Liestal
Encyclopedia
Liestal is the capital of the canton
of Basel-Country
in Switzerland
, 17 km (10.6 mi) south of Basel
.
It is an industrial town with a cobbled-street Old Town.
times. The development of the town is due to its strategic location on the road between the first bridge over the Rhine at Basel and the St. Gotthard Pass
.
Citizens of Liestal participated in the Burgundian Wars
in 1476 and 1477 against Charles the Bold. In 1501, the mayor swore allegiance to the Swiss Confederation, and this caused repeated conflict with neighboring Rheinfelden
, which belonged to the Habsburg
s.
In the 17th century, Liestal rebelled against Basel as part of the Farmers' Rebellion and was occupied by troops from that city. Three leaders of the rebellion were beheaded in Basel.
In 1789, the town enthusiastically hailed the French call for freedom and equality. It celebrated Napoleon, when he traveled through town in 1797. After his fall, the earlier subjection to Basel was re-established.
The French July Revolution
of 1830 also caused upheaval in Liestal. A provisional government was established, and the town was chosen as the capital of a new canton on March 17, 1832.
Of the built up area, industrial buildings made up 2.6% of the total area while housing and buildings made up 12.1% and transportation infrastructure made up 5.7%. Power and water infrastructure as well as other special developed areas made up 1.6% of the area while parks, green belts and sports fields made up 1.8%. Out of the forested land, 57.1% of the total land area is heavily forested and 1.6% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 6.7% is used for growing crops and 8.0% is pastures, while 1.8% is used for orchards or vine crops. Of the water in the municipality, 0.2% is in lakes and 0.3% is in rivers and streams.
The municipality is the capital of the canton of Basel-Country. The old town is situated on a rocky outcrop between the Ergolz
and Orisbach rivers and between Basel and the Jura Mountains
. The town is fan-shaped, consisting of a wide main street (Gassenmarkt) and two side streets. In the 18th Century small suburbs developed around the lower and the upper city gates. In the 17th Century the commercial district of Gestadeck developed along the canal.
of the municipal coat of arms
is Per fess Argent, a crozier issuant Gules, and Gules.
Most of the population speaks German
(10,759 or 83.2%), with Italian language
being second most common (660 or 5.1%) and Serbo-Croatian
being third (276 or 2.1%). There are 122 people who speak French
and 12 people who speak Romansh.
, the gender distribution of the population was 49.3% male and 50.7% female. The population was made up of 10,104 Swiss citizens (74.6% of the population), and 3,447 non-Swiss residents (25.4%) Of the population in the municipality 3,257 or about 25.2% were born in Liestal and lived there in 2000. There were 2,648 or 20.5% who were born in the same canton, while 3,406 or 26.3% were born somewhere else in Switzerland, and 3,129 or 24.2% were born outside of Switzerland.
In there were 102 live births to Swiss citizens and 44 births to non-Swiss citizens, and in same time span there were 109 deaths of Swiss citizens and 7 non-Swiss citizen deaths. Ignoring immigration and emigration, the population of Swiss citizens decreased by 7 while the foreign population increased by 37. There were 5 Swiss men who emigrated from Switzerland and 4 Swiss women who immigrated back to Switzerland. At the same time, there were 41 non-Swiss men and 41 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 80 and the non-Swiss population decreased by 36 people. This represents a population growth rate of 0.3%.
The age distribution, , in Liestal is; 917 children or 6.8% of the population are between 0 and 6 years old and 1,827 teenagers or 13.5% are between 7 and 19. Of the adult population, 1,924 people or 14.2% of the population are between 20 and 29 years old. 1,828 people or 13.5% are between 30 and 39, 2,137 people or 15.8% are between 40 and 49, and 2,705 people or 20.0% are between 50 and 64. The senior population distribution is 1,620 people or 12.0% of the population are between 65 and 79 years old and there are 593 people or 4.4% who are over 80.
, there were 5,441 people who were single and never married in the municipality. There were 5,993 married individuals, 751 widows or widowers and 745 individuals who are divorced.
the average number of residents per living room was 0.57 which is about equal to the cantonal average of 0.56 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 34.7% 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 5,450 private households in the municipality, and an average of 2.2 persons per household. There were 1,935 households that consist of only one person and 322 households with five or more people. Out of a total of 5,584 households that answered this question, 34.7% were households made up of just one person and 30 were adults who lived with their parents. Of the rest of the households, there are 1,585 married couples without children, 1,505 married couples with children There were 286 single parents with a child or children. There were 109 households that were made up unrelated people and 134 households that were made some sort of institution or another collective housing.
