Meiringen
Meiringen | |
|---|---|
 | |
 Flag  Coat of arms | |
Location of Meiringen  | |
  Meiringen  Meiringen | |
| Coordinates:46°43.643′N8°11.24′E/ 46.727383°N 8.18733°E | |
| Country | Switzerland |
| Canton | Bern |
| District | Interlaken-Oberhasli |
| Area | |
| • Total | 40.7 km2(15.7 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 595 m (1,952 ft) |
| Population (31 December 2018)[2] | |
| • Total | 4,621 |
| • Density | 110/km2(290/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00(Central European Time) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00(Central European Summer Time) |
| Postal code(s) | 3860 |
| SFOS number | 0785 |
| ISO 3166 code | CH-BE |
| Surrounded by | Brienz,Brienzwiler,Grindelwald,Hasliberg,Innertkirchen,Lungern(OW),Schattenhalb |
| Website | www SFSO statistics |
Meiringen(German pronunciation:[ˈmaɪrɪŋən]) is amunicipalityin theInterlaken-Oberhasli administrative districtin thecanton of BerninSwitzerland.Besides the village of Meiringen, the municipality includes the settlements ofBalm,Brünigen,Eisenbolgen,Hausen,Prasti,Sand,Stein,Unterbach,Unterheidon,WylerliandZaun.The municipalcoat of armsshows a black eagle in a yellow field. ( "Oran Eagle displayedSablecrowned, beaked,languedandmemberedof the first. "[3]) Formerly the coat of arms of the entireOberhasliTalschaft,this design continues theimperial coat of arms.[4]
Meiringen is famous for the nearbyReichenbach Falls,a waterfall that was the setting for the final showdown betweenSir Arthur Conan Doyle's fictional detectiveSherlock Holmesand his nemesisProfessor Moriarty.[5]The village is also known for its claim to have been the place wheremeringuewas first created.[6]
Geography[edit]
Meiringen is located in the easternBernese Oberlandregion, in a valley of the upper reaches of the riverAare,calledHaslital,upstream ofLake Brienz.It lies at the foot of severalmountain passes,including theBrünig Passto the valley of theSarner Aaand hence central Switzerland, theJoch PasstoEngelberg,theSusten Passto the upper valley of theReuss,theGrimsel Passto the valley of theRhoneand hence southern Switzerland, and theGrosse Scheidegg PasstoGrindelwald.[7][8]
On the right bank of the Aare, the municipality of Meiringen rises from an elevation of 600 m (2,000 ft) on the valley floor to the Brünig Pass at 1,008 m (3,307 ft) and beyond that to a point at 1,375 m (4,511 ft) on the slopes of theWilerhorn.On the left bank it stretches up into theAlpsand reaches an elevation of 3,191 m (10,469 ft) at the summit of theWellhorn.It includes the village of Meiringen and the settlements of Sand, Stein, Eisenbolgen, Hausen, Balm, Unterbach and Unterheidon in the valley, the village of Brünigen in the Brünig Pass and thehamletsof Prasti, Zaun and Wylerli on the slopes above the valley.[7]
The municipality has an area, as of 2009[update],of 40.59 square kilometers (15.67 sq mi). Of this area, 17.75 km2(6.85 sq mi) or 43.7% is used for agricultural purposes, while 13.27 km2(5.12 sq mi) or 32.7% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 3.04 km2(1.17 sq mi) or 7.5% is settled (buildings or roads), 0.53 km2(0.20 sq mi) or 1.3% is either rivers or lakes and 6.09 km2(2.35 sq mi) or 15.0% is unproductive land.[9]
Of the built up area, housing and buildings made up 3.1% and transportation infrastructure made up 3.3%. Out of the forested land, 29.7% of the total land area is heavily forested and 1.4% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 3.3% is used for growing crops and 17.8% is pastures and 22.5% is used for alpine pastures. All the water in the municipality is in rivers and streams. Of the unproductive areas, 5.6% is unproductive vegetation and 9.4% is too rocky for vegetation.[9]
History[edit]
Etching byHeinrich Müller
