| Ringgenberg | ||||||||||
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| Population | 2,588 (Dec 2010)[1] | |||||||||
| - Density | 297 /km2 (770 /sq mi) | |||||||||
| Area | 8.75 km2 (3.38 sq mi)[2] | |||||||||
| Elevation | 1,103 m (3,619 ft) | |||||||||
| Postal code | 3852 | |||||||||
| SFOS number | 0590 | |||||||||
| Localities | Ringgenberg, Goldswil | |||||||||
| Surrounded by | Bönigen, Habkern, Interlaken, Niederried bei Interlaken, Unterseen | |||||||||
| Website | www.ringgenberg.ch SFSO statistics |
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Ringgenberg
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Map of Ringgenberg
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Ringgenberg is a municipality in the Interlaken-Oberhasli administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland. It is located on the northern shores of Lake Brienz. It has a small church that was built on the ruins of a castle in the 17th century.
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The original name of Ringgenberg was Ringgenwil. This name stems from the Old High German personal name Rinco or Rincho and the place name ending –wilari (little town). The modern name is based on an elision of Ringgenwil with the castle (burg), which was built in the Middle Ages. In 1230 Kuno von Brienz was appointed overlord of the Lake Brienz area by the German Emperor Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor, and built the castle at Ringgenberg. The noble family took its name from Ringgenberg. Johann von Ringgenberg was the most significant member of this family. He was known as “the knight who handled the sword and lyre equally well”. His songs were collected in Zurich in around 1300 in the Codex Manesse collection.
The ruin of the estate began in the time of Philipp von Ringgenberg (1351–1374) In 1351 part of the estate was taken by the monastery of Interlaken. In 1380 Ringgenberg castle was burnt and plundered and Petermann Baron of the castle was taken prisoner.
The church was built in 1670 under the architect Abraham Dunz. The imposing building stands on a hill between the town and lake.
In 1853 the separate municipalities of Goldswil and Ringgenberg were combined. A small lake, Burgseeli is located between the two villages.
It is the municipality of origin for many people with the surnames of Ringgenberg, Ringenberg, and Rinkenberg.
Ringgenberg has an area of 8.7 km2 (3.4 sq mi). Of this area, 21% is used for agricultural purposes, while 62% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 11.7% is settled (buildings or roads) and the remainder (5.4%) is non-productive (rivers, glaciers or mountains).[3]
Ringgenberg has a population (as of 31 December 2010) of 2,588.[1] As of 2007[update], 8.5% of the population was made up of foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years the population has grown at a rate of 12.9%. Most of the population (as of 2000[update]) speaks German (94.3%), with Albanian being second most common ( 1.3%) and English being third ( 0.9%).
In the 2007 election the most popular party was the SVP which received 41.8% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SPS (17.8%), the Green Party (13.3%) and the FDP (11.3%).
The age distribution of the population (as of 2000[update]) is children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 23.2% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 57.6% and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 19.2%. In Ringgenberg about 77.1% of the population (between age 25-64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either university or a Fachhochschule).
Ringgenberg has an unemployment rate of 2.3%. As of 2005[update], there were 50 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 19 businesses involved in this sector. 189 people are employed in the secondary sector and there are 35 businesses in this sector. 486 people are employed in the tertiary sector, with 77 businesses in this sector.[3]