Visperterminen
Encyclopedia
Visperterminen is a municipality
in the district of Visp in the canton
of Valais
in Switzerland
.
Visperterminen has an area, , of 51.6 square kilometre. Of this area, 32.1% is used for agricultural purposes, while 31.5% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 1.6% is settled (buildings or roads) and 34.7% is unproductive land.
The municipality is located in the Visp district. The municipality stretches from the valley located in the hills north-west of Visp and the Nanz valley over to the Mattwald and Simelihorn. It consists of the village of Visperterminen and the hamlets
of Ober- and Unterstalden, Bitzinen, Niederhäusern, Parmili and Sattolti.
The Gebidumsee
is located at an elevation of 2200 m (7,217.8 ft).
The proposed merger of the municipalities of Eggerberg
, Ausserberg
, Bürchen
, Baltschieder
, Visp
and Visperterminen was rejected by the residents.
of the municipal coat of arms
is Vert an orb Argent in chief four plates.
Most of the population speaks German
(1,328 or 97.9%) as their first language, Serbo-Croatian
is the second most common (7 or 0.5%) and Italian
is the third (5 or 0.4%). There are 3 people who speak French
and 1 person who speaks Romansh.
, the population was 48.7% male and 51.3% female. The population was made up of 659 Swiss men (47.4% of the population) and 18 (1.3%) non-Swiss men. There were 694 Swiss women (49.9%) and 19 (1.4%) non-Swiss women. Of the population in the municipality, 1,127 or about 83.1% were born in Visperterminen and lived there in 2000. There were 146 or 10.8% who were born in the same canton, while 33 or 2.4% were born somewhere else in Switzerland, and 40 or 2.9% were born outside of Switzerland.
, children and teenagers (0-19 years old) make up 24.2% of the population, while adults (20-64 years old) make up 60.4% and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 15.4%.
, there were 572 people who were single and never married in the municipality. There were 703 married individuals, 70 widows or widowers and 12 individuals who are divorced.
, there were 484 private households in the municipality, and an average of 2.8 persons per household. There were 112 households that consist of only one person and 52 households with five or more people. , a total of 467 apartments (55.3% of the total) were permanently occupied, while 297 apartments (35.1%) were seasonally occupied and 81 apartments (9.6%) were empty. , the construction rate of new housing units was 5 new units per 1000 residents.
The historical population is given in the following chart:
and medieval settlement at Oberstalden is listed as a Swiss heritage site of national significance
. The hamlets of Barmüli, Bitzinen, Niederhäusern, Oberstalden and Unterstalden are all part of the Inventory of Swiss Heritage Sites
.
the most popular party was the CVP
which received 68.21% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SP
(19.61%), the SVP
(8.04%) and the FDP
(2.05%). In the federal election, a total of 658 votes were cast, and the voter turnout
was 59.4%.
In the 2009 Conseil d'Etat/Staatsrat
election a total of 593 votes were cast, of which 78 or about 13.2% were invalid. The voter participation was 54.0%, which is similar to the cantonal average of 54.67%. In the 2007 Swiss Council of States election
election a total of 652 votes were cast, of which 18 or about 2.8% were invalid. The voter participation was 59.2%, which is similar to the cantonal average of 59.88%.
the total number of full-time equivalent
jobs was 461. The number of jobs in the primary sector was 37, all of which were in agriculture. The number of jobs in the secondary sector was 333 of which 7 or (2.1%) were in manufacturing, 3 or (0.9%) were in mining and 323 (97.0%) were in construction. The number of jobs in the tertiary sector was 91. In the tertiary sector; 21 or 23.1% were in the sale or repair of motor vehicles, 11 or 12.1% were in the movement and storage of goods, 32 or 35.2% were in a hotel or restaurant, 6 or 6.6% were the insurance or financial industry, 5 or 5.5% were technical professionals or scientists, 6 or 6.6% were in education and 3 or 3.3% were in health care.
, there were 30 workers who commuted into the municipality and 497 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net exporter of workers, with about 16.6 workers leaving the municipality for every one entering. Of the working population, 36.5% used public transportation to get to work, and 42.7% used a private car.
. Of the rest of the population, there were 4 individuals (or about 0.29% of the population) who belonged to another Christian church. There were 5 (or about 0.37% of the population) who were Islam
ic. There was 1 person who was Buddhist
. 5 (or about 0.37% of the population) belonged to no church, are agnostic
or atheist
, and 16 individuals (or about 1.18% of the population) did not answer the question.