Meiringen is first mentioned in 1234 asMagiringin.Due to its strategic location at the foot of several alpine passes, the area around Meiringen was settled at least in theEarly Middle Ages.The first village church was built in the 9th or 10th century. When it was destroyed in a flood the new church of St. Michael (first mentioned in 1234) was built about 5 m (16 ft) above the old church. The current church of St. Michael dates from the 15th century and was renovated in 1683–84. TheRestiturm castlewas constructed in the 13th century, whilst theWyghus fortressin the Brünig Pass was first mentioned in 1333, though it was destroyed later.[10]
Meiringen was always the political capital of the surrounding valley (Talschaft). It was the capital of theImperialreichsfreibailiwickof Hasli. In 1275 it formed an alliance with the city ofBern.In 1311, Hasli was given to the house of Weissenburg byHenry VII.After an unsuccessful revolt in 1334, Hasli passed to the city of Bern as a subject territory in name but regained most of its earlier privileges. Under Bernese control it was the capital of the District of Oberhasli until 1798. Following the1798 French invasionand the creation of theHelvetic Republicit was the capital of the district of Oberhasli in theCanton of Oberland(1798–1803) and then the capital of the District of Oberhasli in the canton of Bern. The village was the home of theTalschaftcouncil and the regional court met at the cross street in front of the churchyard. Today it is still home to the Bernese District authorities, though many of the administrative offices and the district court are now in Interlaken.[10]
Meiringen was the onlymarket townin the valley with a yearly fair starting in 1417. In 1490 this became a weekly market. Traders from the lowlands ofLombardycame here to purchase cattle, horses, and cheese. Located at the foot of Brunig, Grimsel, Susten andJochpasses, Meiringen was a hub in the trade from the lowlands through the passes. Outside of Meiringen village the main occupation was agriculture or cattle farming until the 19th century. Originally there were sixBäuert(farming collectives) among the villages and hamlets in the valley.[10]
In the 1550s, a series of floods of the Aare destroyed the valley floor villages of Balm and Bürglen, both of which were abandoned. The old village of Unterheid was destroyed in 1762 when the Aare changed its course, though the village was rebuilt in a new location. In 1734 the Alpbach wall was built to protect against the river, though this problem was not solved until the 1866–80 Aare water correction project.[10]
The population growth after 1800 led to impoverishment and forced many to emigrate, mainly to America. Beginning in 1880, the growth of tourism brought new wealth into the valley. Increasing tourist traffic came over the roads that were opened over the Brünig (1859–61), the Grimsel (1847–94) and the Susten (1939–46) passes. TheBrünigbahn(Brünig railway) opened in 1888, making it easier for tourists to come into the valley. Following fires in 1879 and 1891, much of the village was rebuilt with tourists in mind. In 1913 Meiringen had 18 hotels with 500 beds. In 1912, theMeiringen–Reichenbach–Aareschlucht tramwaywas constructed to link the village to the Reichenbach Falls andAare Gorge,two of the principle local tourist attractions; the line survived until closure in 1956.[10][11]
In 1892 SirArthur Conan Doylevisited theReichenbach Fallsoutside Meiringen and subsequently used them as the setting for the struggle between Sherlock Holmes and Professor Moriarty in his storyThe Final Problem.[12]
During World War II, the tourism industry collapsed, so the Federal Government created jobs by opening theUnterbach military airfield;the federal armory; theSBB depot;the power plants at Oberhasli AG and in hospitals. The municipal museum was founded in 1968 and the Sherlock Holmes Museum opened in 1991.[10]
Demographics[edit]
Meiringen has a population (as of December 2020[update]) of 4,666.[13]As of 2010[update],14.2% of the population are resident foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years (2000–2010) the population has changed at a rate of −2.1%. Migration accounted for −0.2%, while births and deaths accounted for −0.9%.[14]
