Sottens
Encyclopedia
Sottens is a former 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 district of Gros-de-Vaud 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 Vaud
Vaud
Vaud is one of the 26 cantons of Switzerland and is located in Romandy, the French-speaking southwestern part of the country. The capital is Lausanne. The name of the Canton in Switzerland's other languages are Vaud in Italian , Waadt in German , and Vad in Romansh.-History:Along the lakes,...

 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....

.

It is known for its radio transmitter for the French language Swiss radio, built in 1931.

The municipalities of Villars-Tiercelin
Villars-Tiercelin
Villars-Tiercelin was a municipality in the district of Gros-de-Vaud in the canton of Vaud in Switzerland.The municipalities of Villars-Tiercelin, Montaubion-Chardonney, Sottens, Villars-Mendraz and Peney-le-Jorat merged on 1 July 2011 into the new municipality of...

, Montaubion-Chardonney
Montaubion-Chardonney
Montaubion-Chardonney was a municipality in the district Gros-de-Vaud in the canton of Vaud in Switzerland.The municipalities of Villars-Tiercelin, Montaubion-Chardonney, Sottens, Villars-Mendraz and Peney-le-Jorat merged on 1 July 2011 into the new municipality of...

, Sottens, Villars-Mendraz
Villars-Mendraz
Villars-Mendraz is a municipality in the district Gros-de-Vaud in the canton of Vaud in Switzerland.The municipalities of Villars-Tiercelin, Montaubion-Chardonney, Sottens, Villars-Mendraz and Peney-le-Jorat merged on 1 July 2011 into the new municipality of...

 and Peney-le-Jorat
Peney-le-Jorat
Peney-le-Jorat is a former municipality in the district of Gros-de-Vaud in the canton of Vaud in Switzerland. It is in the south-west of Switzerland, close to both France and Italy....

 merged on 1 July 2011 into the new municipality of Jorat-Menthue
Jorat-Menthue
Jorat-Menthue is a municipality in the district Gros-de-Vaud in the canton of Vaud in Switzerland.The municipalities of Villars-Tiercelin, Montaubion-Chardonney, Sottens, Villars-Mendraz and Peney-le-Jorat merged on 1 July 2011 into the new municipality of...

.

Geography

Sottens has an area, , of 4.5 square kilometre. Of this area, 2.96 square kilometre or 65.3% is used for agricultural purposes, while 1.32 square kilometre or 29.1% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 0.27 square kilometre or 6.0% is settled (buildings or roads).

Of the built up area, housing and buildings made up 2.4% and transportation infrastructure made up 2.6%. Out of the forested land, all of the forested land area is covered with heavy forests. Of the agricultural land, 47.5% is used for growing crops and 17.4% is pastures.

The municipality was part of the Moudon District until it was dissolved on 31 August 2006, and Sottens became part of the new district of Gros-de-Vaud.

The former municipality is located in the Gros-de-Vaud, auf einem Plateau des Jorat zwischen Echallens und Moudon gelegen district,. It consists of the village of Sottens 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 Bez. Gros-de-Vaud, auf einem Plateau des Jorat zwischen Echallens und Moudon gelegen..

Coat of arms

The blazon
Blazon
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 pale Gules and Vert, overall a Bar wavy Argent surrounded with seven Mullets of Five Or four and three.

Demographics

Sottens has a population of 257. , 9.1% of the population are resident foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years (1999-2009 ) the population has changed at a rate of 20.7%. It has changed at a rate of 15.5% due to migration and at a rate of 4.7% due to births and deaths.

Most of the population speaks 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...

 (180 or 85.7%), with 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....

 being second most common (15 or 7.1%) and Portuguese
Portuguese language
Portuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...

 being third (12 or 5.7%). There is 1 person who speaks 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...

.

Of the population in the municipality 63 or about 30.0% were born in Sottens and lived there in 2000. There were 79 or 37.6% who were born in the same canton, while 31 or 14.8% were born somewhere else in Switzerland, and 34 or 16.2% were born outside of Switzerland.

In there were 4 live births to Swiss citizens and were 2 deaths of Swiss citizens. Ignoring immigration and emigration, the population of Swiss citizens increased by 2 while the foreign population remained the same. At the same time, there was 1 non-Swiss man who emigrated from Switzerland to another country. The total Swiss population change in 2008 (from all sources, including moves across municipal borders) was an increase of 8 and the non-Swiss population decreased by 3 people. This represents a population growth rate of 2.2%.

The age distribution, , in Sottens is; 34 children or 13.2% of the population are between 0 and 9 years old and 31 teenagers or 12.1% are between 10 and 19. Of the adult population, 22 people or 8.6% of the population are between 20 and 29 years old. 51 people or 19.8% are between 30 and 39, 41 people or 16.0% are between 40 and 49, and 32 people or 12.5% are between 50 and 59. The senior population distribution is 27 people or 10.5% of the population are between 60 and 69 years old, 15 people or 5.8% are between 70 and 79, there are 3 people or 1.2% who are between 80 and 89, and there is 1 person who is 90 and older.