). Of the 77 who completed tertiary schooling, 75.3% were Swiss men, 18.2% were Swiss women.
During the 2010-2011 school year there were a total of 115 students in the Visperterminen school system. The education system
in the Canton of Valais allows young children to attend one year of non-obligatory Kindergarten
. During that school year, there 2 kindergarten classes (KG1 or KG2) and 27 kindergarten students. The canton's school system requires students to attend six years of primary school. In Visperterminen there were a total of 7 classes and 115 students in the primary school. The secondary school
program consists of three lower, obligatory years of schooling (orientation classes), followed by three to five years of optional, advanced schools. All the lower and upper secondary students from Visperterminen attend their school in a neighboring municipality.
, there were 2 students in Visperterminen who came from another municipality, while 96 residents attended schools outside the municipality.
Visperterminen is home to the Schul- und Gemeindebibliothek (municipal library of Visperterminen). The library has 5,607 books or other media, and loaned out 10,644 items in the same year. It was open a total of 120 days with average of 6 hours per week during that year.
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 Visp 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....
.
History
Visperterminen is first mentioned in the 11th Century as Termenum. In 1221 it was mentioned as Terminum.Geography
The municipality is located in the Visp district. The municipality stretches from the valley located in the hills north-west of Visp and the Nanz valley over to the Mattwald and Simelihorn. It consists of the village of Visperterminen 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 Ober- and Unterstalden, Bitzinen, Niederhäusern, Parmili and Sattolti.
The Gebidumsee
Gebidumsee
Gebidumsee is a lake near Gebidum Pass in the municipality of Visperterminen, Valais, Switzerland.It is not to be confused with the Stausee Gibidum, a reservoir....
is located at an elevation of 2200 m (7,217.8 ft).
The proposed merger of the municipalities of Eggerberg
Eggerberg
Eggerberg is a municipality in the district of Brig in the canton of Valais in Switzerland.-Geography:Eggerberg has an area, , of . Of this area, 15.2% is used for agricultural purposes, while 56.4% is forested...
, Ausserberg
Ausserberg
Ausserberg is a municipality in the district of Raron in the canton of Valais in Switzerland.-History:Ausserberg is first mentioned in 1378 as Leucrun. In 1401 it was mentioned as mons episcopi and in 1523 it was mons exterior.-Geography:...
, Bürchen
Bürchen
Bürchen is a municipality in the district of Raron in the German speaking part of the canton of Valais in Switzerland.-History:...
, Baltschieder
Baltschieder
Baltschieder is a municipality in the district of Visp in the canton of Valais in Switzerland.-History:Baltschieder is first mentioned in 1224 as Ponczirrum. In 1286 it was mentioned as Balschyedro.-Geography:...
, Visp
Visp
Visp is the capital of the district of Visp in the canton of Valais in Switzerland.-Geography:Visp has an area, , of . Of this area, 17.0% is used for agricultural purposes, while 59.7% is forested...
and Visperterminen was rejected by the residents.
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 Vert an orb Argent in chief four plates.
Demographics
Visperterminen has a population of . , 2.6% of the population are resident foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years (2000–2010 ) the population has changed at a rate of -3.3%. It has changed at a rate of -6.5% due to migration and at a rate of 2.9% 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....
(1,328 or 97.9%) as their first language, Serbo-Croatian
Serbo-Croatian
Serbo-Croatian or Serbo-Croat, less commonly Bosnian/Croatian/Serbian , is a South Slavic language with multiple standards and the primary language of Serbia, Croatia, Bosnia and Herzegovina, and Montenegro...
is the second most common (7 or 0.5%) 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...
is the third (5 or 0.4%). There are 3 people who 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...
and 1 person who speaks Romansh.
, the population was 48.7% male and 51.3% female. The population was made up of 659 Swiss men (47.4% of the population) and 18 (1.3%) non-Swiss men. There were 694 Swiss women (49.9%) and 19 (1.4%) non-Swiss women. Of the population in the municipality, 1,127 or about 83.1% were born in Visperterminen and lived there in 2000. There were 146 or 10.8% who were born in the same canton, while 33 or 2.4% were born somewhere else in Switzerland, and 40 or 2.9% were born outside of Switzerland.
, children and teenagers (0-19 years old) make up 24.2% of the population, while adults (20-64 years old) make up 60.4% and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 15.4%.
, there were 572 people who were single and never married in the municipality. There were 703 married individuals, 70 widows or widowers and 12 individuals who are divorced.
