Unterems
Encyclopedia
Unterems is a municipality
in the district of Leuk in the canton
of Valais
in Switzerland
.
The municipality is located in the Leuk district, high on the left side of the Rhone
valley. It consists of the village of Unterems and the hamlets
of Ze Schmidu, Feldishaus and Prupräsu.
The municipalities of Turtmann
and Unterems are considering a merger on at a date in the future into the new municipality with an, , undetermined name.
of the municipal coat of arms
is Azure a Cross Patee Gules in chief two Mullets of Six Or in base a branch of Lime Tree/Linden Tree slipped with three Leaves Vert.
Most of the population speaks German
(158 or 98.1%) as their first language, French
, Italian
and Spanish
are all spoken by 1 person.
, the gender distribution of the population was 43.2% male and 56.8% female. The population was made up of 70 Swiss men (43.2% of the population) and (0.0%) non-Swiss men. There were 88 Swiss women (54.3%) and 4 (2.5%) non-Swiss women. Of the population in the municipality 89 or about 55.3% were born in Unterems and lived there in 2000. There were 46 or 28.6% who were born in the same canton, while 13 or 8.1% were born somewhere else in Switzerland, and 3 or 1.9% were born outside of Switzerland.
The age distribution of the population is children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 19.3% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 55.3% and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 25.5%.
, there were 59 people who were single and never married in the municipality. There were 78 married individuals, 22 widows or widowers and 2 individuals who are divorced.
the average number of residents per living room was 0.63 which is about equal to the cantonal average of 0.63 per room. In this case, a room is defined as space of a housing unit of at least 4 m² (43 sq ft) as normal bedrooms, dining rooms, living rooms, kitchens and habitable cellars and attics. About 90.2% 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 56 private households in the municipality, and an average of 2.5 persons per household. There were 17 households that consist of only one person and 4 households with five or more people. Out of a total of 59 households that answered this question, 28.8% were households made up of just one person and there were 2 adults who lived with their parents. Of the rest of the households, there are 13 married couples without children, 23 married couples with children There was 1 household that was made up of unrelated people and 3 households that were made up of some sort of institution or another collective housing.
there were 71 single family homes (or 72.4% of the total) out of a total of 98 inhabited buildings. There were 17 multi-family buildings (17.3%), along with 8 multi-purpose buildings that were mostly used for housing (8.2%) and 2 other use buildings (commercial or industrial) that also had some housing (2.0%).
, a total of 51 apartments (41.1% of the total) were permanently occupied, while 66 apartments (53.2%) were seasonally occupied and 7 apartments (5.6%) were empty.
The historical population is given in the following chart:
the most popular party was the CVP
which received 48.11% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SVP
(33.77%), the SP
(14.72%) and the Green Party
(2.08%). In the federal election, a total of 82 votes were cast, and the voter turnout
was 66.1%.
In the 2009 Conseil d'Etat/Staatsrat
election a total of 66 votes were cast, of which or about 0.0% were invalid. The voter participation was 54.6%, which is similar to the cantonal average of 54.67%. In the 2007 Swiss Council of States election
election a total of 81 votes were cast, of which 1 or about 1.2% were invalid. The voter participation was 65.3%, which is much more than the cantonal average of 59.88%.
the total number of full-time equivalent
jobs was 53. The number of jobs in the primary sector was 9, all of which were in agriculture. There were no jobs in the secondary sector. The number of jobs in the tertiary sector was 44. In the tertiary sector; 1 was in a hotel or restaurant, 1 was in education and 41 or 93.2% were in health care.
, there were 7 workers who commuted into the municipality and 43 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net exporter of workers, with about 6.1 workers leaving the municipality for every one entering. Of the working population, 17.2% used public transportation to get to work, and 53.1% used a private car.
.
). Of the 7 who completed tertiary schooling, 57.1% were Swiss men, 42.9% were Swiss women.
, there were 8 students in Unterems who came from another municipality, while 15 residents attended schools outside the municipality.
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 Leuk 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 Valais
Valais
The Valais is one of the 26 cantons of Switzerland in the southwestern part of the country, around the valley of the Rhône from its headwaters to Lake Geneva, separating the Pennine Alps from the Bernese Alps. The canton is one of the drier parts of Switzerland in its central Rhône valley...
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....
.
Geography
Unterems has an area, , of 1.4 square kilometre. Of this area, 39.1% is used for agricultural purposes, while 53.6% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 7.2% is settled (buildings or roads) and 0.0% is unproductive land.The municipality is located in the Leuk district, high on the left side of the Rhone
Rhône
Rhone can refer to:* Rhone, one of the major rivers of Europe, running through Switzerland and France* Rhône Glacier, the source of the Rhone River and one of the primary contributors to Lake Geneva in the far eastern end of the canton of Valais in Switzerland...
valley. It consists of the village of Unterems and the hamlets
Hamlet (place)
A hamlet is usually a rural settlement which is too small to be considered a village, though sometimes the word is used for a different sort of community. Historically, when a hamlet became large enough to justify building a church, it was then classified as a village...
of Ze Schmidu, Feldishaus and Prupräsu.