Most of the population (as of 2000[update]) speaksGerman(4,190 or 88.7%) as their first language,Serbo-Croatianis the second most common (120 or 2.5%) andPortugueseis the third (77 or 1.6%). There are 43 people who speakFrench,62 people who speakItalianand 2 people who speakRomansh.[15]
As of 2008[update],the population was 48.7% male and 51.3% female. The population was made up of 1,888 Swiss men (41.2% of the population) and 342 (7.5%) non-Swiss men. There were 2,044 Swiss women (44.6%) and 309 (6.7%) non-Swiss women.[16]Of the population in the municipality, 1,761 or about 37.3% were born in Meiringen and lived there in 2000. There were 1,326 or 28.1% who were born in the same canton, while 720 or 15.2% were born somewhere else in Switzerland, and 751 or 15.9% were born outside of Switzerland.[15]
As of 2000[update],children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 23.9% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 58.9% and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 17.2%.[14]
As of 2000[update],there were 1,940 people who were single and never married in the municipality. There were 2,222 married individuals, 356 widows or widowers and 205 individuals who are divorced.[15]
As of 2000[update],there were 1,968 private households in the municipality, and an average of 2.2 persons per household.[14]There were 695 households that consist of only one person and 114 households with five or more people. In 2000[update],a total of 1,893 apartments (81.6% of the total) were permanently occupied, while 337 apartments (14.5%) were seasonally occupied and 90 apartments (3.9%) were empty.[17]As of 2009[update],the construction rate of new housing units was 2.2 new units per 1000 residents.[14]The vacancy rate for the municipality, in 2010[update],was 0.28%.[14]
The historical population is given in the following chart:[10][18]
Sights[edit]
The Hotel Sauvage, theSwiss Reformedchurch with outbuildings, and theReichenbachfall-Bahnare listed on theSwiss inventory of cultural property of national and regional significance.The urbanized village of Meiringen and the hamlet of Brünigen are both on theInventory of Swiss Heritage Sites.[19]
The ruined castle ofRestiturmlies just to the east of the centre of Meiringen, and once commanded the various trade routes that passed through the village.[8]
A museum dedicated to Holmes is located in the basement of the deconsecrated English Church, located in what has now been named Conan Doyle Place. Its highlight is a detailed and authentic recreation of the sitting room at 221B Baker Street, London. The museum was officially opened by Air Cdt Dame Jean Conan Doyle, Lady Bromet, the younger daughter of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, in May 1991.[20][21]
Politics[edit]
In the2007 federal electionthe most popular party was theSVPwhich received 41.85% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were theSPS(25.15%), theFDP(12.54%) and theGreen Party(11.29%). In the federal election, a total of 1,432 votes were cast, and thevoter turnoutwas 44.4%.[22]
Economy[edit]
As of 2010[update],Meiringen had an unemployment rate of 1.9%. As of 2008[update],there were 186 people employed in theprimary economic sectorand about 72 businesses involved in this sector. 528 people were employed in thesecondary sectorand there were 55 businesses in this sector. 1,762 people were employed in thetertiary sector,with 202 businesses in this sector.[14]
In 2008[update]the total number offull-time equivalentjobs was 2,021. The number of jobs in the primary sector was 110, all of which were in agriculture. The number of jobs in the secondary sector was 490 of which 84 or (17.1%) were in manufacturing, 6 or (1.2%) were in mining and 369 (75.3%) were in construction. The number of jobs in the tertiary sector was 1,421. In the tertiary sector; 263 or 18.5% were in wholesale or retail sales or the repair of motor vehicles, 174 or 12.2% were in the movement and storage of goods, 190 or 13.4% were in a hotel or restaurant, 36 or 2.5% were the insurance or financial industry, 93 or 6.5% were technical professionals or scientists, 56 or 3.9% were in education and 339 or 23.9% were in health care.[23]
