| Langenthal | ||||||||||
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| Old town | ||||||||||
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| Population | 14,938 (Dec 2010)[1] | |||||||||
| - Density | 868 /km2 (2,249 /sq mi) | |||||||||
| Area | 17.26 km2 (6.66 sq mi)[2] | |||||||||
| Elevation | 481 m (1,578 ft) | |||||||||
| Postal code | 4900-4902 | |||||||||
| SFOS number | 0329 | |||||||||
| Surrounded by | Aarwangen, Bleienbach, Lotzwil, Obersteckholz, Roggwil, Thunstetten, Untersteckholz | |||||||||
| Twin towns | Brig-Glis (Switzerland), Neviano (Italy) | |||||||||
| Website | www.langenthal.ch SFSO statistics |
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Langenthal
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Map of Langenthal
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Langenthal is a municipality in the district of Oberaargau in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. On 1 January 2010 the municipality of Untersteckholz merged into the Langenthal.[3]
Langenthal is an educational, cultural, and economic center for the region of Oberaargau.
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Langenthal has an area, as of 2009[update], of 14.43 km2 (5.57 sq mi). Of this area, 3.43 km2 (1.32 sq mi) or 23.8% is used for agricultural purposes, while 6 km2 (2.3 sq mi) or 41.6% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 4.96 km2 (1.92 sq mi) or 34.4% is settled (buildings or roads), 0.04 km2 (9.9 acres) or 0.3% is either rivers or lakes.[4]
Of the built up area, industrial buildings made up 5.1% of the total area while housing and buildings made up 17.8% and transportation infrastructure made up 8.0%. while parks, green belts and sports fields made up 2.9%. 40.5% of the total land area is heavily forested and 1.1% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 16.6% is used for growing crops and 6.2% is pastures. All the water in the municipality is in rivers and streams.[4]
Untersteckholz had an area, as of 2009[update], of 2.83 km2 (1.09 sq mi). Of this area, 2.09 km2 (0.81 sq mi) or 73.9% is used for agricultural purposes, while 0.59 km2 (0.23 sq mi) or 20.8% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 0.16 km2 (0.062 sq mi) or 5.7% is settled (buildings or roads).[4]
Of the built up area, housing and buildings made up 2.1% and transportation infrastructure made up 3.2%. 17.7% of the total land area is heavily forested and 3.2% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 56.5% is used for growing crops and 14.1% is pastures, while 3.2% is used for orchards or vine crops.[4]
The total area of the merged municipality is 17.2 km2 (6.6 sq mi).
Archeological evidence suggests that early settlements existed around 4000 B.C. in the Langenthal area. Remnants of two Roman villae have also been identified. The first mention of the town name “Langatun” dates back to 861 A.D. The establishment of a Cistercian monastery at nearby St. Urban in 1194 brought agricultural improvements (e.g. introduction of an irrigation system) to the area. In 1415, Langenthal became incorporated into the territory of the Republic of Bern, but it remained under the landlordship of the monastery even after the reformation. The town then developed into a marketplace, notable for its textiles (made from linen). A small elite of merchants, lawyers, physicians and pharmacists emerged and turned Langenthal into a center of the liberal and nationalist movement in the early 19th century.
Langenthal’s location on the road from Bern to Zurich (completed in 1760) and on the Swiss Central Railway line (inaugurated in 1857) spurned industrial development, led by textiles and machines. Municipal water supply was introduced in 1894 and an electric utility began operating in 1896. In the 20th century, Langenthal became known for its porcelain manufacture. Despite its growth - population size reached 10’000 in 1957 – Langenthal did not consider itself a city before 1997.
Langenthal has a population (as of 31 December 2010) of 14,938.[1] As of 2007[update], 19.0% of the population was made up of foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years the population has grown at a rate of 3.8%. Most of the population (as of 2000[update]) speaks German (85.2%), with Italian being second most common (3.4%) and Serbo-Croatian being third (2.1%).
In the 2007 election the most popular party was the SVP which received 28.2% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SPS (23.1%), the FDP (22.2%) and the Green Party (10.8%).
The age distribution of the population (as of 2000[update]) is children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 22.4% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 59.9% and the seniors (over 64 years old) make up 17.7%. The entire Swiss population is generally well educated. In Langenthal about 70.4% of the population (between age 25-64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either university or a Fachhochschule).
Langenthal has an unemployment rate of 2.07%. As of 2005[update], there were 121 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 17 businesses involved in this sector. 3260 people are employed in the secondary sector and there are 146 businesses in this sector. 6470 people are employed in the tertiary sector, with 625 businesses in this sector.[5]
Noted industries in Langenthal include the construction of vehicles and machine as well as textile manufacturing.
The 29 November 2009 ban on new minarets may be put to the test in the case of a pending project to build a minaret for a mosque in Langenthal.
The Islamic community of Langenthal has announced their intention of taking their case to the Federal Supreme Court of Switzerland and if necessary further to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.
The attorney of the community has also announced doubts on whether the ban can be taken to affect the Langenthal project because the application for planning permission had been handed to the authorities in 2006, it may be argued that the ban cannot be taken to apply to this project ex post facto. On the other hand, Bernese officials and Rainer Schweizer, law professor at St. Gallen university, have expressed their opinion that the ban renders the Langenthal project obsolete.[6]
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