there were 1,470 single family homes (or 59.3% of the total) out of a total of 2,479 inhabited buildings. There were 474 multi-family buildings (19.1%), along with 301 multi-purpose buildings that were mostly used for housing (12.1%) and 234 other use buildings (commercial or industrial) that also had some housing (9.4%). Of the single family homes 141 were built before 1919, while 241 were built between 1990 and 2000. The greatest number of single family homes (353) were built between 1919 and 1945.
there were 5,876 apartments in the municipality. The most common apartment size was 4 rooms of which there were 1,710. There were 268 single room apartments and 1,538 apartments with five or more rooms. Of these apartments, a total of 5,316 apartments (90.5% of the total) were permanently occupied, while 379 apartments (6.4%) were seasonally occupied and 181 apartments (3.1%) were empty. , the construction rate of new housing units was 2.2 new units per 1000 residents. the average price to rent a two room apartment was about 871.00 CHF (US$700, £390, €560), a three room apartment was about 1063.00 CHF (US$850, £480, €680) and a four room apartment cost an average of 1260.00 CHF (US$1010, £570, €810). The vacancy rate for the municipality, , was 1.21%.
. The entire old town of Liestal is listed in the Inventory of Swiss Heritage Sites
.
the most popular party was the SP
which received 25.95% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SVP
(25.05%), the FDP
(18.83%) and the Green Party
(17.23%). In the federal election, a total of 4,243 votes were cast, and the voter turnout
was 49.8%.
the total number of full-time equivalent jobs was 10,921. The number of jobs in the primary sector was 50, of which 36 were in agriculture, 12 were in forestry or lumber production and 2 were in fishing or fisheries. The number of jobs in the secondary sector was 2,204, of which 1,107 or (50.2%) were in manufacturing and 896 (40.7%) were in construction. The number of jobs in the tertiary sector was 8,667. In the tertiary sector; 899 or 10.4% were in the sale or repair of motor vehicles, 348 or 4.0% were in the movement and storage of goods, 258 or 3.0% were in a hotel or restaurant, 117 or 1.3% were in the information industry, 651 or 7.5% were the insurance or financial industry, 638 or 7.4% were technical professionals or scientists, 660 or 7.6% were in education and 2,819 or 32.5% were in health care.
, there were 10,031 workers who commuted into the municipality and 3,911 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net importer of workers, with about 2.6 workers entering the municipality for every one leaving. About 5.3% of the workforce coming into Liestal are coming from outside Switzerland, while 0.2% of the locals commute out of Switzerland for work. Of the working population, 25.8% used public transportation to get to work, and 35.7% used a private car.
. Of the rest of the population, there were 261 members of an Orthodox church
(or about 2.02% of the population), there were 36 individuals (or about 0.28% of the population) who belonged to the Christian Catholic Church
, and there were 383 individuals (or about 2.96% of the population) who belonged to another Christian church. There were 8 individuals (or about 0.06% of the population) who were Jewish
, and 699 (or about 5.41% of the population) who were Islam
ic. There were 31 individuals who were Buddhist
, 119 individuals who were Hindu
and 30 individuals who belonged to another church. 1,644 (or about 12.71% of the population) belonged to no church, are agnostic
or atheist
, and 452 individuals (or about 3.50% of the population) did not answer the question.
). Of the 1,895 who completed tertiary schooling, 59.3% were Swiss men, 25.1% were Swiss women, 9.0% were non-Swiss men and 6.6% were non-Swiss women.
, there were 2,096 students in Liestal who came from another municipality, while 220 residents attended schools outside the municipality.
Liestal is home to 2 libraries. These libraries include; the Kantonsbibliothek Baselland and the Pädagogische Hochschule in Liestal. There was a combined total of 249,271 books or other media in the libraries, and in the same year a total of 757,718 items were loaned out.
On the Sunday night after Mardi Gras
, Chienbäse is celebrated with a spectacular parade and bonfires, from which the celebration takes its name. The tradition goes back at least to the 16th century. Other towns in the neighborhood also celebrate in a similar manner.
Other local festivals are the following:
with: Onex
, Switzerland Sacramento
, California
, USA Waldkirch
, Germany
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 Basel-Country
Basel-Country
Basel-Landschaft , is one of the 26 cantons of Switzerland. The capital is Liestal...
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....
, 17 km (10.6 mi) south of Basel
Basel
Basel or Basle In the national languages of Switzerland the city is also known as Bâle , Basilea and Basilea is Switzerland's third most populous city with about 166,000 inhabitants. Located where the Swiss, French and German borders meet, Basel also has suburbs in France and Germany...
.
It is an industrial town with a cobbled-street Old Town.