In 2000[update],there were 1,029 workers who commuted into the municipality and 560 workers who commuted away. The municipality is a net importer of workers, with about 1.8 workers entering the municipality for every one leaving.[24]Of the working population, 10.6% used public transportation to get to work, and 36.8% used a private car.[14]
Religion[edit]
From the 2000 census[update],815 or 17.3% wereRoman Catholic,while 3,134 or 66.4% belonged to theSwiss Reformed Church.Of the rest of the population, there were 49members of an Orthodox church(or about 1.04% of the population), and there were 153 individuals (or about 3.24% of the population) who belonged to another Christian church. There was 1 individual who wasJewish,and 153 (or about 3.24% of the population) who wereIslamic.There were 7 individuals who wereBuddhist,16 individuals who wereHinduand 2 individuals who belonged to another church. 270 (or about 5.72% of the population) belonged to no church, areagnosticoratheist,and another 194 individuals (or about 4.11% of the population) did not answer the question.[15]
Transport[edit]
Meiringen is served byMeiringen stationon theBrünig line,anarrow-gaugerailwayfromInterlakentoLucerne.The same line'sBrünig-Hasliberg station,on the Brünig Pass, is also within the municipal boundaries. Both stations are served by an hourlyInterRegioservice between Interlaken and Lucerne, whilst Meiringen is also the terminus of an hourlyRegioservice from Interlaken.[25]
Meiringen station is also the terminus of the localMeiringen–Innertkirchen railway,which links the village with the nearby village ofInnertkirchen.The first two intermediate stations on this line, atAlpbachand Aareschlucht West, are also within the municipal boundaries.
The lower terminus of theReichenbachfall Funicular,which links the village to the Reichenbach Falls, is located atWilligen,some 20 minutes walk, or a 6-minute bus ride, from Meiringen station. On the opposite side of the valley, acable carruns toReuti,from where a system ofGondola liftsruns toPlanplatten,at over 2,200 m (7,200 ft), via Mägisalp.
The village is located on one of the two south-western road approaches to the Brünig Pass, which provides a connection from the Brünig Pass to the Grimsel Pass, and hence a route betweenCentral Switzerlandand theRhone Valley.The other south-western approach to the Brünig Pass, fromInterlaken,passes west of the village but through part of the municipality. A third road joins the previous two along the valley of theAare,providing a route from Interlaken to the Grimsel Pass and Susten Pass.
TheMeiringen air baseis one of three mainair basesof theSwiss Air Force.It is the only Swiss Air Force Base to still use itsaircraft cavernregularly. It is located in Unterbach. Among other aircraft, it operates mainlyF/A-18 Hornetfighter jets.
Education[edit]
In Meiringen about 1,846 or (39.1%) of the population have completed non-mandatoryupper secondary education,and 451 or (9.5%) have completed additional higher education (eitheruniversityor aFachhochschule). Of the 451 who completed tertiary schooling, 63.4% were Swiss men, 22.4% were Swiss women, 6.7% were non-Swiss men and 7.5% were non-Swiss women.[15]
The Canton of Bern school system provides one year of non-obligatoryKindergarten,followed by six years of Primary school. This is followed by three years of obligatory lower Secondary school where the students are separated according to ability and aptitude. Following the lower Secondary students may attend additional schooling or they may enter anapprenticeship.[26]
