Simplon, Valais
Encyclopedia
Simplon is a municipality
in the district of Brig in the canton
of Valais
in Switzerland
.
The municipality is located in the Brig district, on the south side of the Simplon Pass
near the Italian
border. It consists of the village of Simplon and the hamlets
of Gabi, Egga and Maschihüs as well as the Hospiz (Hospice) in the Simplon Pass.
of the municipal coat of arms
is Argent, a bicephalous Eagle displayed Sable, crowned each Or and another Or ribboned Sable, langued and membered Gules, holding in dexter a Sword and in sinister a Sabre both Or, escutcheon Sable bordure Argent.
Most of the population speaks German
(322 or 96.7%) as their first language, French
is the second most common (4 or 1.2%) and Italian
is the third (3 or 0.9%).
, the gender distribution of the population was 47.0% male and 53.0% female. The population was made up of 159 Swiss men (45.6% of the population) and 5 (1.4%) non-Swiss men. There were 177 Swiss women (50.7%) and 8 (2.3%) non-Swiss women. Of the population in the municipality 246 or about 73.9% were born in Simplon and lived there in 2000. There were 64 or 19.2% who were born in the same canton, while 13 or 3.9% were born somewhere else in Switzerland, and 7 or 2.1% were born outside of Switzerland. The age distribution of the population is children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 25.8% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 57.1% and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 17.1%.
, there were 146 people who were single and never married in the municipality. There were 164 married individuals, 19 widows or widowers and 4 individuals who are divorced.
the average number of residents per living room was 0.65 which is about equal to the cantonal average of 0.63 per room. In this case, a room is defined as space of a housing unit of at least 4 m² (43 sq ft) as normal bedrooms, dining rooms, living rooms, kitchens and habitable cellars and attics. About 78.7% 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 116 private households in the municipality, and an average of 2.7 persons per household. There were 29 households that consist of only one person and 14 households with five or more people. Out of a total of 118 households that answered this question, 24.6% were households made up of just one person and there were 3 adults who lived with their parents. Of the rest of the households, there are 21 married couples without children, 56 married couples with children There were 4 single parents with a child or children. There were 3 households that were made up of unrelated people and 2 households that were made up of some sort of institution or another collective housing.
there were 88 single family homes (or 60.7% of the total) out of a total of 145 inhabited buildings. There were 30 multi-family buildings (20.7%), along with 12 multi-purpose buildings that were mostly used for housing (8.3%) and 15 other use buildings (commercial or industrial) that also had some housing (10.3%).
, a total of 108 apartments (55.7% of the total) were permanently occupied, while 73 apartments (37.6%) were seasonally occupied and 13 apartments (6.7%) were empty. The vacancy rate for the municipality, , was 2.49%.
The historical population is given in the following chart:
. The village of Simplon Dorf, the hamlet of Eggen and the Simplon Pass area are all part of the Inventory of Swiss Heritage Sites
.
The Hospiz was begun in 1801 on orders from Napoleon, but was not finished until 30 years later with the support of the Canons
of Great Saint Bernard.
the most popular party was the CVP
which received 69.29% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SP
(14.9%), the SVP
(12.97%) and the FDP
(1.67%). In the federal election, a total of 175 votes were cast, and the voter turnout
was 65.8%. In the 2009 Conseil d'Etat/Staatsrat
election a total of 192 votes were cast, of which 9 or about 4.7% were invalid. The voter participation was 71.4%, which is much more than the cantonal average of 54.67%. In the 2007 Swiss Council of States election
election a total of 174 votes were cast, of which 4 or about 2.3% were invalid. The voter participation was 67.2%, which is much more than the cantonal average of 59.88%.
the total number of full-time equivalent
jobs was 142. The number of jobs in the primary sector was 24, of which 19 were in agriculture and 4 were in forestry or lumber production. The number of jobs in the secondary sector was 58 of which 15 or (25.9%) were in manufacturing and 43 (74.1%) were in construction. The number of jobs in the tertiary sector was 60. In the tertiary sector; 7 or 11.7% were in the sale or repair of motor vehicles, 4 or 6.7% were in the movement and storage of goods, 31 or 51.7% were in a hotel or restaurant, 1 was the insurance or financial industry, 5 or 8.3% were in education.
, there were 74 workers who commuted into the municipality and 43 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net importer of workers, with about 1.7 workers entering the municipality for every one leaving. About 43.2% of the workforce coming into Simplon are coming from outside Switzerland. Of the working population, 10.9% used public transportation to get to work, and 31.4% used a private car.
. There was 1 individual who was Jewish
, and there was 1 individual who was Islam
ic. 2 (or about 0.60% of the population) belonged to no church, are agnostic
or atheist
, and 3 individuals (or about 0.90% of the population) did not answer the question.
). Of the 15 who completed tertiary schooling, 73.3% were Swiss men, 26.7% were Swiss women.