History
The name Liestal was first mentioned in 1225, and the settlement dates at least from RomanAncient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
times. The development of the town is due to its strategic location on the road between the first bridge over the Rhine at Basel and the St. Gotthard Pass
St. Gotthard Pass
The Gotthard Pass or St. Gotthard Pass is a high mountain pass in Switzerland between Airolo in the canton of Ticino, and Göschenen in the canton of Uri, connecting the northern German-speaking part of Switzerland with the Italian-speaking part, along the route onwards to Milan.Though the pass...
.
Citizens of Liestal participated in the Burgundian Wars
Burgundian Wars
The Burgundian Wars were a conflict between the Dukes of Burgundy and the Kings of France, later involving the Old Swiss Confederacy, which would play a decisive role. Open war broke out in 1474, and in the following years the Duke of Burgundy, Charles the Bold, was defeated three times on the...
in 1476 and 1477 against Charles the Bold. In 1501, the mayor swore allegiance to the Swiss Confederation, and this caused repeated conflict with neighboring Rheinfelden
Rheinfelden
Rheinfelden is a municipality in the canton of Aargau in Switzerland, seat of the district of Rheinfelden. It is located 15 kilometres east of Basel. The name means the fields of the Rhine, as the town is located on the Hochrhein. It is home to Feldschlösschen, the most popular beer in...
, which belonged to the Habsburg
Habsburg
The House of Habsburg , also found as Hapsburg, and also known as House of Austria is one of the most important royal houses of Europe and is best known for being an origin of all of the formally elected Holy Roman Emperors between 1438 and 1740, as well as rulers of the Austrian Empire and...
s.
In the 17th century, Liestal rebelled against Basel as part of the Farmers' Rebellion and was occupied by troops from that city. Three leaders of the rebellion were beheaded in Basel.
In 1789, the town enthusiastically hailed the French call for freedom and equality. It celebrated Napoleon, when he traveled through town in 1797. After his fall, the earlier subjection to Basel was re-established.
The French July Revolution
July Revolution
The French Revolution of 1830, also known as the July Revolution or in French, saw the overthrow of King Charles X of France, the French Bourbon monarch, and the ascent of his cousin Louis-Philippe, Duke of Orléans, who himself, after 18 precarious years on the throne, would in turn be overthrown...
of 1830 also caused upheaval in Liestal. A provisional government was established, and the town was chosen as the capital of a new canton on March 17, 1832.
Geography
Liestal has an area, , of 18.19 square kilometres (7 sq mi). Of this area, 2.99 km² (1.2 sq mi) or 16.4% is used for agricultural purposes, while 10.68 km² (4.1 sq mi) or 58.7% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 4.35 km² (1.7 sq mi) or 23.9% is settled (buildings or roads), 0.1 km² (24.7 acre) or 0.5% is either rivers or lakes and 0.03 km² (7.4 acre) or 0.2% is unproductive land.Of the built up area, industrial buildings made up 2.6% of the total area while housing and buildings made up 12.1% and transportation infrastructure made up 5.7%. Power and water infrastructure as well as other special developed areas made up 1.6% of the area while parks, green belts and sports fields made up 1.8%. Out of the forested land, 57.1% of the total land area is heavily forested and 1.6% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 6.7% is used for growing crops and 8.0% is pastures, while 1.8% is used for orchards or vine crops. Of the water in the municipality, 0.2% is in lakes and 0.3% is in rivers and streams.
The municipality is the capital of the canton of Basel-Country. The old town is situated on a rocky outcrop between the Ergolz
Ergolz
left|thumb|Source of the Ergolz in [[Oltingen]]The Ergolz is the main river in the canton of Basel-Landschaft. It rises on Mount Geisflue in the Faltenjura mountains in the upper region of Basel-Landschaft, on the border with Aargau and Solothurn, and joins the Rhine at Augst...
and Orisbach rivers and between Basel and the Jura Mountains
Jura mountains
The Jura Mountains are a small mountain range located north of the Alps, separating the Rhine and Rhone rivers and forming part of the watershed of each...
. The town is fan-shaped, consisting of a wide main street (Gassenmarkt) and two side streets. In the 18th Century small suburbs developed around the lower and the upper city gates. In the 17th Century the commercial district of Gestadeck developed along the canal.
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 Per fess Argent, a crozier issuant Gules, and Gules.
Demographics
Liestal has a population of . , 23.8% of the population are resident foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years (1997–2007) the population has changed at a rate of 7.7%.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....
(10,759 or 83.2%), with Italian language
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...
being second most common (660 or 5.1%) and 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...
being third (276 or 2.1%). There are 122 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 12 people who speak Romansh.