During the 2009–10 school year, there were a total of 635 students attending classes in Meiringen. There were 5 kindergarten classes with a total of 91 students in the municipality. Of the kindergarten students, 6.6% were permanent or temporary residents of Switzerland (not citizens) and 8.8% have a different mother language than the classroom language. The municipality had 15 primary classes and 289 students. Of the primary students, 12.8% were permanent or temporary residents of Switzerland (not citizens) and 12.4% have a different mother language than the classroom language. During the same year, there were 12 lower secondary classes with a total of 228 students. There were 6.6% who were permanent or temporary residents of Switzerland (not citizens) and 5.7% have a different mother language than the classroom language.[27]
As of 2000[update],there were 105 students in Meiringen who came from another municipality, while 59 residents attended schools outside the municipality.[24]
Meiringen is home to theBibliothek Kapellenlibrary. The library has (as of 2008[update]) 9,916 books or other media, and loaned out 20,617 items in the same year. It was open a total of 169 days with average of 8 hours per week during that year.[28]
Notable people[edit]
- Christian Menn(1927–2018), a bridge designer from Switzerland.[29]
- Pierre Haubensak(born 1935) a painter
Climate[edit]
This area has a long winter season with 5 months average temperature more than 10 °C, with little precipitation mostly in the form of snow, and low humidity. TheKöppen Climate Systemclassifies the climate in Meiringen astemperate oceanic climate,and abbreviates this asCfb.[30]
| Climate data for Meiringen (1991–2020) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Mean daily maximum °C (°F) | 2.3 (36.1) |
4.7 (40.5) |
10.3 (50.5) |
14.7 (58.5) |
18.7 (65.7) |
21.9 (71.4) |
23.6 (74.5) |
23.0 (73.4) |
18.8 (65.8) |
14.0 (57.2) |
7.6 (45.7) |
2.5 (36.5) |
13.5 (56.3) |
| Daily mean °C (°F) | −1.1 (30.0) |
0.4 (32.7) |
5.0 (41.0) |
9.2 (48.6) |
13.2 (55.8) |
16.5 (61.7) |
17.9 (64.2) |
17.4 (63.3) |
13.6 (56.5) |
9.1 (48.4) |
3.7 (38.7) |
−0.5 (31.1) |
8.7 (47.7) |
| Mean daily minimum °C (°F) | −5.0 (23.0) |
−4.2 (24.4) |
−0.3 (31.5) |
3.1 (37.6) |
7.3 (45.1) |
11.0 (51.8) |
12.5 (54.5) |
12.1 (53.8) |
8.6 (47.5) |
4.6 (40.3) |
−0.1 (31.8) |
−3.9 (25.0) |
3.8 (38.8) |
| Averageprecipitationmm (inches) | 82 (3.2) |
72 (2.8) |
85 (3.3) |
90 (3.5) |
137 (5.4) |
148 (5.8) |
160 (6.3) |
174 (6.9) |
108 (4.3) |
92 (3.6) |
95 (3.7) |
98 (3.9) |
1,341 (52.8) |
| Average snowfall cm (inches) | 26 (10) |
28 (11) |
14 (5.5) |
4 (1.6) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
1 (0.4) |
12 (4.7) |
27 (11) |
112 (44) |
| Average precipitation days(≥ 1.0 mm) | 10.0 | 9.0 | 10.2 | 10.1 | 12.3 | 14.0 | 14.0 | 13.8 | 10.3 | 9.8 | 10.0 | 10.8 | 134.3 |
| Average snowy days(≥ 1.0 cm) | 4.3 | 4.2 | 2.7 | 0.9 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 2.0 | 4.1 | 18.4 |
| Averagerelative humidity(%) | 85 | 79 | 73 | 70 | 73 | 75 | 76 | 79 | 81 | 83 | 84 | 86 | 79 |
| Source:MeteoSwiss[31] | |||||||||||||
References[edit]
- ^ab"Arealstatistik Standard - Gemeinden nach 4 Hauptbereichen".Federal Statistical Office.Retrieved13 January2019.
- ^"Ständige Wohnbevölkerung nach Staatsangehörigkeitskategorie Geschlecht und Gemeinde; Provisorische Jahresergebnisse; 2018".Federal Statistical Office. 9 April 2019.Retrieved11 April2019.
- ^"Meiringen commune (Bern canton, Switzerland)".Flags of the World.com.Retrieved31 January2012.
- ^Wappenscheibeof 1680:Veröffentlichungen aus dem Stadtarchiv Innsbruck,1988, p. 405. Gerhard Winterberger, Alexandre Jetzer,Ordo et libertas,1982, p. 15. Die Rechtsquellen des Kantons Bern: Rechte der Landschaft,H. R. Sauerländer & Company, 1984, p. xxxii.
- ^"Sherlock Holmes success no mystery".swissinfo.ch. 19 May 2006.Retrieved8 March2013.
- ^"Meringue"(in German). Municipality of Meiringen.Retrieved8 March2013.
- ^abmap.geo.admin.ch(Map). Swiss Confederation.Retrieved8 March2013.
