Besazio
Encyclopedia
Besazio is a municipality
in the district of Mendrisio
in the canton
of Ticino
in Switzerland
.
and Early Middle Ages
objects indicate. In 1335 it was part of the Pieve
of Riva San Vitale
. It became the center of its own parish
in 1579. The first parish church
of St. Antonino dates from before that date, but the exact age is unknown. According to tradition, the bell tower is a converted signal tower, while the sacristy
is a former guard-house. In 1654 parish church of S. Maria Immacolata was built in a central location. It was rebuilt at the end of the 18th Century, and renovated in 1964.
The main sources of income of the inhabitants was agriculture and marble
mining as well as emigration to work as bricklayers. The recent economic and population growth in recent years has gradually changed the municipality into a commuter town
.
Of the built up area, housing and buildings made up 19.3% and transportation infrastructure made up 2.3%. Out of the forested land, 20.5% of the total land area is heavily forested and 11.4% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 20.5% is used for growing crops, while 25.0% is used for orchards or vine crops and 19.3% is used for alpine pastures.
The municipality is located in the Mendrisio district to the west of Mendrisio.
of the municipal coat of arms
is Gules a pair of compasses or in chief and in base a marble stone with a carved B proper. The stone and compass refer to the local marble quarry.
Most of the population speaks Italian
(86.4%), with German
being second most common (10.2%) and French
being third (1.4%). Of the Swiss national languages , 51 speak German
, 7 people speak French
, 433 people speak Italian
. The remainder (10 people) speak another language.
, the gender distribution of the population was 49.0% male and 51.0% female. The population was made up of 280 Swiss men (43.7% of the population), and 34 (5.3%) non-Swiss men. There were 299 Swiss women (46.6%), and 28 (4.4%) non-Swiss women.
In there were 4 live births to Swiss citizens and 1 birth to non-Swiss citizens, and in same time span there were 4 deaths of Swiss citizens and 1 non-Swiss citizen death. Ignoring immigration and emigration, the population of Swiss citizens remained the same while the foreign population remained the same. There was 1 Swiss woman who emigrated from Switzerland. At the same time, there was 1 non-Swiss man who emigrated from Switzerland to another country and 2 non-Swiss women 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 4 and the non-Swiss population change was a decrease of 5 people. This represents a population growth rate of -0.2%.
The age distribution, , in Besazio is; 60 children or 9.4% of the population are between 0 and 9 years old and 78 teenagers or 12.2% are between 10 and 19. Of the adult population, 50 people or 7.8% of the population are between 20 and 29 years old. 70 people or 10.9% are between 30 and 39, 120 people or 18.7% are between 40 and 49, and 84 people or 13.1% are between 50 and 59. The senior population distribution is 83 people or 12.9% of the population are between 60 and 69 years old, 60 people or 9.4% are between 70 and 79, there are 36 people or 5.6% who are over 80.
the average number of residents per living room was 0.51 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 62.7% 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 209 private households in the municipality, and an average of 2.4 persons per household. there were 146 single family homes (or 77.2% of the total) out of a total of 189 inhabited buildings. There were 36 multi-family buildings (19.0%), along with 4 multi-purpose buildings that were mostly used for housing (2.1%) and 3 other use buildings (commercial or industrial) that also had some housing (1.6%). Of the single family homes 6 were built before 1919, while 29 were built between 1990 and 2000. The greatest number of single family homes (33) were built between 1919 and 1945.
there were 249 apartments in the municipality. The most common apartment size was 4 rooms of which there were 73. There were 12 single room apartments and 105 apartments with five or more rooms. Of these apartments, a total of 209 apartments (83.9% of the total) were permanently occupied, while 37 apartments (14.9%) were seasonally occupied and 3 apartments (1.2%) were empty. The vacancy rate for the municipality, , was 0%. , the construction rate of new housing units was 1.6 new units per 1000 residents.
The historical population is given in the following chart:
the most popular party was the FDP
which received 33.54% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SP
(19.42%), the CVP
(17.98%) and the Ticino League
(13.2%). In the federal election, a total of 277 votes were cast, and the voter turnout
was 59.7%.
In the Gran Consiglio election, there were a total of 453 registered voters in Besazio, of which 323 or 71.3% voted. 2 blank ballots and 2 null ballots were cast, leaving 319 valid ballots in the election. The most popular party was the PLRT
which received 103 or 32.3% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were; the PS
(with 54 or 16.9%), the SSI (with 43 or 13.5%) and the PPD
+GenGiova (with 42 or 13.2%).
In the Consiglio di Stato election, 1 blank ballot and 1 null ballot was cast, leaving 321 valid ballots in the election. The most popular party was the PLRT which received 97 or 30.2% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were; the PS (with 65 or 20.2%), the LEGA (with 59 or 18.4%) and the PPD (with 41 or 12.8%).
the total number of full-time equivalent jobs was 89. The number of jobs in the primary sector was 8, all of which were in agriculture. The number of jobs in the secondary sector was 10 of which 4 or (40.0%) were in manufacturing and 6 (60.0%) were in construction. The number of jobs in the tertiary sector was 71. In the tertiary sector; 46 or 64.8% were in the sale or repair of motor vehicles, 4 or 5.6% were in a hotel or restaurant, 3 or 4.2% were in the information industry, 5 or 7.0% were the insurance or financial industry, 9 or 12.7% were technical professionals or scientists, and 1 or 1.4% were in health care.
