Diesse

Diesse is also an abbreviation for the Italian party Democratici di Sinistra

Diesse
Country Switzerland Canton Bern District Jura bernois 47°7′N 7°7′E / 47.117°N 7.117°E / 47.117; 7.117Coordinates: 47°7′N 7°7′E / 47.117°N 7.117°E / 47.117; 7.117
Population	444 (Dec 2010)[1]
- Density	47 /km2 (121 /sq mi)
Area	9.48 km2 (3.66 sq mi)
Elevation	838 m (2,749 ft)
Postal code	2517
SFOS number	0721
Surrounded by	Prêles, Lamboing, Nods
Website	www.diesse.ch SFSO statistics
Diesse
View map of Diesse

Diesse is a municipality in the Jura bernois administrative district in the canton of Bern in Switzerland, located in the French-speaking Bernese Jura (Jura Bernois).

History

Diesse is first mentioned in 1178 as Diesse. In German it was known as Tess though this is no longer commonly used.^[2]

Geography

Diesse has an area, as of 2009^[update], of 9.48 km² (3.66 sq mi). Of this area, 4.54 km² (1.75 sq mi) or 47.9% is used for agricultural purposes, while 4.47 km² (1.73 sq mi) or 47.2% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 0.43 km² (0.17 sq mi) or 4.5% is settled (buildings or roads) and 0.01 km² (2.5 acres) or 0.1% is unproductive land.^[3]

Of the built up area, housing and buildings made up 1.5% and transportation infrastructure made up 2.3%. 43.0% of the total land area is heavily forested and 4.1% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 21.9% is used for growing crops and 10.5% is pastures and 15.2% is used for alpine pastures.^[3]

Demographics

Diesse has a population (as of 31 December 2010) of 444.^[1] As of 2007^[update], 5.0% of the population was made up of foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years the population has decreased at a rate of -6.7%. Most of the population (as of 2000^[update]) speaks French (88.3%), with German being second most common ( 9.5%) and Spanish being third ( 1.2%).

In the 2007 election the most popular party was the SVP which received 30.6% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the SPS (26.2%), the Green Party (21.3%) and the FDP (13.5%).

The age distribution of the population (as of 2000^[update]) is children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 28.2% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 57.5% and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 14.3%. The entire Swiss population is generally well educated. In Diesse about 74.1% of the population (between age 25-64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either university or a Fachhochschule).

Diesse has an unemployment rate of 1.57%. As of 2005^[update], there were 25 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 10 businesses involved in this sector. 17 people are employed in the secondary sector and there are 9 businesses in this sector. 66 people are employed in the tertiary sector, with 12 businesses in this sector.^[4] The historical population is given in the following table:^[2]

year	population
1800	258
1850	408
1900	387
1950	325
1970	277
2000	419

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Swiss Federal Statistical Office - STAT-TAB, online database – Datenwürfel für Thema 01.2 - Bevölkerungsstand und -bewegung (German) accessed 29 September
2. ^ ^{a b} Diesse in German, French and Italian in the online Historical Dictionary of Switzerland.
3. ^ ^{a b} Swiss Federal Statistical Office-Land Use Statistics 2009 data (German) accessed 25 March 2010
4. ^ Swiss Federal Statistical Office accessed 08-Jul-2009

External links

• Diesse in German, French and Italian in the online Historical Dictionary of Switzerland.