Hergiswil

Hergiswil
Country Switzerland
Canton Nidwalden
District n.a.
Population 5,468 (Dec 2010)[1]
- Density 322 /km2 (833 /sq mi)
Area  14.31 km2 (5.53 sq mi)[2]
Elevation 449 m (1,473 ft)
Postal code 6052
SFOS number 1507
Surrounded by Alpnach (OW), Horw (LU), Kriens (LU), Schwarzenberg (LU), Stansstad
Website www.hergiswil.ch
SFSO statistics
Hergiswil

Hergiswil is a municipality in the canton of Nidwalden in Switzerland.

Contents

History

Hergiswil is first mentioned around 1303-09 as ze Hergenswile.[3]

Geography

Hergiswil has an area, as of 2006, of 14.2 square kilometers (5.5 sq mi). Of this area, 29.3% is used for agricultural purposes, while 44.4% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 9.7% is settled (buildings or roads) and the remainder (16.6%) is non-productive (rivers, glaciers or mountains).[4]

The municipality is located between the foot of Mount Pilatus and Lake Lucerne.

Demographics

Hergiswil has a population (as of 31 December 2010) of 5,468.[1] As of 2007, 14.5% of the population was made up of foreign nationals.[5] Over the last 10 years the population has grown at a rate of 11.5%. Most of the population (as of 2000) speaks German (91.0%), with Italian being second most common ( 2.0%) and French being third ( 1.1%).[4] As of 2008 the gender distribution of the population was 52.2% male and 47.8% female.

As of 2000 there are 2,216 households, of which 1,627 households (or about 73.4%) contain only one or two individuals. 91 or about 4.1% are large households, with at least five members.[6]

In the 2007 federal election the most popular party was the FDP which received 89.1% of the vote. Most of the rest of the votes went to local small right-wing parties (9.3%).[4]

The entire Swiss population is generally well educated. In Hergiswil about 77.7% of the population (between age 25-64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either university or a Fachhochschule).[4]

Hergiswil has an unemployment rate of 1.24%. As of 2005, there were 89 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 35 businesses involved in this sector. 666 people are employed in the secondary sector and there are 72 businesses in this sector. 2,091 people are employed in the tertiary sector, with 382 businesses in this sector.[4]

The historical population is given in the following table:[3]

year population
1769 460
1850 804
1900 1,080
1950 2,904
1970 4,364
1990 4,625
2000 4,962
2005 5,396

Sights

The main sights of Hergiswil are: an old clergy house, the church, the chapel Maria zum guten Rat, old mansion Thumigerhaus, and a glazier's workshop with museum. The workshop was established in 1817, burning down on one occasion, but is still working.

References

  1. ^ a b Swiss Federal Statistics Office – STAT-TAB Ständige und Nichtständige Wohnbevölkerung nach Region, Geschlecht, Nationalität und Alter (German) accessed 10 December 2011
  2. ^ Arealstatistik Standard - Gemeindedaten nach 4 Hauptbereichen
  3. ^ a b Hergiswil in German, French and Italian in the online Historical Dictionary of Switzerland.
  4. ^ a b c d e Swiss Federal Statistical Office accessed 04-Sep-2009
  5. ^ Nidwalden Statistical Office-Population (German) accessed 4 September 2009
  6. ^ Nidwalden Statistical Office-Municipalities (German) accessed 4 September 2009

External links