Bönigen
Encyclopedia
Bönigen is a municipality
in the Interlaken-Oberhasli administrative district
in the canton
of Bern in Switzerland
.
The name Bönigen ("of the people of the Bono clan") is composed of the Old High German
personal name Bono and the toponymic suffix -ingun.
Bönigen belongs to the church parish
of Gsteig bei Interlaken, which includes eight other nearby municipalities.
at the south side of Lake Brienz
. The village center lies in the northwest part of the municipality along the Lütschine
up to the lake; it has nearly grown into Interlaken
. The majority of the municipal area is located on the steep mountainsides, where such peaks as the Loucherhorn
(2230 m (7,316.3 ft)), the Rotflue (2296 m (7,532.8 ft)) and the Schynige Platte
are found.
The highway goes along the shore of Lake Brienz. The town is located in the watershed known as the Bödeli
.
Bönigen has an area, , of 15.12 km² (5.8 sq mi). Of this area, 2.48 km² (0.957533353309487 sq mi) or 16.4% is used for agricultural purposes, while 8.66 km² (3.3 sq mi) or 57.3% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 0.93 km² (0.359075007491058 sq mi) or 6.2% is settled (buildings or roads), 0.17 km² (0.065637366960731 sq mi) or 1.1% is either rivers or lakes and 2.83 km² (1.1 sq mi) or 18.7% is unproductive land.
Of the built up area, housing and buildings made up 3.2% and transportation infrastructure made up 1.9%. 49.7% of the total land area is heavily forested and 3.9% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 1.0% is used for growing crops and 6.5% is pastures and 8.7% is used for alpine pastures. All the water in the municipality is in rivers and streams. Of the unproductive areas, 10.8% is unproductive vegatation, 7.9% is too rocky for vegatation, .
In the 2007 election the most popular party was the Swiss not everybodys People's Party SVP which received 38.6% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SPS
(25.7%), the FDP
(11.5%) and the local small left-wing parties (8.8%).
The age distribution of the population is children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 23.7% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 57.8% and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 18.5%. The entire Swiss population is generally well educated. In Bönigen about 78.2% of the population (between age 25-64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either University or a Fachhochschule
).
Bönigen has an unemployment rate of 1.72%. , there were 62 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 22 businesses involved in this sector. 317 people are employed in the secondary sector and there are 35 businesses in this sector. 270 people are employed in the tertiary sector, with 49 businesses in this sector.
The historical population is given in the following table:
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 Interlaken-Oberhasli administrative district
Interlaken-Oberhasli (administrative district)
Interlaken-Oberhasli District in the Canton of Bern was created on 1 January 2010. It is part of the Oberland administrative region. It contains 29 municipalities with an area of and a population of 48,763....
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 Bern 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....
.
The name Bönigen ("of the people of the Bono clan") is composed of the Old High German
Old High German
The term Old High German refers to the earliest stage of the German language and it conventionally covers the period from around 500 to 1050. Coherent written texts do not appear until the second half of the 8th century, and some treat the period before 750 as 'prehistoric' and date the start of...
personal name Bono and the toponymic suffix -ingun.
Bönigen belongs to the church 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...
of Gsteig bei Interlaken, which includes eight other nearby municipalities.
Geography
Bönigen lies in the Bernese OberlandBernese Oberland
The Bernese Oberland is the higher part of the canton of Bern, Switzerland, in the southern end of the canton: The area around Lake Thun and Lake Brienz, and the valleys of the Bernese Alps .The flag of the Bernese Oberland consists of a black eagle in a gold field The Bernese Oberland (Bernese...
at the south side of Lake Brienz
Lake Brienz
Lake Brienz is a lake just north of the Alps, in the Canton of Berne in Switzerland. The lake took its name from the village Brienz on its northern shore. Interlaken and the villages Matten and Unterseen lie to the south west of the lake. The shores are steep, and there is almost no shallow water...
. The village center lies in the northwest part of the municipality along the Lütschine
Lütschine
The Lütschine is a river in the Bernese Oberland, Switzerland.It flows from Zweilütschinen, where its two tributaries join, on a length of 8.6 km through the Bödeli and into Lake Brienz at Bönigen....
up to the lake; it has nearly grown into Interlaken
Interlaken
Interlaken is a municipality in the Interlaken-Oberhasli administrative district in the Canton of Bern in Switzerland, a well-known tourist destination in the Bernese Oberland.-History:...
. The majority of the municipal area is located on the steep mountainsides, where such peaks as the Loucherhorn
Loucherhorn
The Loucherhorn is a mountain in the Bernese Alps in Switzerland.-External links:*...
(2230 m (7,316.3 ft)), the Rotflue (2296 m (7,532.8 ft)) and the Schynige Platte
Schynige Platte
The Schynige Platte is a Swiss mountain region near Wilderswil where the Schynige Platte Railway ends .In good weather conditions the summit offers spectacular views to many surrounding mountains, including Jungfrau, Eiger, Silberhorn and others, as well as Thunersee and Brienzersee...
are found.
The highway goes along the shore of Lake Brienz. The town is located in the watershed known as the Bödeli
Bödeli
Bödeli is the tongue of land between Lake Thun and Lake Brienz in the Bernese Oberland of Switzerland. Lake Thun and Lake Brienz were not yet separate after the last ice age. The rivers Lütschine from the south and the Lombach from the north brought enough debris to cause a partitioning over the...
.
Bönigen has an area, , of 15.12 km² (5.8 sq mi). Of this area, 2.48 km² (0.957533353309487 sq mi) or 16.4% is used for agricultural purposes, while 8.66 km² (3.3 sq mi) or 57.3% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 0.93 km² (0.359075007491058 sq mi) or 6.2% is settled (buildings or roads), 0.17 km² (0.065637366960731 sq mi) or 1.1% is either rivers or lakes and 2.83 km² (1.1 sq mi) or 18.7% is unproductive land.
Of the built up area, housing and buildings made up 3.2% and transportation infrastructure made up 1.9%. 49.7% of the total land area is heavily forested and 3.9% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 1.0% is used for growing crops and 6.5% is pastures and 8.7% is used for alpine pastures. All the water in the municipality is in rivers and streams. Of the unproductive areas, 10.8% is unproductive vegatation, 7.9% is too rocky for vegatation, .
Demographics
Bönigen has a population (as of ) of . , 5.3% of the population was made up of foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years the population has grown at a rate of 5.4%. Most of the population speaks German (95.6%), with English being second most common ( 0.8%) and Italian being third ( 0.7%).In the 2007 election the most popular party was the Swiss not everybodys People's Party SVP which received 38.6% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SPS
Social Democratic Party of Switzerland
The Social Democratic Party of Switzerland is the largest centre-left political party in Switzerland....
(25.7%), 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....
(11.5%) and the local small left-wing parties (8.8%).
The age distribution of the population is children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 23.7% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 57.8% and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 18.5%. The entire Swiss population is generally well educated. In Bönigen about 78.2% 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...
).
Bönigen has an unemployment rate of 1.72%. , there were 62 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 22 businesses involved in this sector. 317 people are employed in the secondary sector and there are 35 businesses in this sector. 270 people are employed in the tertiary sector, with 49 businesses in this sector.
The historical population is given in the following table:
| year | population |
|---|---|
| 1764 | 346 |
| 1850 | 1,263 |
| 1900 | 1,515 |
| 1950 | 1,734 |
| 2000 | 2,182 |