank ballots were cast, leaving 119 valid ballots in the election. The most popular party was the PLRT which received 36 or 30.3% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were; the LEGA (with 22 or 18.5%), the LEGA (with 22 or 18.5%) and the PS (with 21 or 17.6%).
Economy
, Gerra had an unemployment rate of 2.93%. , there were 2 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 1 business involved in this sector. 5 people were employed in the secondary sector and there was 1 business in this sector. 51 people were employed in the tertiary sector, with 13 businesses in this sector. There were 106 residents of the village who were employed in some capacity, of which females made up 37.7% of the workforce., there were 22 workers who commuted into the village and 70 workers who commuted away. The village is a net exporter of workers, with about 3.2 workers leaving the village for every one entering. About 31.8% of the workforce coming into Gerra are coming from outside Switzerland. Of the working population, 6.6% used public transportation to get to work, and 61.3% used a private car. , there were 2 hotels in Gerra.
Religion
From the , 176 or 69.3% were Roman Catholic, while 40 or 15.7% 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...
. There are 33 individuals (or about 12.99% of the population) who belong to another church (not listed on the census), and 5 individuals (or about 1.97% of the population) did not answer the question.
Education
The entire Swiss population is generally well educated. In Gerra about 81.3% 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...
).
In Gerra there were a total of 43 students . The Ticino education system
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...
provides up to three years of non-mandatory 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 in Gerra there were 3 children in kindergarten. The primary school program lasts for five years and includes both a standard school and a special school. In the village, 17 students attended the standard primary schools and 1 student attended the special school. In the lower secondary school system, students either attend a two year middle school followed by a two year pre-apprenticeship or they attend a four year program to prepare for higher education. There were 10 students in the two year middle school, while 6 students were in the four year advanced program.
The upper secondary school includes several options, but at the end of the upper secondary program, a student will be prepared to enter a trade or to continue on to a university or college. In Ticino, vocational students may either attend school while working on their internship or apprenticeship (which takes three or four years) or may attend school followed by an internship or apprenticeship (which takes one year as a full-time student or one and a half to two years as a part-time student). There were 2 vocational students who were attending school full-time and 4 who attend part-time.
, there were 24 students from Gerra who attended schools outside the village.