Pfaffnau
Encyclopedia
Pfaffnau is a municipality
in the district of Willisau in the canton
of Lucerne in Switzerland
.
The municipality is located in the hill country in the north-west corner of the canton, on the border with the cantons of Bern and Aargau. It consists of the former abbey village (Klosterdorf) of Pfaffnau and the hamlets
of Burg, Buttenried, Murhof, Nuttele, Sagen, Schuelerslehn and Sankt Urban.
In the 2007 election the most popular party was the CVP
which received 48.4% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SVP
(20.8%), the FDP
(15.1%) and the SPS
(6%).
The age distribution, , in Pfaffnau is; 484 people or 22.8% of the population is 0–19 years old. 563 people or 26.5% are 20–39 years old, and 752 people or 35.5% are 40–64 years old. The senior population distribution is 241 people or 11.4% are 65–79 years old, 71 or 3.3% are 80–89 years old and 10 people or 0.5% of the population are 90+ years old.
In Pfaffnau about 63.4% of the population (between age 25-64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either university or a Fachhochschule
).
there are 780 households, of which 205 households (or about 26.3%) contain only a single individual. 115 or about 14.7% are large households, with at least five members. there were 486 inhabited buildings in the municipality, of which 340 were built only as housing, and 146 were mixed use
buildings. There were 257 single family homes, 38 double family homes, and 45 multi-family homes in the municipality. Most homes were either two (228) or three (61) story structures. There were only 34 single story buildings and 17 four or more story buildings.
Pfaffnau has an unemployment rate of 1.31%. , there were 213 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 76 businesses involved in this sector. 213 people are employed in the secondary sector and there are 21 businesses in this sector. 956 people are employed in the tertiary sector, with 61 businesses in this sector. 48.9% of the population of the municipality were employed in some capacity. At the same time, females made up 43% of the workforce.
the religious membership of Pfaffnau was; 1,691 (70.8%) were Roman Catholic, and 378 (15.8%) were Protestant, with an additional 96 (4.02%) that were of some other Christian faith. There is 1 individual (0.04% of the population) who is Jewish. There are 61 individuals (2.55% of the population) who are Muslim. Of the rest; there were 11 (0.46%) individuals who belong to another religion (not listed), 87 (3.64%) who do not belong to any organized religion, 65 (2.72%) who did not answer the question.
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 district of Willisau 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 Lucerne 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
Pfaffnau is first mentioned in 924 as Fafanhaa/Fafana. In 1173 it was mentioned as Phafena.Geography
Pfaffnau has an area, , of 17.6 km² (6.8 sq mi). Of this area, 65.7% is used for agricultural purposes, while 25.2% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 8.8% is settled (buildings or roads) and the remainder (0.3%) is non-productive (rivers, glaciers or mountains). , 25.21% of the total land area was forested. Of the agricultural land, 62.72% is used for farming or pastures, while 2.96% is used for orchards or vine crops. Of the settled areas, 4.55% is covered with buildings, 0.23% is industrial, 0.63% is classed as special developments, 0.34% is parks or greenbelts and 3.02% is transportation infrastructure. Of the unproductive areas, 0.28% is unproductive flowing water (rivers) and 0.06% is other unproductive land.The municipality is located in the hill country in the north-west corner of the canton, on the border with the cantons of Bern and Aargau. It consists of the former abbey village (Klosterdorf) of Pfaffnau and the hamlets
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 Burg, Buttenried, Murhof, Nuttele, Sagen, Schuelerslehn and Sankt Urban.
Demographics
Pfaffnau has a population (as of ) of . , 180 or about 8.5% are not Swiss citizens. Over the last 10 years the population has decreased at a rate of -4.1%. Most of the population speaks German (94.0%), with Serbo-Croatian being second most common ( 1.7%) and Albanian being third ( 1.0%).In the 2007 election the most popular party was 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...
which received 48.4% 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...
(20.8%), 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....
(15.1%) and the SPS
Social Democratic Party of Switzerland
The Social Democratic Party of Switzerland is the largest centre-left political party in Switzerland....
(6%).
The age distribution, , in Pfaffnau is; 484 people or 22.8% of the population is 0–19 years old. 563 people or 26.5% are 20–39 years old, and 752 people or 35.5% are 40–64 years old. The senior population distribution is 241 people or 11.4% are 65–79 years old, 71 or 3.3% are 80–89 years old and 10 people or 0.5% of the population are 90+ years old.
In Pfaffnau about 63.4% 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...
).
there are 780 households, of which 205 households (or about 26.3%) contain only a single individual. 115 or about 14.7% are large households, with at least five members. there were 486 inhabited buildings in the municipality, of which 340 were built only as housing, and 146 were mixed use
Mixed-use development
Mixed-use development is the use of a building, set of buildings, or neighborhood for more than one purpose. Since the 1920s, zoning in some countries has required uses to be separated. However, when jobs, housing, and commercial activities are located close together, a community's transportation...
buildings. There were 257 single family homes, 38 double family homes, and 45 multi-family homes in the municipality. Most homes were either two (228) or three (61) story structures. There were only 34 single story buildings and 17 four or more story buildings.
Pfaffnau has an unemployment rate of 1.31%. , there were 213 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 76 businesses involved in this sector. 213 people are employed in the secondary sector and there are 21 businesses in this sector. 956 people are employed in the tertiary sector, with 61 businesses in this sector. 48.9% of the population of the municipality were employed in some capacity. At the same time, females made up 43% of the workforce.
the religious membership of Pfaffnau was; 1,691 (70.8%) were Roman Catholic, and 378 (15.8%) were Protestant, with an additional 96 (4.02%) that were of some other Christian faith. There is 1 individual (0.04% of the population) who is Jewish. There are 61 individuals (2.55% of the population) who are Muslim. Of the rest; there were 11 (0.46%) individuals who belong to another religion (not listed), 87 (3.64%) who do not belong to any organized religion, 65 (2.72%) who did not answer the question.
The historical population is given in the following table:
| year | population |
|---|---|
| 1456 | ca. 90 |
| about 1695 | ca. 996 |
| 1850 | 1,885 |
| 1900 | 1,954 |
| 1950 | 2,523 |
| 2000 | 2,390 |