, the gender distribution of the population was 49.3% male and 50.7% female. The population was made up of 10,104 Swiss citizens (74.6% of the population), and 3,447 non-Swiss residents (25.4%) Of the population in the municipality 3,257 or about 25.2% were born in Liestal and lived there in 2000. There were 2,648 or 20.5% who were born in the same canton, while 3,406 or 26.3% were born somewhere else in Switzerland, and 3,129 or 24.2% were born outside of Switzerland.
In there were 102 live births to Swiss citizens and 44 births to non-Swiss citizens, and in same time span there were 109 deaths of Swiss citizens and 7 non-Swiss citizen deaths. Ignoring immigration and emigration, the population of Swiss citizens decreased by 7 while the foreign population increased by 37. There were 5 Swiss men who emigrated from Switzerland and 4 Swiss women who immigrated back to Switzerland. At the same time, there were 41 non-Swiss men and 41 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 80 and the non-Swiss population decreased by 36 people. This represents a population growth rate of 0.3%.
The age distribution, , in Liestal is; 917 children or 6.8% of the population are between 0 and 6 years old and 1,827 teenagers or 13.5% are between 7 and 19. Of the adult population, 1,924 people or 14.2% of the population are between 20 and 29 years old. 1,828 people or 13.5% are between 30 and 39, 2,137 people or 15.8% are between 40 and 49, and 2,705 people or 20.0% are between 50 and 64. The senior population distribution is 1,620 people or 12.0% of the population are between 65 and 79 years old and there are 593 people or 4.4% who are over 80.
, there were 5,441 people who were single and never married in the municipality. There were 5,993 married individuals, 751 widows or widowers and 745 individuals who are divorced.
the average number of residents per living room was 0.57 which is about equal to the cantonal average of 0.56 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 34.7% 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 5,450 private households in the municipality, and an average of 2.2 persons per household. There were 1,935 households that consist of only one person and 322 households with five or more people. Out of a total of 5,584 households that answered this question, 34.7% were households made up of just one person and 30 were adults who lived with their parents. Of the rest of the households, there are 1,585 married couples without children, 1,505 married couples with children There were 286 single parents with a child or children. There were 109 households that were made up unrelated people and 134 households that were made some sort of institution or another collective housing.
there were 1,470 single family homes (or 59.3% of the total) out of a total of 2,479 inhabited buildings. There were 474 multi-family buildings (19.1%), along with 301 multi-purpose buildings that were mostly used for housing (12.1%) and 234 other use buildings (commercial or industrial) that also had some housing (9.4%). Of the single family homes 141 were built before 1919, while 241 were built between 1990 and 2000. The greatest number of single family homes (353) were built between 1919 and 1945.
there were 5,876 apartments in the municipality. The most common apartment size was 4 rooms of which there were 1,710. There were 268 single room apartments and 1,538 apartments with five or more rooms. Of these apartments, a total of 5,316 apartments (90.5% of the total) were permanently occupied, while 379 apartments (6.4%) were seasonally occupied and 181 apartments (3.1%) were empty. , the construction rate of new housing units was 2.2 new units per 1000 residents. the average price to rent a two room apartment was about 871.00 CHF (US$700, £390, €560), a three room apartment was about 1063.00 CHF (US$850, £480, €680) and a four room apartment cost an average of 1260.00 CHF (US$1010, £570, €810). The vacancy rate for the municipality, , was 1.21%.
Heritage sites of national significance
The Depot of Archeology of Basel-land, the Frenkenbrücke (bridge), the Munzach which was a roman farmhouse, the roman aquaduct and the Cantonal Archive of Basel-Landschaft are listed as Swiss heritage site of national significanceSwiss 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 entire old town of Liestal is listed in 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 SP
Social Democratic Party of Switzerland
The Social Democratic Party of Switzerland is the largest centre-left political party in Switzerland....
which received 25.95% 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...
(25.05%), 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....
(18.83%) and the Green Party
Green Party of Switzerland
The Green Party of Switzerland is the fifth-largest party in the National Council of Switzerland, and the largest party that is not represented on the Federal Council.-History:...
(17.23%). In the federal election, a total of 4,243 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 49.8%.
