- Oberthal, Switzerland
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Oberthal Country Switzerland Canton Bern District Bern-Mittelland Coordinates 46°55′N 7°40′E / 46.917°N 7.667°ECoordinates: 46°55′N 7°40′E / 46.917°N 7.667°E Population 786 (Dec 2010)[1] - Density 75 /km2 (193 /sq mi) Area 10.54 km2 (4.07 sq mi)[2] Elevation 822 m (2,697 ft) Postal code 3531 SFOS number 0620 Surrounded by Arni, Bowil, Grosshöchstetten, Lauperswil, Signau, Zäziwil Website www.oberthal.ch
SFSO statistics
OberthalMap of Oberthal
Oberthal is a municipality in the Bern-Mittelland administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland.
Contents
History
Oberthal is first mentioned in 1275 as mons Obertal.[3]
Geography
Oberthal has an area, as of 2009[update], of 10.54 square kilometers (4.07 sq mi). Of this area, 6.65 km2 (2.57 sq mi) or 63.1% is used for agricultural purposes, while 3.39 km2 (1.31 sq mi) or 32.2% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 0.57 km2 (0.22 sq mi) or 5.4% is settled (buildings or roads).[4]
Of the built up area, housing and buildings made up 3.1% and transportation infrastructure made up 2.1%. Out of the forested land, 30.8% of the total land area is heavily forested and 1.3% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 20.4% is used for growing crops and 41.5% is pastures, while 1.2% is used for orchards or vine crops.[4]
The municipality lacks a central village, instead it is made up of scattered settlements and farm houses on the Blasenfluh above the Kiesental (Kiesen Valley).
Demographics
Oberthal has a population (as of 31 December 2010) of 786.[1] As of 2007[update], 1.9% of the population was made up of foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years the population has decreased at a rate of -5.8%. Most of the population (as of 2000[update]) speaks German (99.4%), with French being second most common ( 0.3%) and English being third ( 0.3%).
In the 2007 election the most popular party was the SVP which received 63% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the Green Party (8.3%), the FDP (7.6%) and the SPS (6.8%).
The age distribution of the population (as of 2000[update]) is children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 26% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 59.3% and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 14.8%. In Oberthal about 70.3% of the population (between age 25-64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either university or a Fachhochschule).
Oberthal has an unemployment rate of 0.38%. As of 2005[update], there were 175 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 64 businesses involved in this sector. 78 people are employed in the secondary sector and there are 9 businesses in this sector. 98 people are employed in the tertiary sector, with 7 businesses in this sector.[5] The historical population is given in the following table:[3]
year population 1764 595 1850 1,089 1900 866 1950 880 2000 800 External links
- Oberthal in German, French and Italian in the online Historical Dictionary of Switzerland.
References
- ^ a b Swiss Federal Statistical Office - STAT-TAB, online database – Datenwürfel für Thema 01.2 - Bevölkerungsstand und -bewegung (German) accessed 29 September
- ^ Arealstatistik Standard - Gemeindedaten nach 4 Hauptbereichen
- ^ a b Oberthal in German, French and Italian in the online Historical Dictionary of Switzerland.
- ^ a b Swiss Federal Statistical Office-Land Use Statistics 2009 data (German) accessed 25 March 2010
- ^ Swiss Federal Statistical Office accessed 06-Jul-2009
Categories:- Municipalities of Bern
- Municipalities of Switzerland
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