| Kandergrund | ||||||||||
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| Population | 809 (Dec 2010)[1] | |||||||||
| - Density | 25 /km2 (65 /sq mi) | |||||||||
| Area | 32.06 km2 (12.38 sq mi)[2] | |||||||||
| Elevation | 800 m (2,625 ft) | |||||||||
| Postal code | 3716 | |||||||||
| SFOS number | 0564 | |||||||||
| Surrounded by | Frutigen, Kandersteg, Reichenbach im Kandertal | |||||||||
| Website | www.kandergrund.ch SFSO statistics |
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Kandergrund
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Map of Kandergrund
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Kandergrund is a municipality in the Frutigen-Niedersimmental administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland.
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The area may have been lightly inhabited during the Bronze age, however the earliest documented settlement was around the Castle (now ruins) Felsenburg. Kandergrund, together with Kandersteg, is first mentioned in 1352 as der Kandergrund.[3]
During the Middle Ages, Kandergrund was politically and religiously part of Frutigen. In 1833, it finally separated and became an independent municipality. At that time, Mitholz and Kandersteg were part of Kandergrun. In 1850 a church was built in Bunderbach, and ten years later that church became the parish church of Kandergrund parish. In 1909 Kandersteg separated from Kandergrund.
Kandergrund has an area, as of 2009[update], of 32.06 km2 (12.38 sq mi). Of this area, 10.5 km2 (4.1 sq mi) or 32.8% is used for agricultural purposes, while 11.83 km2 (4.57 sq mi) or 36.9% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 1.37 km2 (0.53 sq mi) or 4.3% is settled (buildings or roads), 0.25 km2 (0.097 sq mi) or 0.8% is either rivers or lakes and 8.07 km2 (3.12 sq mi) or 25.2% is unproductive land.[4]
Of the built up area, housing and buildings made up 1.0% and transportation infrastructure made up 1.8%. Power and water infrastructure as well as other special developed areas made up 1.2% of the area 32.4% of the total land area is heavily forested and 3.3% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 10.9% is pastures and 21.9% is used for alpine pastures. All the water in the municipality is in rivers and streams. Of the unproductive areas, 11.1% is unproductive vegetation and 14.1% is too rocky for vegetation.[4]
Kandergrund has a population (as of 31 December 2010) of 809.[1] As of 2007[update], 4.3% of the population was made up of foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years the population has decreased at a rate of -0.5%. Most of the population (as of 2000[update]) speaks German (91.9%), with Swedish being second most common ( 3.3%) and Italian being third ( 1.5%).
In the 2007 election the most popular party was the SVP which received 70.8% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SPS (7.6%), the CSP (6%) and the Green Party (4.2%).
The age distribution of the population (as of 2000[update]) is children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 20.2% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 66.8% and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 13%. The entire Swiss population is generally well educated. In Kandergrund about 59.4% of the population (between age 25-64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either university or a Fachhochschule).
Kandergrund has an unemployment rate of 0.54%. As of 2005[update], there were 115 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 41 businesses involved in this sector. 77 people are employed in the secondary sector and there are 16 businesses in this sector. 108 people are employed in the tertiary sector, with 25 businesses in this sector.[5] The historical population is given in the following table:[3]
| year | population |
|---|---|
| 1850 | 1,069 |
| 1900 | 1,098 |
| 1910[A] | 2,332 |
| 1920 | 781 |
| 1950 | 905 |
| 1980 | 728 |
The castle ruins of Felsenburg were built in the 12th Century, but was abandoned by 1400 and fell into ruins. Currently, only the tower and sections of the walls are visible.[3]
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