The municipalities of Turtmann
Turtmann
Turtmann is a municipality in the district of Leuk in the canton of Valais in Switzerland.-History:Turtmann is first mentioned in 1050 as Curtmannonis. In 1210 it was mentioned as Torthemanei and Tortemagny....
and Unterems are considering a merger on at a date in the future into the new municipality with an, , undetermined name.
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 Azure a Cross Patee Gules in chief two Mullets of Six Or in base a branch of Lime Tree/Linden Tree slipped with three Leaves Vert.
Demographics
Unterems has a population of . , 2.5% of the population are resident foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years (1999–2009 ) the population has changed at a rate of 5.9%. It has changed at a rate of 7.8% due to migration and at a rate of -15.7% due to births and deaths.Most of the population speaks 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....
(158 or 98.1%) as their first language, 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...
, 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 Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
are all spoken by 1 person.
, the gender distribution of the population was 43.2% male and 56.8% female. The population was made up of 70 Swiss men (43.2% of the population) and (0.0%) non-Swiss men. There were 88 Swiss women (54.3%) and 4 (2.5%) non-Swiss women. Of the population in the municipality 89 or about 55.3% were born in Unterems and lived there in 2000. There were 46 or 28.6% who were born in the same canton, while 13 or 8.1% were born somewhere else in Switzerland, and 3 or 1.9% were born outside of Switzerland.
The age distribution of the population is children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 19.3% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 55.3% and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 25.5%.
, there were 59 people who were single and never married in the municipality. There were 78 married individuals, 22 widows or widowers and 2 individuals who are divorced.
the average number of residents per living room was 0.63 which is about equal to the cantonal average of 0.63 per room. In this case, a room is defined as space of a housing unit of at least 4 m² (43 sq ft) as normal bedrooms, dining rooms, living rooms, kitchens and habitable cellars and attics. About 90.2% 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 56 private households in the municipality, and an average of 2.5 persons per household. There were 17 households that consist of only one person and 4 households with five or more people. Out of a total of 59 households that answered this question, 28.8% were households made up of just one person and there were 2 adults who lived with their parents. Of the rest of the households, there are 13 married couples without children, 23 married couples with children There was 1 household that was made up of unrelated people and 3 households that were made up of some sort of institution or another collective housing.
there were 71 single family homes (or 72.4% of the total) out of a total of 98 inhabited buildings. There were 17 multi-family buildings (17.3%), along with 8 multi-purpose buildings that were mostly used for housing (8.2%) and 2 other use buildings (commercial or industrial) that also had some housing (2.0%).
, a total of 51 apartments (41.1% of the total) were permanently occupied, while 66 apartments (53.2%) were seasonally occupied and 7 apartments (5.6%) were empty.
The historical population is given in the following chart:
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 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...
which received 48.11% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were 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...
(33.77%), the SP
Social Democratic Party of Switzerland
The Social Democratic Party of Switzerland is the largest centre-left political party in Switzerland....
(14.72%) and 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:...
(2.08%). In the federal election, a total of 82 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 66.1%.
In the 2009 Conseil d'Etat/Staatsrat
Conseil d'Etat (Switzerland)
In Switzerland, Conseil d'Etat is the name of the council constituting the cantonal government of French-speaking cantons. It is not to be confused with the Conseil des États which is a chamber of the Swiss parliament....
election a total of 66 votes were cast, of which or about 0.0% were invalid. The voter participation was 54.6%, which is similar to the cantonal average of 54.67%. In the 2007 Swiss Council of States election
Swiss Council of States election, 2007
Elections were held to the Council of States of Switzerland in October and November 2007 as part of the 2007 federal election. All 46 members of the Council of States were elected from all cantons of Switzerland. The first round was held on 21 October...
election a total of 81 votes were cast, of which 1 or about 1.2% were invalid. The voter participation was 65.3%, which is much more than the cantonal average of 59.88%.
Economy
, Unterems had an unemployment rate of 0.7%. , there were 19 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 8 businesses involved in this sector. No one was employed in the secondary sector. 79 people were employed in the tertiary sector, with 5 businesses in this sector. There were 64 residents of the municipality who were employed in some capacity, of which females made up 45.3% of the workforce.the total number of full-time equivalent
Full-time equivalent
Full-time equivalent , is a unit to measure employed persons or students in a way that makes them comparable although they may work or study a different number of hours per week. FTE is often used to measure a worker's involvement in a project, or to track cost reductions in an organization...
jobs was 53. The number of jobs in the primary sector was 9, all of which were in agriculture. There were no jobs in the secondary sector. The number of jobs in the tertiary sector was 44. In the tertiary sector; 1 was in a hotel or restaurant, 1 was in education and 41 or 93.2% were in health care.
, there were 7 workers who commuted into the municipality and 43 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net exporter of workers, with about 6.1 workers leaving the municipality for every one entering. Of the working population, 17.2% used public transportation to get to work, and 53.1% used a private car.
Religion
From the , 146 or 90.7% were Roman Catholic, while 6 or 3.7% 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...
.
Education
In Unterems about 48 or (29.8%) of the population have completed non-mandatory upper secondary education, and 7 or (4.3%) have completed 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...
). Of the 7 who completed tertiary schooling, 57.1% were Swiss men, 42.9% were Swiss women.
, there were 8 students in Unterems who came from another municipality, while 15 residents attended schools outside the municipality.