- ^ab"Restiturm".Historical Dictionary of Switzerland(in German). Stiftung HLS. 23 December 2011.Retrieved10 March2013.
- ^abSwiss Federal Statistical Office-Land Use Statistics2009 data(in German)accessed 25 March 2010
- ^abcdefgMeiringeninGerman,FrenchandItalianin the onlineHistorical Dictionary of Switzerland.
- ^"Meiringen–Reichenbach–Aareschlucht".eingestellte-bahnen.ch(in German).Retrieved1 October2014.
- ^"The Reichenbach Falls".The Victorian Web.Retrieved17 June2018.
- ^"Ständige und nichtständige Wohnbevölkerung nach institutionellen Gliederungen, Geburtsort und Staatsangehörigkeit".bfs.admin.ch(in German). Swiss Federal Statistical Office - STAT-TAB. 31 December 2020.Retrieved21 September2021.
- ^abcdefgSwiss Federal Statistical OfficeArchived5 January 2016 at theWayback Machineaccessed 31-January-2012
- ^abcdeSTAT-TAB Datenwürfel für Thema 40.3 – 2000Archived9 April 2014 at theWayback Machine(in German)accessed 2 February 2011
- ^Statistical office of the Canton of Bern(in German)accessed 4 January 2012
- ^Swiss Federal Statistical Office STAT-TAB – Datenwürfel für Thema 09.2 – Gebäude und WohnungenArchived7 September 2014 at theWayback Machine(in German)accessed 28 January 2011
- ^Swiss Federal Statistical Office STAT-TAB Bevölkerungsentwicklung nach Region, 1850–2000Archived30 September 2014 at theWayback Machine(in German)accessed 29 January 2011
- ^"Kantonsliste A-Objekte".KGS Inventar(in German). Federal Office of Civil Protection. 2009. Archived fromthe originalon 28 June 2010.Retrieved25 April2011.
- ^"The Sherlock Holmes Museum at Meiringen".Sherlock Holmes Society of London. Archived fromthe originalon 27 January 2013.Retrieved8 March2013.
- ^"Welcome".Sherlock Holmes Museum.Retrieved17 June2018.
- ^Swiss Federal Statistical Office,Nationalratswahlen 2007: Stärke der Parteien und Wahlbeteiligung, nach Gemeinden/Bezirk/CantonArchived14 May 2015 at theWayback Machine(in German)accessed 28 May 2010
- ^Swiss Federal Statistical Office STAT-TAB Betriebszählung: Arbeitsstätten nach Gemeinde und NOGA 2008 (Abschnitte), Sektoren 1–3Archived25 December 2014 at theWayback Machine(in German)accessed 28 January 2011
- ^abSwiss Federal Statistical Office – Statweb(in German)accessed 24 June 2010
- ^"Luzern–Brünig–Interlaken"(PDF).Bundesamt für Verkehr.Retrieved7 January2013.
- ^EDK/CDIP/IDES (2010).Kantonale Schulstrukturen in der Schweiz und im Fürstentum Liechtenstein / Structures Scolaires Cantonales en Suisse et Dans la Principauté du Liechtenstein(PDF)(Report).Retrieved24 June2010.
- ^Schuljahr 2009/10 pdf document(in German)accessed 4 January 2012
- ^Swiss Federal Statistical Office, list of libraries(in German)accessed 14 May 2010
- ^Billingtion, David P. "The Art of Structural Design a Swiss Legacy", 1st ed. Vol. 1. Princeton New Jersey: Princeton University Art Museum, 2003. 164–201
- ^"Meiringen, Switzerland Travel Weather Averages (Weatherbase)".
- ^"Climate Normals Meiringen (Reference period 1991−2020)"(PDF).Swiss Federal Office of Meteorology and Climatology, MeteoSwiss.Retrieved29 January2022.
External links[edit]
Media related toMeiringenat Wikimedia Commons
Meiringentravel guide from Wikivoyage- Coolidge, William Augustus Brevoort(1911)..Encyclopædia Britannica.Vol. 18 (11th ed.). p. 84.
- Municipality of Meiringen web site(in German)
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