, there were 484 private households in the municipality, and an average of 2.8 persons per household. There were 112 households that consist of only one person and 52 households with five or more people. , a total of 467 apartments (55.3% of the total) were permanently occupied, while 297 apartments (35.1%) were seasonally occupied and 81 apartments (9.6%) were empty. , the construction rate of new housing units was 5 new units per 1000 residents.
The historical population is given in the following chart:
Heritage sites of national significance
The Bronze AgeBronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
and medieval settlement at Oberstalden is listed as a Swiss heritage site of national significance
Swiss Inventory of Cultural Property of National and Regional Significance
The Swiss Inventory of Cultural Property of National and Regional Significance is a register of some 8,300 items of cultural property in Switzerland...
. The hamlets of Barmüli, Bitzinen, Niederhäusern, Oberstalden and Unterstalden are all part of the Inventory of Swiss Heritage Sites
Inventory of Swiss Heritage Sites
The Inventory of Swiss Heritage Sites is part of a 1981 Ordinance of the Swiss Federal Council implementing the Federal Law on the Protection of Nature and Cultural Heritage.-Sites of national importance:-Types:...
.
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 68.21% 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....
(19.61%), 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...
(8.04%) and 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....
(2.05%). In the federal election, a total of 658 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 59.4%.
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 593 votes were cast, of which 78 or about 13.2% were invalid. The voter participation was 54.0%, 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 652 votes were cast, of which 18 or about 2.8% were invalid. The voter participation was 59.2%, which is similar to the cantonal average of 59.88%.
Economy
, Visperterminen had an unemployment rate of 0.6%. , there were 104 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 44 businesses involved in this sector. 335 people were employed in the secondary sector and there were 9 businesses in this sector. 130 people were employed in the tertiary sector, with 28 businesses in this sector. There were 674 residents of the municipality who were employed in some capacity, of which females made up 38.6% 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 461. The number of jobs in the primary sector was 37, all of which were in agriculture. The number of jobs in the secondary sector was 333 of which 7 or (2.1%) were in manufacturing, 3 or (0.9%) were in mining and 323 (97.0%) were in construction. The number of jobs in the tertiary sector was 91. In the tertiary sector; 21 or 23.1% were in the sale or repair of motor vehicles, 11 or 12.1% were in the movement and storage of goods, 32 or 35.2% were in a hotel or restaurant, 6 or 6.6% were the insurance or financial industry, 5 or 5.5% were technical professionals or scientists, 6 or 6.6% were in education and 3 or 3.3% were in health care.
, there were 30 workers who commuted into the municipality and 497 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net exporter of workers, with about 16.6 workers leaving the municipality for every one entering. Of the working population, 36.5% used public transportation to get to work, and 42.7% used a private car.
Religion
From the , 1,315 or 96.9% were Roman Catholic, while 12 or 0.9% 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 were 4 individuals (or about 0.29% of the population) who belonged to another Christian church. There were 5 (or about 0.37% of the population) who were Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
ic. There was 1 person who was Buddhist
Buddhism
Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha . The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th...
. 5 (or about 0.37% of the population) belonged 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 16 individuals (or about 1.18% of the population) did not answer the question.
Education
In Visperterminen about 533 or (39.3%) of the population have completed non-mandatory upper secondary education, and 77 or (5.7%) 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 77 who completed tertiary schooling, 75.3% were Swiss men, 18.2% were Swiss women.
During the 2010-2011 school year there were a total of 115 students in the Visperterminen school system. The 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...
in the Canton of Valais allows young children to attend one year of non-obligatory 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...
. During that school year, there 2 kindergarten classes (KG1 or KG2) and 27 kindergarten students. The canton's school system requires students to attend six years of primary school. In Visperterminen there were a total of 7 classes and 115 students in the primary school. The secondary school
Secondary school
Secondary school is a term used to describe an educational institution where the final stage of schooling, known as secondary education and usually compulsory up to a specified age, takes place...
program consists of three lower, obligatory years of schooling (orientation classes), followed by three to five years of optional, advanced schools. All the lower and upper secondary students from Visperterminen attend their school in a neighboring municipality.
, there were 2 students in Visperterminen who came from another municipality, while 96 residents attended schools outside the municipality.
Visperterminen is home to the Schul- und Gemeindebibliothek (municipal library of Visperterminen). The library has 5,607 books or other media, and loaned out 10,644 items in the same year. It was open a total of 120 days with average of 6 hours per week during that year.