During the 2010-2011 school year there were a total of 13 students in the Simplon school system. The education system
in the Canton of Valais allows young children to attend one year of non-obligatory Kindergarten
. During that school year, there were no kindergarten classes (KG1 or KG2) and there were no kindergarten students. The canton's school system requires students to attend six years of primary school. In Simplon there were a total of 2 classes and 13 students in the primary school. The secondary school
program consists of three lower, obligatory years of schooling (orientation classes), followed by three to five years of optional, advanced schools. All the lower secondary students from Simplon attend their school in a neighboring municipality. All the upper secondary students attended school in another municipality.
, there was one student in Simplon who came from another municipality, while 2 residents attended schools outside the municipality.
Josef Escher
was born in Simplon.
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 Brig 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 Valais
Valais
The Valais is one of the 26 cantons of Switzerland in the southwestern part of the country, around the valley of the Rhône from its headwaters to Lake Geneva, separating the Pennine Alps from the Bernese Alps. The canton is one of the drier parts of Switzerland in its central Rhône valley...
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
Simplon is first mentioned in 1267 as Simpilion. In 1285 it was mentioned as Xeinplon.Geography
Simplon has an area, , of 90.9 square kilometre. Of this area, 21.5% is used for agricultural purposes, while 12.3% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 1.0% is settled (buildings or roads) and 65.2% is unproductive land.The municipality is located in the Brig district, on the south side of the Simplon Pass
Simplon Pass
Simplon Pass is a high mountain pass between the Pennine Alps and the Lepontine Alps in Switzerland. It connects Brig in the canton of Valais with Domodossola in Piedmont . The pass itself and the villages on each side of it, such as Gondo, are in Switzerland...
near the Italian
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
border. It consists of the village of Simplon 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 Gabi, Egga and Maschihüs as well as the Hospiz (Hospice) in the Simplon Pass.
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 Argent, a bicephalous Eagle displayed Sable, crowned each Or and another Or ribboned Sable, langued and membered Gules, holding in dexter a Sword and in sinister a Sabre both Or, escutcheon Sable bordure Argent.
Demographics
Simplon has a population of . , 2.9% of the population are resident foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years (1999–2009 ) the population has changed at a rate of -6.2%. It has changed at a rate of -4.6% due to migration and at a rate of -3.2% due to births and deaths.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....
(322 or 96.7%) as their first language, 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...
is the second most common (4 or 1.2%) and 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...
is the third (3 or 0.9%).
, the gender distribution of the population was 47.0% male and 53.0% female. The population was made up of 159 Swiss men (45.6% of the population) and 5 (1.4%) non-Swiss men. There were 177 Swiss women (50.7%) and 8 (2.3%) non-Swiss women. Of the population in the municipality 246 or about 73.9% were born in Simplon and lived there in 2000. There were 64 or 19.2% who were born in the same canton, while 13 or 3.9% were born somewhere else in Switzerland, and 7 or 2.1% were born outside of Switzerland. The age distribution of the population is children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 25.8% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 57.1% and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 17.1%.
, there were 146 people who were single and never married in the municipality. There were 164 married individuals, 19 widows or widowers and 4 individuals who are divorced.
the average number of residents per living room was 0.65 which is about equal to the cantonal average of 0.63 per room. In this case, a room is defined as space of a housing unit of at least 4 m² (43 sq ft) as normal bedrooms, dining rooms, living rooms, kitchens and habitable cellars and attics. About 78.7% 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 116 private households in the municipality, and an average of 2.7 persons per household. There were 29 households that consist of only one person and 14 households with five or more people. Out of a total of 118 households that answered this question, 24.6% were households made up of just one person and there were 3 adults who lived with their parents. Of the rest of the households, there are 21 married couples without children, 56 married couples with children There were 4 single parents with a child or children. There were 3 households that were made up of unrelated people and 2 households that were made up of some sort of institution or another collective housing.
there were 88 single family homes (or 60.7% of the total) out of a total of 145 inhabited buildings. There were 30 multi-family buildings (20.7%), along with 12 multi-purpose buildings that were mostly used for housing (8.3%) and 15 other use buildings (commercial or industrial) that also had some housing (10.3%).
, a total of 108 apartments (55.7% of the total) were permanently occupied, while 73 apartments (37.6%) were seasonally occupied and 13 apartments (6.7%) were empty. The vacancy rate for the municipality, , was 2.49%.
The historical population is given in the following chart:
Heritage sites of national significance
The old Hospiz (Hospice for travelers over the Simplon Pass) is listed as a 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 village of Simplon Dorf, the hamlet of Eggen and the Simplon Pass area are all part of 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:...
.
The Hospiz was begun in 1801 on orders from Napoleon, but was not finished until 30 years later with the support of the Canons
Canon (priest)
A canon is a priest or minister who is a member of certain bodies of the Christian clergy subject to an ecclesiastical rule ....
of Great Saint Bernard.