, there were 305 workers who commuted into the municipality and 191 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net importer of workers, with about 1.6 workers entering the municipality for every one leaving. About 46.2% of the workforce coming into Besazio are coming from outside Switzerland. Of the working population, 7% used public transportation to get to work, and 71.5% used a private car.
. There are 41 individuals (or about 8.18% of the population) who belong to another church (not listed on the census), and 11 individuals (or about 2.20% of the population) did not answer the question.
).
In Besazio there were a total of 107 students . The Ticino education system
provides up to three years of non-mandatory kindergarten
and in Besazio there were 17 children in kindergarten. The primary school program lasts for five years. In the municipality, 28 students attended the standard primary schools. 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 31 students in the two year middle school, while 20 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 8 vocational students who were attending school full-time and 3 who attend part-time.
, there were 3 students in Besazio who came from another municipality, while 76 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 Mendrisio
Mendrisio (district)
The district of Mendrisio is the southernmost district of canton of Ticino and of Switzerland. To its north lies the district of Lugano. It is surrounded on the other three sides by Italy: to the east and south by the province of Como, and to the west by the province of Varese...
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....
.
History
Besazio is first mentioned in 1335 as Besatio. In 15th to 18th Centuries it was called Besaccio. A settlement in this area was first mentioned in 1254, but the area has been settled since ancient times, as Roman eraSwitzerland in the Roman era
The history of Switzerland in the Roman era encompasses the roughly six centuries during which the territory of modern Switzerland was a part of the Roman Republic and Empire...
and Early Middle Ages
Early Middle Ages
The Early Middle Ages was the period of European history lasting from the 5th century to approximately 1000. The Early Middle Ages followed the decline of the Western Roman Empire and preceded the High Middle Ages...
objects indicate. In 1335 it was part of the Pieve
Pieve
In the Middle Ages, a pieve was a rural church with a baptistery, upon which other churches without baptisteries depended.The Italian word pieve is descended from Latin plebs which, after the expansion of Christianity in Italy, was applied to the community of baptized people...
of Riva San Vitale
Riva San Vitale
Riva San Vitale is a municipality in the canton of Ticino in Switzerland, located in the district of Mendrisio.Riva San Vitale is also the home of the Virginia Tech Center for European Studies and Architecture , the European campus center and base of operations for the regional activities of...
. It became the center of its own 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...
in 1579. The first 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....
of St. Antonino dates from before that date, but the exact age is unknown. According to tradition, the bell tower is a converted signal tower, while the sacristy
Sacristy
A sacristy is a room for keeping vestments and other church furnishings, sacred vessels, and parish records.The sacristy is usually located inside the church, but in some cases it is an annex or separate building...
is a former guard-house. In 1654 parish church of S. Maria Immacolata was built in a central location. It was rebuilt at the end of the 18th Century, and renovated in 1964.
The main sources of income of the inhabitants was agriculture and marble
Marble
Marble is a metamorphic rock composed of recrystallized carbonate minerals, most commonly calcite or dolomite.Geologists use the term "marble" to refer to metamorphosed limestone; however stonemasons use the term more broadly to encompass unmetamorphosed limestone.Marble is commonly used for...
mining as well as emigration to work as bricklayers. The recent economic and population growth in recent years has gradually changed the municipality into a commuter town
Commuter town
A commuter town is an urban community that is primarily residential, from which most of the workforce commutes out to earn their livelihood. Many commuter towns act as suburbs of a nearby metropolis that workers travel to daily, and many suburbs are commuter towns...
.
Geography
Besazio has an area, , of 0.88 square kilometre (0.339769899561431 sq mi). Of this area, 0.57 km² (0.220078230397745 sq mi) or 64.8% is used for agricultural purposes, while 0.28 km² (0.10810860440591 sq mi) or 31.8% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 0.19 km² (0.0733594101325817 sq mi) or 21.6% is settled (buildings or roads).Of the built up area, housing and buildings made up 19.3% and transportation infrastructure made up 2.3%. Out of the forested land, 20.5% of the total land area is heavily forested and 11.4% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 20.5% is used for growing crops, while 25.0% is used for orchards or vine crops and 19.3% is used for alpine pastures.
The municipality is located in the Mendrisio district to the west of Mendrisio.
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 pair of compasses or in chief and in base a marble stone with a carved B proper. The stone and compass refer to the local marble quarry.
Demographics
Besazio has a population of . , 8.8% of the population are resident foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years (1997–2007) the population has changed at a rate of 30.4%.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...
(86.4%), 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 (10.2%) 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 (1.4%). Of the Swiss national languages , 51 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....
, 7 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...
, 433 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...
. The remainder (10 people) speak another language.
, the gender distribution of the population was 49.0% male and 51.0% female. The population was made up of 280 Swiss men (43.7% of the population), and 34 (5.3%) non-Swiss men. There were 299 Swiss women (46.6%), and 28 (4.4%) non-Swiss women.
