Châtelat

Châtelat
Country Switzerland Canton Bern District Jura bernois 47°16′N 7°12′E / 47.267°N 7.2°E / 47.267; 7.2Coordinates: 47°16′N 7°12′E / 47.267°N 7.2°E / 47.267; 7.2
Population	111 (Dec 2010)[1]
- Density	27 /km2 (70 /sq mi)
Area	4.09 km2 (1.58 sq mi)
Elevation	802 m (2,631 ft)
Postal code	2715
SFOS number	0684
Surrounded by	Saicourt, Sornetan, Monible, Rebévelier, Lajoux (JU)
Website	www.chatelat.ch SFSO statistics
Châtelat
View map of Châtelat

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

Châtelat

History

Châtelat is first mentioned in 1335 as Schestellat.^[2]

Geography

Châtelat has an area, as of 2009^[update], of 4.15 km² (1.60 sq mi). Of this area, 2.28 km² (0.88 sq mi) or 54.9% is used for agricultural purposes, while 1.75 km² (0.68 sq mi) or 42.2% is forested. Of the rest of the land, 0.11 km² (27 acres) or 2.7% is settled (buildings or roads), 0.02 km² (4.9 acres) or 0.5% is either rivers or lakes.^[3]

Of the built up area, housing and buildings made up 1.7% and transportation infrastructure made up 1.0%. 32.3% of the total land area is heavily forested and 9.9% is covered with orchards or small clusters of trees. Of the agricultural land, 2.2% is used for growing crops and 31.8% is pastures and 20.2% is used for alpine pastures. All the water in the municipality is in rivers and streams.^[3]

Demographics

Châtelat has a population (as of 31 December 2010) of 111.^[1] As of 2007^[update], 4.9% of the population was made up of foreign nationals. Over the last 10 years the population has grown at a rate of 7%. Most of the population (as of 2000^[update]) speaks German (63.9%), with the rest (36.1%) speaking French.

In the 2007 election the most popular party was the SVP which received 50.7% of the vote. The next three most popular parties were the CSP (16.4%), the SPS (10.6%) and the local small left-wing parties (10.3%).

The age distribution of the population (as of 2000^[update]) is children and teenagers (0–19 years old) make up 23.8% of the population, while adults (20–64 years old) make up 59.8% and seniors (over 64 years old) make up 16.4%. The entire Swiss population is generally well educated. In Châtelat about 60% of the population (between age 25-64) have completed either non-mandatory upper secondary education or additional higher education (either University or a Fachhochschule).

Châtelat has an unemployment rate of 0%. As of 2005^[update], there were 52 people employed in the primary economic sector and about 17 businesses involved in this sector. 16 people are employed in the secondary sector and there are 1 businesses in this sector. 8 people are employed in the tertiary sector, with 2 businesses in this sector.^[4] The historical population is given in the following table:^[2]

year	population
1850	153
1900	173
1910	213
1950	192
2000	122

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} Châtelat 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 07-Jul-2009

External links

• http://www.chatelat.ch (French)
• Châtelat in German, French and Italian in the online Historical Dictionary of Switzerland.