| Lüscherz | ||||||||||
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| Population | 531 (Dec 2010)[1] | |||||||||
| - Density | 98 /km2 (255 /sq mi) | |||||||||
| Area | 5.46 km2 (2.11 sq mi)[2] | |||||||||
| Elevation | 442 m (1,450 ft) | |||||||||
| Postal code | 2576 | |||||||||
| SFOS number | 0497 | |||||||||
| Surrounded by | Brüttelen, Finsterhennen, Hagneck, Ins, Siselen, Twann, Vinelz | |||||||||
| Website | www.luescherz.ch SFSO statistics |
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Lüscherz
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Map of Lüscherz
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Lüscherz is a municipality in the Seeland administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland.
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Lüscherz is first mentioned in 1271 as Luschiers,[3] however the area has been settled since at least the Neolithic (ca. 3700 to 2700 BC)[4]
Lüscherz has an area, as of 2009[update], of 5.46 km2 (2.11 sq mi). Of this area, 2.42 km2 (0.93 sq mi) or 44.3% is used for agricultural purposes, while 2.5 km2 (0.97 sq mi) or 45.8% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 0.42 km2 (0.16 sq mi) or 7.7% is settled (buildings or roads), 0.04 km2 (9.9 acres) or 0.7% is either rivers or lakes and 0.05 km2 (12 acres) or 0.9% is unproductive land.[5]
Of the built up area, housing and buildings made up 4.0% and transportation infrastructure made up 2.9%. 44.5% of the total land area is heavily forested and 1.3% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 30.4% is used for growing crops and 7.9% is pastures, while 6.0% is used for orchards or vine crops. All the water in the municipality is in rivers and streams.[5]
Lüscherz is located on the right side of Lake Biel and at the foot of Mt. Feiberg. It includes part of the Grosses Moos, a particularly productive area with nearly black soil in the Bernese Seeland, and crosses the Hagneck Canal. It includes the village of Lüscherz and the hamlet of Gurzelen.
Lüscherz has a population (as of 31 December 2010) of 531.[1] As of 2007[update], 7.5% of the population was made up of foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years the population has grown at a rate of 22.1%. Most of the population (as of 2000[update]) speaks German (94.3%), with French being second most common ( 3.7%) and English being third ( 0.8%).
In the 2007 election the most popular party was the SVP which received 55.2% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SPS (12.8%), the FDP (9.5%) and the Green Party (8.9%).
The age distribution of the population (as of 2000[update]) is children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 26% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 57.5% and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 16.5%. The entire Swiss population is generally well educated. In Lüscherz about 79.8% of the population (between age 25-64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either university or a Fachhochschule).
Lüscherz has an unemployment rate of 0.83%. As of 2005[update], there were 51 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 16 businesses involved in this sector. 22 people are employed in the secondary sector and there are 5 businesses in this sector. 68 people are employed in the tertiary sector, with 14 businesses in this sector.[6]
The historical population is given in the following table:[3]
| year | population |
|---|---|
| 1764 | 227 |
| 1850 | 403 |
| 1900 | 365 |
| 1950 | 332 |
| 2000 | 492 |
It is home to one or more prehistoric pile-dwelling (or stilt house) settlements that are part of the Prehistoric Pile dwellings around the Alps UNESCO World Heritage Site.[7]