Ardez

Ardez

Coat of arms
Ardez
Coordinates: 46°46′N 10°12′E / 46.767°N 10.200°E / 46.767; 10.200Coordinates: 46°46′N 10°12′E / 46.767°N 10.200°E / 46.767; 10.200
Country Switzerland
Canton Graubünden
District Inn
Area[1]
  Total 61.39 km2 (23.70 sq mi)
Elevation 1,467 m (4,813 ft)
Population (Dec 2014[2])
  Total 427
  Density 7.0/km2 (18/sq mi)
Postal code 7546
SFOS number 3741
Surrounded by Ftan, Galtür (Austria), Guarda, Lavin, Tarasp, Zernez
Website www.ardez.ch
SFSO statistics
Sgraffito decorated house in Ardez

Ardez ( [ɐrˈdɛts] ) is a municipality in the district of Inn in the canton of Graubünden in eastern Switzerland. The village is located in the Lower Engadin valley.

History

Ardez is first mentioned in 840 as Ardezis. In to the 19th Century it was known by the German name of Steinsberg.[3]

Geography

Village center

Ardez has an area, as of 2006, of 61.4 km2 (23.7 sq mi). Of this area, 29.7% is used for agricultural purposes, while 20% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 0.8% is settled (buildings or roads) and the remainder (49.5%) is non-productive (rivers, glaciers or mountains).[4]

The municipality is located in the Sur Tasna sub-district of the Inn district, with the village on the left bank of the Inn river. It consists of the village of Ardez and the hamlets of Bos-cha and Sur En.

Demographics

Street in Ardez

Ardez has a population (as of 31 December 2014) of 427.[2] As of 2007, 9.8% of the population was made up of foreign nationals.[5] Over the last 10 years the population has grown at a rate of 0.5%.[4]

As of 2000, the gender distribution of the population was 52.0% male and 48.0% female.[6] The age distribution, as of 2000, in Ardez is; 48 children or 12.0% of the population are between 0 to 9 years old. 23 teenagers or 5.7% are 10 to 14, and 23 teenagers or 5.7% are 15 to 19. Of the adult population, 40 people or 10.0% of the population are between 20 to 29 years old. 55 people or 13.7% are 30 to 39, 54 people or 13.5% are 40 to 49, and 58 people or 14.5% are 50 to 59. The senior population distribution is 35 people or 8.7% of the population are between 60 to 69 years old, 42 people or 10.5% are 70 to 79, there are 20 people or 5.0% who are 80 to 89, and there are 3 people or 0.7% who are 90 to 99.[5]

In the 2007 federal election the most popular party was the SVP which received 47.3% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SPS (29.8%), the FDP (13.8%) and the CVP (7.2%).[4]

The entire Swiss population is generally well educated. In Ardez about 70% of the population (between age 25-64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either university or a Fachhochschule).[4]

Ardez has an unemployment rate of 1.08%. As of 2005, there were 40 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 19 businesses involved in this sector. 33 people are employed in the secondary sector and there are 7 businesses in this sector. 49 people are employed in the tertiary sector, with 15 businesses in this sector.[4]

The historical population is given in the following table:[3][6]

year population
1835 599
1900 612
1910 1,005a
1950 541
1960 480
1970 491
1980 383
1990 393
2000 401
^a Population increase during railway construction.

Languages

Most of the population (as of 2000) speaks Rhaeto-Romance (73.8%), with German being second most common (20.2%) and Italian being third ( 3.0%).[4] The majority of the population speak the Vallader dialect of Romansh. Romansh is taught in the village school and spoken in the municipality. Until 1900 the municipality was nearly Romansh only (1880 94%, 1900 94%). The majority dropped throughout the 20th Century (1941 84%, 1980 83%). The modern situation with languages is given in the following table:

Languages in Ardez
Languages Census 1980 Census 1990 Census 2000
Number Percent Number Percent Number Percent
German 50 13.05% 78 19.85% 81 20.20%
Romanish 316 82.51% 288 73.28% 296 73.82%
Italian 17 4.44% 26 6.62% 12 2.99%
Population 383 100% 393 100% 401 100%

Heritage sites of national significance

The Chasté (a prehistoric site, a medieval fortress and a church) and the Doppelwohnhaus (Double-house) with barn are listed as Swiss heritage sites of national significance.[7]

The Chastè site includes settlements from the late Bronze Age (Melauner culture) into the early Iron Age (Fritzens-Sanzeno culture) as well as some finds from the Roman Empire.

References

  1. Arealstatistik Standard - Gemeindedaten nach 4 Hauptbereichen
  2. 1 2 Swiss Federal Statistics Office – STAT-TAB Ständige und Nichtständige Wohnbevölkerung nach Region, Geschlecht, Nationalität und Alter (German) accessed 31 August 2015
  3. 1 2 Ardez in German, French and Italian in the online Historical Dictionary of Switzerland.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Swiss Federal Statistical Office accessed 12-Oct-2009
  5. 1 2 Graubunden Population Statistics (German) accessed 21 September 2009
  6. 1 2 Graubunden in Numbers (German) accessed 21 September 2009
  7. Swiss inventory of cultural property of national and regional significance 21.11.2008 version, (German) accessed 12-Oct-2009
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External links

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