In there were 4 live births to Swiss citizens and 1 birth to non-Swiss citizens, and in same time span there were 4 deaths of Swiss citizens and 1 non-Swiss citizen death. Ignoring immigration and emigration, the population of Swiss citizens remained the same while the foreign population remained the same. There was 1 Swiss woman who emigrated from Switzerland. At the same time, there was 1 non-Swiss man who emigrated from Switzerland to another country and 2 non-Swiss women 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 4 and the non-Swiss population change was a decrease of 5 people. This represents a population growth rate of -0.2%.
The age distribution, , in Besazio is; 60 children or 9.4% of the population are between 0 and 9 years old and 78 teenagers or 12.2% are between 10 and 19. Of the adult population, 50 people or 7.8% of the population are between 20 and 29 years old. 70 people or 10.9% are between 30 and 39, 120 people or 18.7% are between 40 and 49, and 84 people or 13.1% are between 50 and 59. The senior population distribution is 83 people or 12.9% of the population are between 60 and 69 years old, 60 people or 9.4% are between 70 and 79, there are 36 people or 5.6% who are over 80.
the average number of residents per living room was 0.51 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 62.7% 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 209 private households in the municipality, and an average of 2.4 persons per household. there were 146 single family homes (or 77.2% of the total) out of a total of 189 inhabited buildings. There were 36 multi-family buildings (19.0%), along with 4 multi-purpose buildings that were mostly used for housing (2.1%) and 3 other use buildings (commercial or industrial) that also had some housing (1.6%). Of the single family homes 6 were built before 1919, while 29 were built between 1990 and 2000. The greatest number of single family homes (33) were built between 1919 and 1945.
there were 249 apartments in the municipality. The most common apartment size was 4 rooms of which there were 73. There were 12 single room apartments and 105 apartments with five or more rooms. Of these apartments, a total of 209 apartments (83.9% of the total) were permanently occupied, while 37 apartments (14.9%) were seasonally occupied and 3 apartments (1.2%) were empty. The vacancy rate for the municipality, , was 0%. , the construction rate of new housing units was 1.6 new units per 1000 residents.
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 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 33.54% 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....
(19.42%), 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...
(17.98%) and the Ticino League
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...
(13.2%). In the federal election, a total of 277 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 59.7%.
In the Gran Consiglio election, there were a total of 453 registered voters in Besazio, of which 323 or 71.3% voted. 2 blank ballots and 2 null ballots were cast, leaving 319 valid ballots in the election. 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 103 or 32.3% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were; the PS
Social Democratic Party of Switzerland
The Social Democratic Party of Switzerland is the largest centre-left political party in Switzerland....
(with 54 or 16.9%), the SSI (with 43 or 13.5%) and the PPD
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...
+GenGiova (with 42 or 13.2%).
In the Consiglio di Stato election, 1 blank ballot and 1 null ballot was cast, leaving 321 valid ballots in the election. The most popular party was the PLRT which received 97 or 30.2% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were; the PS (with 65 or 20.2%), the LEGA (with 59 or 18.4%) and the PPD (with 41 or 12.8%).
Economy
, Besazio had an unemployment rate of 1.37%. , there were 7 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 2 businesses involved in this sector. 101 people were employed in the secondary sector and there were 5 businesses in this sector. 50 people were employed in the tertiary sector, with 18 businesses in this sector. There were 228 residents of the municipality who were employed in some capacity, of which females made up 40.4% of the workforce.the total number of full-time equivalent jobs was 89. The number of jobs in the primary sector was 8, all of which were in agriculture. The number of jobs in the secondary sector was 10 of which 4 or (40.0%) were in manufacturing and 6 (60.0%) were in construction. The number of jobs in the tertiary sector was 71. In the tertiary sector; 46 or 64.8% were in the sale or repair of motor vehicles, 4 or 5.6% were in a hotel or restaurant, 3 or 4.2% were in the information industry, 5 or 7.0% were the insurance or financial industry, 9 or 12.7% were technical professionals or scientists, and 1 or 1.4% were in health care.
, there were 305 workers who commuted into the municipality and 191 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net importer of workers, with about 1.6 workers entering the municipality for every one leaving. About 46.2% of the workforce coming into Besazio are coming from outside Switzerland. Of the working population, 7% used public transportation to get to work, and 71.5% used a private car.
Religion
From the , 413 or 82.4% were Roman Catholic, while 36 or 7.2% 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 41 individuals (or about 8.18% of the population) who belong to another church (not listed on the census), and 11 individuals (or about 2.20% of the population) did not answer the question.
Education
The entire Swiss population is generally well educated. In Besazio about 79.6% 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 Besazio there were a total of 107 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 Besazio there were 17 children in kindergarten. The primary school program lasts for five years. In the municipality, 28 students attended the standard primary schools. 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 31 students in the two year middle school, while 20 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 8 vocational students who were attending school full-time and 3 who attend part-time.
, there were 3 students in Besazio who came from another municipality, while 76 residents attended schools outside the municipality.