Gelfingen

Gelfingen
Former municipality of Switzerland

Coat of arms
Gelfingen
Coordinates: 47°13′N 8°16′E / 47.217°N 8.267°ECoordinates: 47°13′N 8°16′E / 47.217°N 8.267°E
Country Switzerland
Canton Lucerne
District Hochdorf
Area
 • Total 3.86 km2 (1.49 sq mi)
Elevation 472 m (1,549 ft)
Population
 • Total 764
 • Density 200/km2 (510/sq mi)
Postal code 6284
SFOS number 1027
Surrounded by Hitzkirch, Hohenrain, Lieli, Retschwil, Römerswil, Sulz
Website www.gelfingen.ch
Profile (German), SFSO statistics

Gelfingen is a municipality in the district of Hochdorf in the canton of Lucerne in Switzerland. On 1 January 2009 it became part of the municipality of Hitzkirch.

History

Schloss Heidegg above Gelfingen

Gelfingen is first mentioned in 1045 as Gelvingun.[1]

Geography

Gelfingen has an area of 3.9 km2 (1.5 sq mi). Of this area, 64.9% is used for agricultural purposes, while 25.2% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 9.6% is settled (buildings or roads) and the remainder (0.3%) is non-productive (rivers, glaciers or mountains).[2]

The municipality is located below Schloss Heidegg on Lake Baldegg. On 21 May 2006 an attempt to merge the Hitzkirch and the surrounding 10 municipalities failed, when five of the eleven voted against the merger.[3] A less ambitious merger was then proposed and accepted, with the municipalities of Gelfingen, Hämikon, Mosen, Müswangen, Retschwil and Sulz joining Hitzkirch.[4]

Demographics

Gelfingen has a population (as of 2007) of 764, of which 5.4% are foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years the population has grown at a rate of 20.3%. Most of the population (as of 2000) speaks German (94.1%), with English being second most common ( 1.4%) and Portuguese being third ( 1.0%).

In the 2007 election the most popular party was the CVP which received 35.5% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SVP (23.3%), the FDP (22.7%) and the Green Party (10.1%).

The age distribution of the population (as of 2000) is children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 35.4% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 56.3% and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 8.3%. The entire Swiss population is generally well educated. In Gelfingen about 77.8% of the population (between age 25-64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either University or a Fachhochschule).

Gelfingen has an unemployment rate of 1.21%. As of 2005, there were 62 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 17 businesses involved in this sector. 18 people are employed in the secondary sector and there are 6 businesses in this sector. 65 people are employed in the tertiary sector, with 19 businesses in this sector.[2]

The historical population is given in the following table:[1]

year population
1678 381
1798 307
1850 497
1900 443
1950 469
2000 709

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Gelfingen in German, French and Italian in the online Historical Dictionary of Switzerland.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Swiss Federal Statistical Office accessed 18-Aug-2009
  3. ↑ "Die Fusion im Hitzkirchertal kommt nicht zustande – fünf Gemeinden sagen nein – auch Hitzkirch" (Press release) (in German). Kanton Luzern, Staatskanzlei. 21 May 2006. Retrieved 18 August 2009.
  4. ↑ Canton of Lucerne, Office of Municipalities (German) accessed 18 August 2009
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External links