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 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 69.29% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SP
Social Democratic Party of Switzerland
The Social Democratic Party of Switzerland is the largest centre-left political party in Switzerland....
(14.9%), 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...
(12.97%) and 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....
(1.67%). In the federal election, a total of 175 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 65.8%. In the 2009 Conseil d'Etat/Staatsrat
Conseil d'Etat (Switzerland)
In Switzerland, Conseil d'Etat is the name of the council constituting the cantonal government of French-speaking cantons. It is not to be confused with the Conseil des États which is a chamber of the Swiss parliament....
election a total of 192 votes were cast, of which 9 or about 4.7% were invalid. The voter participation was 71.4%, which is much more than the cantonal average of 54.67%. In the 2007 Swiss Council of States election
Swiss Council of States election, 2007
Elections were held to the Council of States of Switzerland in October and November 2007 as part of the 2007 federal election. All 46 members of the Council of States were elected from all cantons of Switzerland. The first round was held on 21 October...
election a total of 174 votes were cast, of which 4 or about 2.3% were invalid. The voter participation was 67.2%, which is much more than the cantonal average of 59.88%.
Economy
, Simplon had an unemployment rate of 0.2%. , there were 42 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 22 businesses involved in this sector. 59 people were employed in the secondary sector and there were 7 businesses in this sector. 78 people were employed in the tertiary sector, with 19 businesses in this sector. There were 175 residents of the municipality who were employed in some capacity, of which females made up 38.9% of the workforce.the total number of full-time equivalent
Full-time equivalent
Full-time equivalent , is a unit to measure employed persons or students in a way that makes them comparable although they may work or study a different number of hours per week. FTE is often used to measure a worker's involvement in a project, or to track cost reductions in an organization...
jobs was 142. The number of jobs in the primary sector was 24, of which 19 were in agriculture and 4 were in forestry or lumber production. The number of jobs in the secondary sector was 58 of which 15 or (25.9%) were in manufacturing and 43 (74.1%) were in construction. The number of jobs in the tertiary sector was 60. In the tertiary sector; 7 or 11.7% were in the sale or repair of motor vehicles, 4 or 6.7% were in the movement and storage of goods, 31 or 51.7% were in a hotel or restaurant, 1 was the insurance or financial industry, 5 or 8.3% were in education.
, there were 74 workers who commuted into the municipality and 43 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net importer of workers, with about 1.7 workers entering the municipality for every one leaving. About 43.2% of the workforce coming into Simplon are coming from outside Switzerland. Of the working population, 10.9% used public transportation to get to work, and 31.4% used a private car.
Religion
From the , 319 or 95.8% were Roman Catholic, while 7 or 2.1% 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...
. There was 1 individual who was Jewish
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
, and there was 1 individual who was Islam
Islam
Islam . The most common are and . : Arabic pronunciation varies regionally. The first vowel ranges from ~~. The second vowel ranges from ~~~...
ic. 2 (or about 0.60% 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 3 individuals (or about 0.90% of the population) did not answer the question.
Education
In Simplon about 97 or (29.1%) of the population have completed non-mandatory upper secondary education, and 15 or (4.5%) 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 15 who completed tertiary schooling, 73.3% were Swiss men, 26.7% were Swiss women.
During the 2010-2011 school year there were a total of 13 students in the Simplon school system. The education system
Education in Switzerland
The education system in Switzerland is very diverse, because the constitution of Switzerland delegates the authority for the school system mainly to the cantons...
in the Canton of Valais allows young children to attend one year of non-obligatory Kindergarten
Kindergarten
A kindergarten is a preschool educational institution for children. The term was created by Friedrich Fröbel for the play and activity institute that he created in 1837 in Bad Blankenburg as a social experience for children for their transition from home to school...
. During that school year, there were no kindergarten classes (KG1 or KG2) and there were no kindergarten students. The canton's school system requires students to attend six years of primary school. In Simplon there were a total of 2 classes and 13 students in the primary school. The secondary school
Secondary school
Secondary school is a term used to describe an educational institution where the final stage of schooling, known as secondary education and usually compulsory up to a specified age, takes place...
program consists of three lower, obligatory years of schooling (orientation classes), followed by three to five years of optional, advanced schools. All the lower secondary students from Simplon attend their school in a neighboring municipality. All the upper secondary students attended school in another municipality.
, there was one student in Simplon who came from another municipality, while 2 residents attended schools outside the municipality.
Notable residents
The former member of the Swiss Federal CouncilSwiss Federal Council
The Federal Council is the seven-member executive council which constitutes the federal government of Switzerland and serves as the Swiss collective head of state....
Josef Escher
Josef Escher
Josef Escher was a Swiss politician and member of the Swiss Federal Council .He was elected to the Federal Council of Switzerland on September 14, 1950 and died during his time in office on December 9, 1954. He was affiliated to the Christian Democratic People's Party of Switzerland...
was born in Simplon.