Economy
, Liestal had an unemployment rate of 2.75%. , there were 160 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 26 businesses involved in this sector. 2,324 people were employed in the secondary sector and there were 145 businesses in this sector. 10,189 people were employed in the tertiary sector, with 824 businesses in this sector. There were 6,829 residents of the municipality who were employed in some capacity, of which females made up 44.9% of the workforce.the total number of full-time equivalent jobs was 10,921. The number of jobs in the primary sector was 50, of which 36 were in agriculture, 12 were in forestry or lumber production and 2 were in fishing or fisheries. The number of jobs in the secondary sector was 2,204, of which 1,107 or (50.2%) were in manufacturing and 896 (40.7%) were in construction. The number of jobs in the tertiary sector was 8,667. In the tertiary sector; 899 or 10.4% were in the sale or repair of motor vehicles, 348 or 4.0% were in the movement and storage of goods, 258 or 3.0% were in a hotel or restaurant, 117 or 1.3% were in the information industry, 651 or 7.5% were the insurance or financial industry, 638 or 7.4% were technical professionals or scientists, 660 or 7.6% were in education and 2,819 or 32.5% were in health care.
, there were 10,031 workers who commuted into the municipality and 3,911 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net importer of workers, with about 2.6 workers entering the municipality for every one leaving. About 5.3% of the workforce coming into Liestal are coming from outside Switzerland, while 0.2% of the locals commute out of Switzerland for work. Of the working population, 25.8% used public transportation to get to work, and 35.7% used a private car.
Religion
From the , 3,641 or 28.2% were Roman Catholic, while 5,626 or 43.5% 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 261 members of an Orthodox church
Orthodox Christianity
The term Orthodox Christianity may refer to:* the Eastern Orthodox Church and its various geographical subdivisions...
(or about 2.02% of the population), there were 36 individuals (or about 0.28% of the population) who belonged to the Christian Catholic Church
Christian Catholic Church of Switzerland
The Christian Catholic Church of Switzerland is the Swiss member church of the Union of Utrecht, also known as Old Catholic Church, originally founded by the jansenists, with a later influx of discontented Catholics following their disappointment with the First Vatican Council. It has 14,000...
, and there were 383 individuals (or about 2.96% of the population) who belonged to another Christian church. There were 8 individuals (or about 0.06% of the population) who were Jewish
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
, and 699 (or about 5.41% 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 were 31 individuals who were 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...
, 119 individuals who were Hindu
Hinduism
Hinduism is the predominant and indigenous religious tradition of the Indian Subcontinent. Hinduism is known to its followers as , amongst many other expressions...
and 30 individuals who belonged to another church. 1,644 (or about 12.71% 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 452 individuals (or about 3.50% of the population) did not answer the question.
Education
In Liestal about 4,911 or (38.0%) of the population have completed non-mandatory upper secondary education, and 1,895 or (14.7%) 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 1,895 who completed tertiary schooling, 59.3% were Swiss men, 25.1% were Swiss women, 9.0% were non-Swiss men and 6.6% were non-Swiss women.
, there were 2,096 students in Liestal who came from another municipality, while 220 residents attended schools outside the municipality.
Liestal is home to 2 libraries. These libraries include; the Kantonsbibliothek Baselland and the Pädagogische Hochschule in Liestal. There was a combined total of 249,271 books or other media in the libraries, and in the same year a total of 757,718 items were loaned out.
Customs
Mardi Gras
The terms "Mardi Gras" , "Mardi Gras season", and "Carnival season", in English, refer to events of the Carnival celebrations, beginning on or after Epiphany and culminating on the day before Ash Wednesday...
, Chienbäse is celebrated with a spectacular parade and bonfires, from which the celebration takes its name. The tradition goes back at least to the 16th century. Other towns in the neighborhood also celebrate in a similar manner.
Other local festivals are the following:
- Santichlaus-Ylüüte
- Banntag
Twin towns — sister cities
Liestal is twinnedTown twinning
Twin towns and sister cities are two of many terms used to describe the cooperative agreements between towns, cities, and even counties in geographically and politically distinct areas to promote cultural and commercial ties.- Terminology :...
with: Onex
Onex, Switzerland
Onex is a municipality in the canton of Geneva in Switzerland.-History:Onex is first mentioned in 1292 as Onay. It became an independent municipality in 1851 when the municipality of Onex-Confignon split into the two municipalities of Onex and Confignon.-Geography:Onex has an area, , of...
, Switzerland Sacramento
Sacramento, California
Sacramento is the capital city of the U.S. state of California and the county seat of Sacramento County. It is located at the confluence of the Sacramento River and the American River in the northern portion of California's expansive Central Valley. With a population of 466,488 at the 2010 census,...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
, USA Waldkirch
Waldkirch
Waldkirch is a town in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is known as "the place of mechanical organs", where fairground organs are manufactured and played on the streets from well-known manufacturers, such as A. Ruth and Sohn, Bruder and Carl Frei .-Sights:* The Catholic Church St...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...