Bever, Switzerland
Encyclopedia
Bever is a municipality
in the district of Maloja
in the Swiss
canton
of Graubünden
.
Bever has an area, , of 45.7 km² (17.6 sq mi). Of this area, 14.5% is used for agricultural purposes, while 14.9% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 1.3% is settled (buildings or roads) and the remainder (69.3%) is non-productive (rivers, glaciers or mountains).
The municipality is located in the Oberengadin sub-district of the Maloja district. It is located on the Inn River
. It consists of the village of Bever and the hamlet
of Spinas at the entrance to the Albula Tunnel. Until 1943 Bever was known as Bevers.
, the gender distribution of the population was 51.5% male and 48.5% female. The age distribution, , in Bever is; 77 children or 12.2% of the population are between 0 to 9 years old. 54 teenagers or 8.6% are 10 to 14, and 41 teenagers or 6.5% are 15 to 19. Of the adult population, 81 people or 12.8% of the population are between 20 to 29 years old. 101 people or 16.0% are 30 to 39, 115 people or 18.2% are 40 to 49, and 95 people or 15.1% are 50 to 59. The senior population distribution is 32 people or 5.1% of the population are between 60 to 69 years old, 29 people or 4.6% are 70 to 79, there are 6 people or 1.0% who are 80 to 89.
In the 2007 federal election
the most popular party was the SP
which received 34.8% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SVP
(30.9%), the FDP
(20%) and the local, small right-wing parties (7.5%).
The entire Swiss population is generally well educated. In Bever about 80.5% of the population (between age 25-64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either University or a Fachhochschule
).
Bever has an unemployment rate of 0.62%. , there were 18 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 7 businesses involved in this sector. 142 people are employed in the secondary sector and there are 5 businesses in this sector. 138 people are employed in the tertiary sector, with 32 businesses in this sector.
The historical population is given in the following table:
Romansh dialect of Puter. Due to increasing trade with the outside world, Romansh usage began to decline. In 1880 about 81% spoke Romansh as a first language, while in 1910 it was only 59%. The last time that Romansh was the majority language in Bever was in 1941. Following World War II
German became the clear majority language. However, in the 1990s many German speakers moved away from the village causing the percentage of Romansh speakers to increase. In 1990 there were 47% who understood Romansh in Bever and in 2000 it was 45%.
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 Maloja
Maloja (district)
Maloja District is an administrative district in the canton of Graubünden, Switzerland. It has an area of and has a population of . It is trilingual, with official languages used by municipalities inside the district being, in order of dominance, German, Italian, and Romansh.It consists of two...
in the Swiss
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....
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 Graubünden
Graubünden
Graubünden or Grisons is the largest and easternmost canton of Switzerland. The canton shares borders with the cantons of Ticino, Uri, Glarus and St. Gallen and international borders with Italy, Austria and Liechtenstein...
.
Geography
The municipality is located in the Oberengadin sub-district of the Maloja district. It is located on the Inn River
Inn River
The Inn is a river in Switzerland, Austria and Germany. It is a right tributary of the Danube and is approximately 500km long. The highest point of its drainage basin is the summit of Piz Bernina, at 4,049 metres.- Geography :...
. It consists of the village of Bever and the hamlet
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 Spinas at the entrance to the Albula Tunnel. Until 1943 Bever was known as Bevers.
Demographics
Bever has a population (as of ) of . , 15.3% of the population was made up of foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years the population has grown at a rate of 6.1%., the gender distribution of the population was 51.5% male and 48.5% female. The age distribution, , in Bever is; 77 children or 12.2% of the population are between 0 to 9 years old. 54 teenagers or 8.6% are 10 to 14, and 41 teenagers or 6.5% are 15 to 19. Of the adult population, 81 people or 12.8% of the population are between 20 to 29 years old. 101 people or 16.0% are 30 to 39, 115 people or 18.2% are 40 to 49, and 95 people or 15.1% are 50 to 59. The senior population distribution is 32 people or 5.1% of the population are between 60 to 69 years old, 29 people or 4.6% are 70 to 79, there are 6 people or 1.0% who are 80 to 89.
In the 2007 federal election
Swiss 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 SP
Social Democratic Party of Switzerland
The Social Democratic Party of Switzerland is the largest centre-left political party in Switzerland....
which received 34.8% 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...
(30.9%), the FDP
Free Democratic Party of Switzerland
The Free Democratic Party was a classical liberal political party in Switzerland. It was one of the major parties in Switzerland until its merger with the smaller classical liberal Liberal Party, to form FDP.The Liberals on 1 January 2009....
(20%) and the local, small right-wing parties (7.5%).
The entire Swiss population is generally well educated. In Bever about 80.5% of the population (between age 25-64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either University or a Fachhochschule
Fachhochschule
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...
).
Bever has an unemployment rate of 0.62%. , there were 18 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 7 businesses involved in this sector. 142 people are employed in the secondary sector and there are 5 businesses in this sector. 138 people are employed in the tertiary sector, with 32 businesses in this sector.
The historical population is given in the following table:
| year | population |
|---|---|
| 1850 | 181 |
| 1888 | 151 |
| 1900 | 407 |
| 1950 | 227 |
| 1960 | 234 |
| 1970 | 367 |
| 1980 | 432 |
| 1990 | 496 |
| 2000 | 631 |
Languages
Most of the population speaks German (66.6%), with Romansh being second most common (18.9%) and Italian being third (11.7%). Until the mid 19th Century, the entire population spoke the Upper-EngadinEngadin
The Engadin or Engadine is a long valley in the Swiss Alps located in the canton of Graubünden in southeast Switzerland. It follows the route of the Inn River from its headwaters at Maloja Pass running northeast until the Inn flows into Austria one hundred kilometers downstream...
Romansh dialect of Puter. Due to increasing trade with the outside world, Romansh usage began to decline. In 1880 about 81% spoke Romansh as a first language, while in 1910 it was only 59%. The last time that Romansh was the majority language in Bever was in 1941. Following World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
German became the clear majority language. However, in the 1990s many German speakers moved away from the village causing the percentage of Romansh speakers to increase. In 1990 there were 47% who understood Romansh in Bever and in 2000 it was 45%.
| Languages in Bever | ||||||
| Languages | Census 1980 | Census 1990 | Census 2000 | |||
| Number | Percent | Number | Percent | Number | Percent | |
| 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.... |
175 | 40.51 % | 292 | 58.87 % | 420 | 66.56 % |
| Romansh | 156 | 36.11 % | 120 | 24.19 % | 119 | 18.86 % |
| 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... |
87 | 20.14 % | 73 | 14.72 % | 74 | 11.73 % |
| Population | 432 | 100 % | 496 | 100 % | 631 | 100 % |
External links
- http://www.bever.ch