Hinterrhein, Switzerland

Hinterrhein
Country Switzerland
Canton Graubünden
District Hinterrhein
Population 71 (Dec 2010)[1]
- Density 1 /km2 (4 /sq mi)
Area  48.3 km2 (18.6 sq mi)[2]
Elevation 1,624 m (5,328 ft)
Postal code 7438
SFOS number 3691
Surrounded by Blenio (TI), Malvaglia (TI), Mesocco, Nufenen, Vals
Website www.hinterrhein.ch
SFSO statistics
Hinterrhein

Hinterrhein (Romansh: Valragn) is the capital of the district of Hinterrhein in the Swiss canton of Graubünden. The town is located near the start of the Hinterrhein River, one of the two initial tributaries of the Rhine.

Contents

History

Hinterrhein is first mentioned in 1219 as de Reno.[3]

Geography

Hinterrhein has an area, as of 2006, of 48.4 km2 (18.7 sq mi). Of this area, 22.7% is used for agricultural purposes, while 7.6% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 1.2% is settled (buildings or roads) and the remainder (68.5%) is non-productive (rivers, glaciers or mountains).[4]

The municipality is located in the Rheinwald sub-district, of the Hinterrhine district. It is a haufendorf (an irregular, unplanned and quite closely packed village, built around a central square) located on the northern portal of the San Bernardino tunnel.

Demographics

Hinterrhein has a population (as of 31 December 2010) of 71.[1] As of 2008, 6.4% of the population was made up of foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years the population has stayed stable.[4]

As of 2000, the gender distribution of the population was 57.7% male and 42.3% female.[5] The age distribution, as of 2000, in Hinterrhein is; 9 people or 8.6% of the population are between 0 to 9 years old. 2 people or 1.9% are 10 to 14, and 6 people or 5.7% are 15 to 19. Of the adult population, 14 people or 13.3% of the population are between 20 to 29 years old. 19 people or 18.1% are 30 to 39, 19 people or 18.1% are 40 to 49, and 11 people or 10.5% are 50 to 59. The senior population distribution is 14 people or 13.3% of the population are between 60 to 69 years old, 9 people or 8.6% are 70 to 79, there are 2 people or 1.9% who are 80 to 89.[6]

In the 2007 federal election the most popular party was the SVP which received 76.6% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the FDP (12.3%), the SPS (6.5%) and the CVP (4.5%).[4]

The entire Swiss population is generally well educated. In Hinterrhein about 44.8% 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]

Hinterrhein has an unemployment rate of 0.36%. As of 2005, there were 28 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 12 businesses involved in this sector. 2 people are employed in the secondary sector and there is 1 business in this sector. 11 people are employed in the tertiary sector, with 4 businesses in this sector.[4]

The historical population is given in the following table:[3][5]

year population
1781 171
1850 163
1900 147
1950 94
1960 86
1970 77
1980 75
1990 68
2000 105

Languages

Most of the population (as of 2000) speaks German (75.2%), with Italian being second most common (14.3%) and Portuguese being third ( 5.7%).[4]

Languages in Hinterrhein
Languages Census 1980 Census 1990 Census 2000
Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent
German 75 100 % 66 97.06 % 79 75.24 %
Romanish 0 0.00 % 1 1.47 % 15 14.29 %
Total 75 100 % 68 100 % 105 100 %

Heritage sites of national significance

The Alte Landbrücke (Old Bridge) is listed as a Swiss heritage sites of national significance.[7]

Weather

Hinterrhein has an average of 121.4 days of rain per year and on average receives 1,469 mm (57.8 in) of precipitation. The wettest month is May during which time Hinterrhein receives an average of 194 mm (7.6 in) of precipitation. During this month there is precipitation for an average of 14.2 days. The driest month of the year is February with an average of 45 mm (1.8 in) of precipitation over 14.2 days.[8]

Climate data for Hinterrhein
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Average high °C (°F) −1.8
(28.8)		 −0.9
(30.4)		 1.6
(34.9)		 4.7
(40.5)		 9.6
(49.3)		 14.2
(57.6)		 17.2
(63.0)		 16.4
(61.5)		 13.9
(57.0)		 9.5
(49.1)		 2.8
(37.0)		 −1
(30)		 7.2
(45.0)
Daily mean °C (°F) −6.6
(20.1)		 −5.8
(21.6)		 −3.1
(26.4)		 0.5
(32.9)		 5.1
(41.2)		 8.9
(48.0)		 11.5
(52.7)		 10.9
(51.6)		 8.3
(46.9)		 4.1
(39.4)		 −1.7
(28.9)		 −5.6
(21.9)		 2.2
(36.0)
Average low °C (°F) −12.1
(10.2)		 −12
(10)		 −8.7
(16.3)		 −3.7
(25.3)		 0.9
(33.6)		 3.4
(38.1)		 5.4
(41.7)		 5.4
(41.7)		 3
(37)		 −0.7
(30.7)		 −6.2
(20.8)		 −10.7
(12.7)		 −3
(27)
Precipitation mm (inches) 48
(1.89)		 45
(1.77)		 63
(2.48)		 132
(5.2)		 194
(7.64)		 157
(6.18)		 150
(5.91)		 166
(6.54)		 169
(6.65)		 159
(6.26)		 134
(5.28)		 53
(2.09)		 1,469
(57.83)
Avg. precipitation days 7.7 7 8.7 11.3 14.2 13 11.4 12.5 9.6 8.8 9.5 7.7 121.4
Source: MeteoSchweiz [8]

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 Hinterrhein in German, French and Italian in the online Historical Dictionary of Switzerland.
  4. ^ a b c d e f Swiss Federal Statistical Office accessed 06-Oct-2009
  5. ^ a b Graubunden in Numbers (German) accessed 21 September 2009
  6. ^ Graubunden Population Statistics (German) accessed 21 September 2009
  7. ^ Swiss inventory of cultural property of national and regional significance 21.11.2008 version, (German) accessed 06-Oct-2009
  8. ^ a b "Temperature and Precipitation Average Values-Table, 1961-1990" (in German, French, Italian). Federal Office of Meteorology and Climatology - MeteoSwiss. http://www.meteoswiss.admin.ch/web/de/klima/klima_schweiz/tabellen.html. Retrieved 8 May 2009. , the weather station elevation is 1611 meters above sea level.
This article incorporates information from the equivalent article on the German Wikipedia.

External links