, there were 87 people who were single and never married in the municipality. There were 102 married individuals, 8 widows or widowers and 13 individuals who are divorced.

the average number of residents per living room was 0.57 which is about equal to the cantonal average of 0.61 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 45% 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 84 private households in the municipality, and an average of 2.5 persons per household. There were 22 households that consist of only one person and 5 households with five or more people. Out of a total of 84 households that answered this question, 26.2% were households made up of just one person. Of the rest of the households, there are 25 married couples without children, 34 married couples with children There were 2 single parents with a child or children. There was 1 household that was made up of unrelated people.

there were 33 single family homes (or 51.6% of the total) out of a total of 64 inhabited buildings. There were 13 multi-family buildings (20.3%), along with 16 multi-purpose buildings that were mostly used for housing (25.0%) and 2 other use buildings (commercial or industrial) that also had some housing (3.1%). Of the single family homes 10 were built before 1919, while 9 were built between 1990 and 2000. The most multi-family homes (5) were built before 1919 and the next most (4) were built between 1946 and 1960.

there were 92 apartments in the municipality. The most common apartment size was 4 rooms of which there were 26. There were 5 single room apartments and 35 apartments with five or more rooms. Of these apartments, a total of 80 apartments (87.0% of the total) were permanently occupied, while 8 apartments (8.7%) were seasonally occupied and 4 apartments (4.3%) were empty. , the construction rate of new housing units was 0 new units per 1000 residents. The vacancy rate for the municipality, , was 0%.

The historical population is given in the following chart:

Heritage sites of national significance

The Emetteur National De Sottens (Sottens transmitter
Sottens transmitter
The Sottens Transmitter is the nationwide transmitter for French-speaking Switzerland. The transmitter is located at Sottens, Canton of Vaud, Switzerland. It is run on 765 kHz with a power of 600 kilowatts and is easily receivable during the night throughout the whole of Europe...

) is listed as a Swiss 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...

.

The Sottens Transmitter is the nationwide transmitter for the 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...

-speaking Radio Suisse Romande
Radio Suisse Romande
Radio suisse romande is an enterprise unit within public-broadcasting corporation SRG SSR. It is responsible for the production and transmission of French-language radio programmes in Switzerland...

. It is easily receivable during the night throughout the whole of Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...

.

Politics

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 most popular party was 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...

 which received 40.15% 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....

 (20.92%), 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....

 (14.94%) and the PdA Party (7.35%). In the federal election, a total of 70 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 43.8%.

Economy

, Sottens had an unemployment rate of 4.1%. , there were 15 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 6 businesses involved in this sector. 50 people were employed in the secondary sector and there were 2 businesses in this sector. 23 people were employed in the tertiary sector, with 6 businesses in this sector. There were 119 residents of the municipality who were employed in some capacity, of which females made up 39.5% 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 80. The number of jobs in the primary sector was 11, all of which were in agriculture. The number of jobs in the secondary sector was 49, all of which were in construction. The number of jobs in the tertiary sector was 20. In the tertiary sector; 1 was in the sale or repair of motor vehicles, 3 or 15.0% were in a hotel or restaurant, 9 or 45.0% were in the information industry, 4 or 20.0% were technical professionals or scientists, 2 or 10.0% were in education.

, there were 42 workers who commuted into the municipality and 81 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net exporter of workers, with about 1.9 workers leaving the municipality for every one entering. Of the working population, 6.7% used public transportation to get to work, and 65.5% used a private car.

Religion

From the , 37 or 17.6% were Roman Catholic, while 120 or 57.1% belonged to the Swiss Reformed Church
Swiss 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 36 individuals (or about 17.14% of the population) who belonged to another Christian church. 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 person who was 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...

. 30 (or about 14.29% 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 2 individuals (or about 0.95% of the population) did not answer the question.

Education

In Sottens about 81 or (38.6%) of the population have completed non-mandatory upper secondary education, and 29 or (13.8%) have completed 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...

). Of the 29 who completed tertiary schooling, 51.7% were Swiss men, 31.0% were Swiss women.

In the 2009/2010 school year there were a total of 34 students in the Sottens school district. In the Vaud cantonal school system, two years of non-obligatory pre-school are provided by the political districts. During the school year, the political district provided pre-school care for a total of 296 children of which 96 children (32.4%) received subsidized pre-school care. The canton's primary school program requires students to attend for four years. There were 22 students in the municipal primary school program. The obligatory lower secondary school program lasts for six years and there were 12 students in those schools.

, there were 5 students in Sottens who came from another municipality, while 28 residents attended schools outside the municipality.

External links

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