Schwellbrunn is a 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 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 Appenzell Ausserrhoden

Appenzell Ausserrhoden

Appenzell Ausserrhoden is a canton of Switzerland. The seat of the government and parliament is Herisau, judicial authorities are in Trogen. Appenzell Ausserrhoden is located in the north east of Switzerland, bordering the cantons of St...

 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....

.

Geography

Schwellbrunn has an area, , of 17.4 km² (6.7 sq mi). Of this area, 61.5% is used for agricultural purposes, while 33.3% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 5.1% is settled (buildings or roads) and the remainder (0.1%) is non-productive (rivers, glaciers or mountains).

The municipality is located in the former District of Hinterland. It consists of the linear village

Linear village

In geography, a linear village, or linear settlement, is a small to medium-sized settlement that is formed around a transport route, such as a road, river, or canal. Wraysbury, a village in Berkshire, is one of the longest villages in England....

 of Schwellbrunn and a number of scattered farm houses. Schwellbrunn is the highest elevated village in the canton at 966 metres (3,169.3 ft). The village overviews mountains and the Lake Constance

Lake Constance

Lake Constance is a lake on the Rhine at the northern foot of the Alps, and consists of three bodies of water: the Obersee , the Untersee , and a connecting stretch of the Rhine, called the Seerhein.The lake is situated in Germany, Switzerland and Austria near the Alps...

 (Bodensee).

Demographics

Schwellbrunn has a population of 1,475, of which about 4.4% are foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years the population has decreased at a rate of -6.8%. Most of the population speaks German (97.0%), with Albanian being second most common ( 1.0%) and Portuguese being third ( 0.7%).

, the gender distribution of the population was 50.7% male and 49.3% female. The age distribution, , in Schwellbrunn is; 147 people or 10.0% of the population are between 0–6 years old. 222 people or 15.1% are 6-15, and 87 people or 5.9% are 16-19. Of the adult population, 72 people or 4.9% of the population are between 20–24 years old. 419 people or 28.5% are 25-44, and 311 people or 21.2% are 45-64. The senior population distribution is 145 people or 9.9% of the population are between 65–79 years old, and 65 people or 4.4% are over 80.

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 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....

 received 73.4% of the vote.

In Schwellbrunn about 68.9% 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...

).

Schwellbrunn has an unemployment rate of 0.84%. , there were 181 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 79 businesses involved in this sector. 65 people are employed in the secondary sector and there are 14 businesses in this sector. 159 people are employed in the tertiary sector, with 36 businesses in this sector.

The historical population is given in the following table:

year	population
1667	1,012
1794	2,436
1850	2,254
1900	1,888
1941	1,412
1950	1,515
1980	1,142
1990	1,438
2000	1,492
2005	1,455
2007	1,428

Tourism

Agriculture and tourism are the main sources of income. The part of the village between the inns Harmonie and Kreuz was listed as a heritage site of national significance

Swiss 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...

in 1995, but is not included in the newest list.

External links

• Official Page (German)